UBC students were given a healthy dose of laughter and reality in the Chan Centre on September 28 as Laci Green, content creator for the internet’s most-watched sex education show, came to share her tips for how the have the Best Sex Ever.
Presented in accordance with the Consent is Clear campaign, Green addressed topics including sex, sexuality, gender, STD’s and safety.
As the sold-out crowd was ushered into the Chan Centre, they were accompanied by music from Beyonce to Ginuwine — a hint as to what to expect for the next 75 minutes. As Green walked onto the stage, she was greeted by claps and cheers.
“Since what we all see as the best sex ever is going to be different, I think that it would be more helpful to give you the tools that you need,” she began before displaying various genitalia on the screen for the audience to label. Filled with a lot more humour and f-bombs than your average safety talk, Green managed to include audience participation, music as well as her own well-voiced opinions and experiences.
To most, Green’s talks, which she conducts at universities all around North America, are freeing, confidence building and a breath of fresh air. Her frank addressals to some of the most important topics are what makes her so popular among students. While she makes jokes and acknowledges that many individuals in the room are uncomfortable, she emphasizes the importance of communication and the grounding reality is that what she is saying applies to everyone.
Green urged the Chan Centre audience to not feel embarrassed or ashamed about sex or sexual exploration. Her presentation involved a version of "Gangnam Style" ("Open Condom Style"), a trivia game and a live, hands-on condom application demonstration. Her slides also included graphic, close-up images — she prefers to use “real” images rather than cartoons or drawings.
“I like to be able to see what we’re talking about,” she said.
Turning to the more “serious” parts of the presentation, Green explored how various STIs can be transmitted and how to prevent them. She also sought to normalize the more common infections – one in six people in the US have come into contact with herpes by the time they graduate from college. This number so high that most don’t realize they have the disease until (or if) symptoms arise.
Finally, Green addressed the black-and-white consent debate. Emphasizing the importance of communication, she encouraged volunteers from around the auditorium to vocalize how they would consent to any sexual action. This prompted laughter and cheers from the audience. Then, she asked the audience to vocalize how to demonstrate non-consent.
Certainly, this was a more sobering experience. The final vocalization was, in fact, silence. The room was completely still — this was arguably the moment of highest impact in the entire presentation.
If Green’s aim is to promote conversation, she’s certainly doing the right thing. Oozing confidence, effortlessly funny and undoubtedly passionate and smart, her talk proved enormously effective in its efforts to educate everyone on how to have the Best Sex Ever.