National Youth Day: Key Concepts in Empowering Indian Youth with Sex Positive Attitude
All young people have the right to explore their sexualities and should be able to feel safe, respected and empowered being on their own identity without fear, shame or guilt, while respecting other people's rights and making them feel safe and empowered.
SEX EDUCATION
Let us dive into why Comprehensive Sexuality Education matters—not just in schools, but in all the spaces where young people learn, live, and grow. It’s education that saves lives, fosters consent in relationships, and empowers young people to shape their future.
Many young people grow up without meaningful conversations about their bodies, relationships, or how to make safe choices. The consequences? An alarming rise in unhealthy, toxic and abusuve relationships, unsafe and early pregnancies, misinformation, and avoidable health risks.
Sex education is more than just biology lessons—it’s about empowering young minds with the tools to navigate life safely and responsibly. But why is it so controversial in India, and how can we make it effective?
Through our Safe Space Clubs in Colleges and Universities, we unpack the myths and offer honest facts about their bodily development, changes and the emotional transitions it takes, the behavioral aspects and emotional regulation, sharing their stories of pain, perseverance, and navigating systems that too often fail them. Where do we even begin when the word "sex" itself is met with hushed tones?
Let us pause and understand different terminologies to learn, unlearn and evolve ourselves with the right knowledge.
Sexuality
Sexuality is a fundamental aspect of human life that refers to gender roles and identities, sexual orientation, intimacy and pleasure. It is experienced and expressed through thoughts, desires, emotions, beliefs, values, behaviors, roles and relationships. Being able to express sexuality freely and openly is central to being human and important to every individual’s well-being, happiness and health. These are realities and accepting them is the starting point for adopting a sex-positive approach to youth-friendly sexual and reproductive health services.
Sex Positive Attitude
Sex positivity is an attitude that celebrates sexuality as an enhancing part of life that brings happiness, energy and celebration. Sex-positive approaches strive to achieve ideal experiences, rather than solely working to prevent negative experiences. At the same time, sex-positive approaches acknowledge and tackle the various concerns and risks associated with sexuality without reinforcing fear, shame or taboo of an individual's sexuality and gender inequality.
Sexual Rights
Sexual rights are an evolving set of entitlements related to sexuality that emanate from internationally recognized human rights to freedom, equality, privacy, autonomy, integrity and dignity. Adopting a positive approach to sex is the internalization of our principle and the application of it to the work that we do at AWARE. Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution is the right to freedom of thought, opinion and expression. This article recognizes that all young people have the right to express their thoughts, opinions, needs and desires related to sexuality without limitations based on dominant cultural beliefs or political ideologies. All young people have the right to explore their sexualities and should be able to feel safe, respected and empowered being on their own identity without fear, shame or guilt, while respecting other people's rights and making them feel safe and empowered.
Why Sex-Ed is important in colleges?
Most schools in India focus solely on academic excellence, sidelining life skills and sexual health education. While some institutions have begun integrating these topics, the coverage is often superficial, avoiding sensitive yet essential areas like boundaries, consent and safety. Comprehensive sex education in schools could be transformative, equipping young people with accurate, unbiased information in a structured manner setting. As we missed this opportunity to catch them young in their schools, we reach out to these young people in their higher educational institutions.
A Sex Positive Approach to Sexual and Reproductive Health Services
Sexual and reproductive health information and services for young people tend to focus on what not to do and how to avoid infections and abuse rather than the positive aspects of sexuality. What is often missing in young clients’ interactions with health professionals is information about sex as a source of pleasure.
Health professionals may be nervous about discussing sexuality as they feel they lack the skills, feel uncomfortable, worry about being offensive or are simply constrained by time. Fortunately, health professionals already possess many of the skills needed to effectively communicate with and help young clients. In addition to listening skills, you should be aware of the most common physical and emotional problems faced by young clients in relation to sexuality and sex and be there to support and empower them.
Open communication is integral to the sex-positive approach to service provision. Having a considered attitude and talking much more openly about sexuality, including sex allows you to provide the most appropriate services and information for each individual young client.
By listening to young clients’ concerns, desires, needs and realities, you can provide information that answers the client’s direct questions as well as information that addresses related issues, whether or not they are raised by the young client.
The experience of sexuality is based upon the recognition of autonomy and individuality. Young clients may not always make the choices that you would make if you were in their position, but you should respect their choices. The bottom line is that young clients should walk away feeling confident and positive about their choices.
A youth-friendly health professional...
Accepts young people as sexual beings.
Listens and respects young clients’ sexual values, experiences, concerns and desires.
Gives open and honest information about sexual health, including information about sexual pleasure and intimacy.
Accepts that some young people are sexually active.
Helps young clients, especially female clients, understand about how inequity within sexual relationships can undermine sexual pleasure as well as intimacy between partners.
Distinguishes between his/her moral beliefs and the needs, concerns and desires of young clients.
Avoids normalizing any one kind of sexual practice, preference or orientation.
Answers young clients’ questions about sexuality in an open and honest manner.
Resources
Association of Reproductive Health Professions (2005) What you need to know: talking to patients about sexuality and sexual health. Available at: http://www.arhp.org/ publications-and-resources/clinical-fact sheets/sexuality-and-sexual-health Accessed 2 March 2011
K. Moore and J. Helzner (1996) What’s sex got to do with it? Challenges for incorporating sexuality into family planning programs. New York, New York: Population Council.
Pop Council, IPPF (2009) It’s All One Curriculum: Guidelines and activities for a unified approach to sexuality, gender, HIV and human rights Education. Available at: http://www.popcouncil.org/ pdfs/2010PGY_ItsA lOneActivities_en.pdf Accessed 2 March 2011.
The Pleasure Project (2006) Promoting protection and pleasure: amplifying the effectiveness of barriers against sexually transmitted infections and pregnancy. The Lancet, 368: 9551, pp 2028 – 2031.
Population Council (2004) The Adverse Health and Social Outcomes of Coerced Sex: Young Women’s Experiences of young women in developing countries. Available at: http://www.popcouncil.org/ pdfs/popsyn/PopulationSynthesis3.pdf Accessed 2 March 2011