PAP smear: Not enough young women have them

New research suggests embarrassment is stopping many younger women from taking the screening tests for cervical cancer that could save their lives.

Only 50 per cent of Australian women aged in their 20s are having pap tests regularly

Go here to see the full picture AND lets keep educating our young women

World Youth Conference

http://www.youth2010.org/

Have you had a look at the world youth conference: Here is a look at one of thier facebook posts:

Tuesday 24. Margarita Zavala, director of DIF, participated in the conference addressing gender and human rights for young people. She stated that women have more scope to advance further than their mothers and grandmothers ever dreamed; however, there discrimination is still an obstacle.

She considers migration to be an element that develops towns, but when it is seen as a threat it closes opportunities for the young.

Faiza Benhadid, coordinator of the Center for Arab Women Training and Research(CAWTAR), expressed that the subject of gender should matter to young people who live at the mercy of a global society. It would seem that conforming to norms is the only way to achieve autonomy. Adolescence is a time during which autonomy is acquired, but sometimes it arrived belatedly because of the manner in which values were instilled. Maturity varies depending on the culture and on the social norms known in adulthood.

She added that from a human right´s perspective a breach has formed between gender and culture. In this session moderated by Inés Alberdi, executive director of UNIFEM, it was agreed that the subject of gender of of global importance and that discrimination is one of the biggest dilemmas facing young people, as well as the absence of programs which provide skills needed to face today´s problems. The eradication of child labor is necessary because it lends itself to exploitation.

Go have a look: Hurrah for the worlds young people..

Gendered Violence

A quote that I like from Donna Macnamara (1986)

"Sexual violence is not an isolated event that happens to a few random individuals in a random unpredictable way. It is a logical extension of a firmly entrenched misogynist world view, either willingly adopted or imposed upon millions of people over thousands of years."

Did you know that:

• Rape is now considered a weapon of war.
• Rome was founded on the rape of Sabine women
• During the sack of Troy, women were raped by the victors
• In 1453, when Constantinople fell the women were raped by the Ottoman troops
• In 1864 at the Sand Creek massacre in the USA the women were raped and sexually mutilated by the white troops
• In 1937 when Nanking fell to Japanese troops the women of the city were raped
• In the Vietnam war ( Vietnamese call this the American war) there are many documented cases of Vietnamese women being raped by the western troops
• From conflicts in Bosnia to Peru to Rwanda girls and women have been singled out for rape
• Rape has been documented in all rescent armed conflicts including Bangladesh, Cambodia, Cyprus, Haiti, Liberia, SOmalia, Uganda, Iraq and Afganistan

The rape of women is so prevelent in conflict areas that the UN security council created the senior post on 'Women in armed conflict' in 2009 with specific mandate to address sexual violence.

COME ON MEN: STAND UP: SAY NO TO VIOLENCE

SHineSA is on Facebook

Have you visited SHineSA's FB site yet. If not here it is.

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/pages/Sexual-Health-Information-Networking-and-Education-Inc-SHine-SA/110530312326043

or Here

Are you working around relationship violence

Here is a good youtube clip if ytou are working with young people around relationship violence issues.

Help SHineSA Plan SHAW

Sex is something that is not often publicly discussed, although it is a part of our everyday lives; on television, in magazines, on billboards, on the Web. The images we see promote sexuality, but don’t teach us how to be responsible for our sexual health. Sexual health awareness is not just about preventing diseases, it’s also about open communication and acceptance of individual differences, resulting in realistic expectations .


Sexual Health Awareness Week (SHAW) aims to broaden people's understanding of sexual health and relationships, raising awareness of sexual health issues in South Australia.

SHAW preparations

for2011are about

to begin and we need your

voice!

You are invited to an initial SHAW brainstorming session!

September 2

2 – 4pm

SHine SA

Woodville Seminar Room

64c Woodville Road (parking

off of Bower Street)

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The purpose of this meeting will be to:

- define the audience of SHAW 2011 (young adults aged 18 – 30 years)

o Who are they? Where and how do they spend their time? What is important to them? What catches their attention? What makes them take action?

- determine how this year’s theme ’50 years of the Contraceptive Pill’ relates to our target audience

- identify who SHine SA needs to work with to reach our target audience

- brainstorm slogans and images of the 2011 campaign

The ideas and information generated in this meeting will then be distilled and formalized into a strategy by the SHAW 2011 Committee.

Please RSVP to Jo Brown at jo.brown@health.sa.gov.au by Friday Aug 27

Thank you!

Ejaculation without orgasm??

Many people would believe the myth myth that says 'Men always orgasm and you can tell because they ejaculate'

Well.... Men can ejaculate without experiencing pleasureable feelings and orgasm. If someone discloses that this happens to them - believe them. To hear more about this go to the Kinsey confidential podcast here.

Damage

Thanks to feministing.com for this entry

The violence so dominant in this society could find any number of apologists if personal willpower and motivation alone would undo the damage done. Someone could say, for example, The battered girlfriend can always heal herself psychologically with enough exertion and devotion to getting better. They might point to the ways in which physical therapy can do wonders for people with physical injuries, implying that mental therapy can and will accomplish the same. However, this is a fatuous comparison that insists a victim ought to be the sole person who is obligated to pick up the pieces. In this scenario, not only should this not have to be her responsibility, sometimes violence is so destructive that one never fully recovers from it.

Go here to read more

Jackson Katz

I love this guy: Jacskon Katz. A star in the sky working on gendered violence prevention particularly with young men and boys. Here is his website. He is the author of one of my favourite books ' The macho paradox - Why some men hurt women and how all men can help'

Have a look at his site. You can go here to hear him speak.

Sexual Health Podcasts

I just came across this cool site. Lots of podcasts about sexuality, sexual health etc etc.

Go here to check it out.

You will find podcasts on issues like:

• Alcohol teen brains and sex
• So sexy so soon
• What do you wish people would have taught you about sex
• and lots lots more