Articles

Sex Positivity Week with CIF

By Madeleine Cerone

October 22, 2024

Did you pay attention in health class? Did your high school even have a health class? Either way, you have nothing to fear if you participated in the Center for Intersectional Feminism’s (CIF) Sex Positivity week. From September 30th to October 3rd, CIF offered a string of fun, creative, and informative events in an effort to create a more open, positive campus culture surrounding sex and sex education. 

To kick off the week, CIF hosted Body Positivity Painting in the Days-Massolo Multicultural Center (DMC) living room. Students gathered around tables, equipped with paints and blank canvases, ready to express their experiences with body dysmorphia, body euphoria, or any other aspects of physical self-perception, using art as a medium for reflection and personal exploration. Participants were offered a quiet space for artistic expression, where their fellow students supported and inspired each others’ creations. Everyone left the DMC with a new, personal dorm room decoration!

On Tuesday, CIF partnered with Survivors Making Activism and Radical Transformation (SMART), a grassroots organization that is dedicated to ending the culture supporting sexual assault on Hamilton’s campus, for a discussion surrounding hookup culture on Hamilton’s campus. Hookup culture can be fun and exciting, but there are also frustrations that come with it, especially at a school like Hamilton. During a discussion with the CIF executive board, they highlighted how the dominant heteronormative trends in campus hookup culture create challenges for people of color and those in the LGBTQIA+ community when navigating sexual experiences. Participants shared that when non-heteronormative hookups do occur, they are often perceived differently and subject to more negative judgments compared to heteronormative hookups, reflecting broader societal biases. In addition, the CIF executive board discussed how Hamilton’s small student body influences the hookup culture among upper-class students. During the event, participants expressed that as students spend more time on campus and become more familiar with one another, the hookup culture tends to become increasingly 'exclusive' and perceived as more 'scandalous.' This dynamic highlights the unique social pressures within a close-knit college community. On a separate note, the CIF e-board also discussed how Hamilton’s tiny student body affects the hookup culture of upperclassmen. During this event, people shared sentiments about how the more time you spend on the hill, the more “scandalous” and “exclusive” hookup culture becomes as people become more acquainted with each other.  

On Wednesday, students picked from a multitude of feminine hygiene products (and chocolate!) to create a period goody-bags tailored to their specific Hell-week preferences. CIF provided face masks, tampons, pads, Milky Ways and much more for participants to choose from. Unfortunately, there are not many convenient places to acquire feminine hygiene products on campus, and people who menstruate need to find extra time to go off campus for these essentials. Period products are also quite expensive, and can act as an added financial burden for struggling college students. For those of us with a uterus, this event was the perfect opportunity to get the supplies we need to be the most comfortable during menstruation. 

Sex Positivity week ended with flourish at Sex Bingo in the Events Barn! The Center for Intersectional Feminism helped Community Living, Sadove, and the Feminist Color Collective to host this annual, sensual, event. Students crowded around tables with their friends, bingo cards in hand and stampers at the ready. Cookies, candy, chips, and other snacks were provided for players to munch on while they anxiously waited for the next number to be called. The number callers provided punny entertainment (eg. “I26, that’s I as in intercourse!”, “G62, that’s G as in germination, folks!”), and each time somebody called bingo, they were invited to answer a trivia question before claiming their prize. Correct answers led to more pleasurable prizes! It was a night of laughter and learning for all.

The DMC would like to thank the Center for Intersectional Feminism for organizing this annual week of sexual positivity and celebration yet again. We appreciate the effort you put in to keep our campus safe, informed, and excited about sex culture and health!