The dangerous mind virus infecting schoolchildren – and how we beat it |
Porn. Pornography. Do the very words make you uncomfortable? There is something very British about the way we discuss sex: nervous laughter and raised eyebrows, the reflex to turn seriousness into innuendo.
It is a national tic – and, increasingly, a problem. Because, while this tone remains stuck between sniggering schoolboy and disapproving headteacher, our reality has moved on. This week, MP Samantha Niblett and Cindy Gallop, a sex educator, attempted to drag that reality into the open. Their newly launched campaign, “Yes Sex Please, We’re British!”, calls for something both radical and entirely obvious: lifelong sex education, embedded not just in schools but across the span of adult life. Parliament will debate this in the autumn.
It is a belated acknowledgement of how people encounter sex today. As Niblett put it, the aim is to help people understand consent and healthy relationships: from adolescence to menopause and beyond.
The........