Sex Education, the series that debunks taboos
Giant reproduction of a clitoris, a gay couple caught in a languorous kiss and smeared feminine protections on a background of pop colors. In town this winter, you can't miss the gently provocative posters by Charlotte Abramow*. Because NetFlix has just launched the second season of its Sex education series, and on this occasion, a little sex guide. But why is this series so successful? Is it enough to talk about sex to make the buzz? It seems that it all depends on how you talk about it.
The creators of Sex education have understood this well, and approach the question with humor and tenderness while waging war on prejudices, taboos and clichés. A good way to educate young people (and not so young) on the subject, with these watchwords: pleasure and consent.
Aphrodite period thong
Sex education: sexuality education finally on the agenda
Summer 2001 in France, a law is passed providing for 3 sex education sessions per year, from school to high school. It responds to a need for young people to discuss their sexuality and feelings of love around three main axes: biological, affective and social. These courses also aim to prepare them for their adult life, in tolerance, self-respect and respect for others. A much needed project at a time of fake news and the trivialization of porn. And at a time when there is still a taboo on a function as natural as menstruation (cf. the new cases identified of toxic shocks ).
And yet… Almost 20 years later, a survey tells us that a large number of primary schools, colleges and high schools have not put these courses in place. Why are the actors of national education so reckless? What wrath are they afraid of attracting? In a country that calls itself free and secular, the question remains open. In the meantime, some young people feel lost, don't know how to protect themselves and are often ashamed to speak out. The Sex education series therefore comes to play a role that others did not want to take. And we rejoice!
A sex education manual by Charlotte Abramow
On the occasion of the release of season 2 of Sex education, NetFlix is teaming up with photographer Charlotte Abramow to play sexologists, by launching a guide that covers both anatomical and psychological subjects. Free in its paper version (but unfortunately already out of print) it is available online in PDF format . The first words set the tone: “Let’s talk ass! We don't always know how to learn about the subject... Porn is just a click away like a reflex, but it doesn't reflect reality. In the end, we ask ourselves a lot of questions. And yes, it was time. If it's not at school that you can know everything about sex without ever having dared to ask, if you don't have an available and caring big sister or big brother who knows about the subject , who will inform us on the subject without embarrassment or taboos? Parents we know, with all the best intentions in the world, are not the right people to talk about sex with their children. They can lay the groundwork, of course, but talking about intimacy with them in depth can quickly become awkward or inappropriate. You need a neutral and external speaker. We therefore salute the initiative of Sex Education, which offers itself a good marketing move, of course, but gives young people answers to the questions they are asking themselves without them having to be ashamed.
Respect is sexy
And “No, it's No”. Following the #MeeToo movement, Charlotte Abramow intends to drive home the point on the issue of consent. His little manual of sex education begins with this chapter. We can see the heroine of the series chalk in hand in front of a blackboard, recalling the rules of a consensual sexual relationship. The British series and the manual address in turn subjects as varied as harassment, bullying, abortion, contraception, masturbation, STDs, racism, disability, sexual breakdown, hairiness, anal intercourse and gender identities (homosexuality, bisexuality, pansexuality and asexuality). The opportunity to kick the ass to a lot of received ideas and to uninhibit generation Z in the throes of puberty. Because you should never be ashamed of your desire and your sexuality. The Belgian photographer also concludes her manual with this sentence: “Sex can be discovered. The more we communicate, the more we learn, and the more we like it”.
*the director of Angèle's latest anti-sexist clip "Balance ton quoi"
By Elise
