I Have Thoughts: Welcome To Sex, the book I wish I’d had at 14.
Quick FYI: All opinion-based articles will now be published as “I Have Thoughts” so you can distinguish between opinion / factual articles.
THE CONTEXT
In May, Dr Melissa Kang, a well-known medical professional and medical journalist (and Dolly Doctor BTW!) and Yumi Stynes, feminist podcaster, author and journalist released a book. In late July, that book has been pulled from Big W bookshelves after parents labelled it "too graphic.”
"Welcome to Sex: Your no-silly-questions Guide to Sexuality, Pleasuring and Figuring it Out is described by Stynes as being a "frank, inclusive and age-appropriate introductory guide to sex and sexuality for teens of all genders."
Big W has revealed that staff in stores were being abused by customers unhappy with the fact it was being sold in-store.
THE BOOK
Of course, once I saw this story trending on the internet I went out and downloaded the book (because I live in the middle of nowhere without easy access to a bookstore) to see what all the fuss is about.
Some of the topics in the book include sex (obviously) including reasons to not have sex, why people have sex and why it’s so hard to talk about sex. It also dives into self-pleasure, sexual and gender identities, and relationships among many other relevant topics.
It’s honest, it’s informative and perfectly puts the information into an age-appropriate format for ages 12-15.
The book also includes many first-hand recounts from various people with different cultures, orientations and abilities.
WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING
On the internet, the authority (obviously), people have left various comments, including the following:
“Why do they want to sexualise children? It doesn’t take Einstein to figure that one out.”
“Shamelessly destroying young lives. It would be a shame in any civilised society. Sadly, there aren’t any of those anymore.”
“They have no right to interfere with parental rights, nor to indoctrinate children.”
I HAVE THOUGHTS
Attention parents who are outraged by this book: Your kids are already searching for this information and you are delusional if you think otherwise.
Without books like this, they turn to online sources to find the information they crave, where there are far more sexually explicit content, graphic information and harmful messages surrounding sex and sexuality, largely from unqualified people.
This book has been written by a qualified doctor, someone who knows what they are talking about and can give safe, accurate advice and information. The alternative is the internet, where people can write whatever they want without having to back it up, and their friends who have likely got their information from the internet.
Books like Welcome to Sex make the right information accessible for teens who often find conversations around sex and sexuality too awkward to have with parents or teachers.
Sexual education in schools covers barely anything like that what is covered in this book. It’s stuff that kids NEED to know, what they WANT to know.
Exploring sex and sexuality is a part of every person’s life, why would you not want your child to be as informed as possible as they begin to enter that exploration?
If you have a problem with the book, then don’t buy it. But it is an invaluable resource for many parents and their children. Simply don’t purchase the book and leave it be.
