Is this sort of scene what comes to mind when you think of professor-student relationships? Maybe that’s why so many universities have bans that forbid faculty from having sexual relations with students, especially after the Supreme Court ruling that universities should be financially responsible for sexual harassment suits. But in this week’s Food For Thought, our staff writer argues that the rationale behind these bans often manipulates a definition of consent that we should not be okay with condoning. Universities…are rationalizing their policies with the “there’s no such thing as consensual relationships between professors and students” approach….The reasoning behind this approach commonly involves the power imbalance argument: if Sam has significantly more power than Alex, Alex cannot consent to having sex with Sam. Before addressing this flawed understanding of consent, I’d like to point out that this thinking suggests that power balance is required to engage in a consensual sexual relationship. Assuming that relationships require a balance of power in order to be consensual is unrealistic. Thanks to the wide spectrum of biopsychosocial factors that can contribute to power imbalances—such as an individual’s age, race, class, career, religion, gender, or even past dating history and sexual experience—perfectly balanced power ratios rarely exist within relationships. The possibilities for imbalances are endless and common. Read the whole article here! High-res

Is this sort of scene what comes to mind when you think of professor-student relationships? Maybe that’s why so many universities have bans that forbid faculty from having sexual relations with students, especially after the Supreme Court ruling that universities should be financially responsible for sexual harassment suits. But in this week’s Food For Thought, our staff writer argues that the rationale behind these bans often manipulates a definition of consent that we should not be okay with condoning.

Universities…are rationalizing their policies with the “there’s no such thing as consensual relationships between professors and students” approach….The reasoning behind this approach commonly involves the power imbalance argument: if Sam has significantly more power than Alex, Alex cannot consent to having sex with Sam. Before addressing this flawed understanding of consent, I’d like to point out that this thinking suggests that power balance is required to engage in a consensual sexual relationship. Assuming that relationships require a balance of power in order to be consensual is unrealistic. Thanks to the wide spectrum of biopsychosocial factors that can contribute to power imbalances—such as an individual’s age, race, class, career, religion, gender, or even past dating history and sexual experience—perfectly balanced power ratios rarely exist within relationships. The possibilities for imbalances are endless and common.

Read the whole article here!

Does this picture look familiar to you? If you’re nodding and smiling, that’s probably because you recognize it from the famous Facebook for kinksters, Fetlife. A haven for the deliciously depraved, Fetlife brings communities together to explore BDSM, facilitating the creation of playspaces, conferences, and sexy connections. Recently, Fetlife has come under fire for a clause in their policy which does not allow members to accuse other users of criminal activity in the public forums. This includes any inappropriate or harmful behavior that members may have encountered while meeting fellow kinksters in meatspace.  [Fetlife created Baku] does not deny the murky nature of the issue when discussing Fetlife’s decision to take down the posts. He admits it is a “tough situation” but essentially gives three reasons behind Fetlife’s actions: 1) legal concerns, 2) the possibility of false accusations, and 3) fear of giving users a false sense of security… …[Fetlife user Kitty Stryker] wants users to have the capability of protecting themselves by having a blacklist for reference before meeting with other users in person, Baku is concerned that having this list will give members a false sense of security within the community and prevent them from going to the police when a crime has been committed by providing them with a more convenient method of obtaining justice in the forums. It is understandable why members might want to use Fetlife rather than the criminal justice system where there is no guarantee that members will be given a fair trial. Is this a necessary safety precaution, or a move that hurts more than it protects? Our staff writer Jaclyn weighs in on this complicated but relevant issue in this week’s Food For Thought. What do you guys think?

Does this picture look familiar to you? If you’re nodding and smiling, that’s probably because you recognize it from the famous Facebook for kinksters, Fetlife. A haven for the deliciously depraved, Fetlife brings communities together to explore BDSM, facilitating the creation of playspaces, conferences, and sexy connections.

Recently, Fetlife has come under fire for a clause in their policy which does not allow members to accuse other users of criminal activity in the public forums. This includes any inappropriate or harmful behavior that members may have encountered while meeting fellow kinksters in meatspace. 

[Fetlife created Baku] does not deny the murky nature of the issue when discussing Fetlife’s decision to take down the posts. He admits it is a “tough situation” but essentially gives three reasons behind Fetlife’s actions: 1) legal concerns, 2) the possibility of false accusations, and 3) fear of giving users a false sense of security…

…[Fetlife user Kitty Stryker] wants users to have the capability of protecting themselves by having a blacklist for reference before meeting with other users in person, Baku is concerned that having this list will give members a false sense of security within the community and prevent them from going to the police when a crime has been committed by providing them with a more convenient method of obtaining justice in the forums. It is understandable why members might want to use Fetlife rather than the criminal justice system where there is no guarantee that members will be given a fair trial.

Is this a necessary safety precaution, or a move that hurts more than it protects? Our staff writer Jaclyn weighs in on this complicated but relevant issue in this week’s Food For Thought.

What do you guys think?

Joanne Jackson put this beautiful picture of herself and her mastectomy scar on Facebook to commemorate her winning battle with breast cancer. Facebook told her it was ‘too pornographic’ and inappropriate for their website. We think it’s incredible, empowering, and well-worth sharing. Our volunteer staff writer, Jaclyn, reflects on this story in this week’s CSPH Food For Thought. High-res

Joanne Jackson put this beautiful picture of herself and her mastectomy scar on Facebook to commemorate her winning battle with breast cancer. Facebook told her it was ‘too pornographic’ and inappropriate for their website. We think it’s incredible, empowering, and well-worth sharing.

Our volunteer staff writer, Jaclyn, reflects on this story in this week’s CSPH Food For Thought.

Food For Thought:

Each week, one of the CSPH interns reviews a sexuality or gender related issue that appears in the media and reflects upon how it challenged them in ways they didn’t expect. This section is devoted to showing the growth process in becoming a sexuality professional. This week, we’re reflecting on an article that is “examining the problem of sexual abuse of kids by kids.”(Trigger-warning for discussions of child abuse)Food For Thought: Child Abuse

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