Negotiating Safe Socializing Has a Lot in Common With Negotiating Safe Sex

By April Dembosky Ina Park has been in a monogamous marriage for more than 15 years, but she feels like she’s been having one safe sex conversation after another these days. Like, after she and some close friends spent time together without masks on, forcing her to later ask: “Are you seeing other people?” Then, …

Sex, Social Distancing and the Fall Semester

By Jennifer S. Hirsch and Shamus Khan A recent behind-the-scenes look at the University of Kentucky’s deliberations about the fall semester revealed detailed plans for housing, dining and classes but contained only an oblique reference to students’ social and sexual lives: “Even if administrators could enforce the rules on campus … what about after hours?” The …

Can the Gay Community Survive Without Hyper-Sexuality?

by Devin Randall Sex. It’s driven gay society for years. Through sexually charged clubs, bathhouses, movies and more. But as we enter a new decade, will queer men be able to live without the gay hyper-sexuality that made our society for so long? The Unhealthiness of Gay Hyper-Sexuality Let’s face it, gay hyper-sexuality has been …

Stuck at home?

Now’s the time to have these important talks with your kids. By Phyllis Fagell As children witness and experience the outpouring of pain in the wake of the deaths of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor and Rayshard Brooks, they need adults to help them make sense of the unrest, says Baruti Kafele, a social …

Vibrators had a long history as medical quackery before feminists rebranded them as sex toys

By Kim Adams In the contemporary moment of sex-positive feminism, praises for the orgasmic capacity of the vibrator abound. “They’re all-encompassing, a blanket of electricity, that’ll course through your veins, producing orgasms you didn’t know you were physically capable of having,” wrote Erica Moen in her web comic “Oh Joy Sex Toy.” Vibrators today go …

13 Necessary Queer Literary Classics For Every Bookshelf

From Virginia Woolf’s Orlando and James Baldwin’s Giovanni’s Room to Alice Walker’s Pulitzer Prize-winning The Color Purple and Ocean Vuong’s 2019 debut — the queer literary landscape is vibrant, expansive and ready to be explored. By Rosalind Jana The history of queer literature is a long one. From Greek poet Sappho to Irish playwright Oscar …

Gay Couples Can Teach Straight People a Thing or Two About Arguing

Same-sex couples, on average, resolve conflict more constructively than different-sex couples, and with less animosity, studies have shown. By Christina Caron Elana Arian and Julia Cadrain, a same-sex couple in Brooklyn, recently fought about a hat. OK, it wasn’t really about the hat. (It never is.) Cadrain likes things tidy. Really tidy. To the point …

A guide to getting off to your own sexual fantasies and imagination

By Jess Joho They say the mind is the biggest, most powerful sex organ in the body. But, uh, don’t try visualizing that mental image too vividly or literally, unless you’re into that sorta thing? Instead, imagine your favorite fictional crush pressing you up against a wall, or think back to the hottest sex you …

25 Ways to Make Your Long Distance Relationship Last

Physical distance shouldn’t be a barrier to happiness.   By Nicol Natale Long distance relationships are challenging. Although you may have strong feelings for your partner, prolonged periods of time apart and a lack of physical intimacy can put any couple’s bond to the test. Deciding to commit to a long-distance relationship is an important …