Sexual responsibility is everyone's responsibility

The issue on sexual health has been something that has bothered and frustrated me for the past several weeks since TLU held Sexual Responsibility Week.

During that week, STD testing was performed and sexual health information packets, with little blue, red, orange, yellow and green packages containing condoms were avaliable. Great for anyone who wants to have sex, right? Wrong.

First off, some people have the wrong ideas about sex. Just because you lead a horse to water doesn't mean he's going to drink it. The same thing applies to condoms. Just because you give someone a condom doesn't necessarily mean they are going to go on a random sexcapade.

For those who are sexually active, it is important to get them information that is critical to their health as well as educate them on having safe sex. In high school, I'm sure we've all had the horrifying memories of our limited sex education with scary images of infected organs to scare us or the idea that we'll die if we engage in some sort of sexual conduct before marriage. I'm sure most of us have found out they were lying about the dying part.

I'm not advocating sex before marriage, and I'm also not trying to advocate unsafe sex. You can't stop someone from choosing to have sex, but providing them with materials that can lessen their chance of catching a disease is something positive and reinforces that safe sex is smart and healthy. Thus, having those little packages available to everyone, even those who abstain, will not cause them to go out and start having sex.

Second off, I've heard some very rude things come out of other people's mouths towards their friends who were brave enough and smart enough to go get tested. I can't believe some of the things they said, which included remarks like "you're only getting tested because you're dirty" or guys giving other guys a hard time by making it seem as if getting tested is very unmanly. This is not only really insulting, but it also makes the person saying these things look really dumb. Usually, the people who are not getting tested are those who are afraid to check their status because they might find out some not-so-good news. Those who are probably likely to have an STD can spread it to others because they have no knowledge about themselves.

Some people might believe they don't need to get tested because they didn't have "vaginal sex" or they show no symptoms, but any doctor will tell you that you don't have to have sex to catch an STD and some STDs show no signs. Without continuous knowledge of our status, we are critically hurting our health and maybe others, as some STDs can actually cause cancer or affect our immune system. Getting tested can be embarrassing or just another check up, but it is never "unmanly" nor does it mean you are "dirty" and have an STD.

No matter what your situation is, it is important to be updated on sexual health, be knowledgeable about your own status and be able to make smart choices that will keep you and everyone else safe. Whatever choice you decide to make, whether you are abstinent or sexually-active, being knowledgeable keeps you safe as well as gives you the power to make good decisions.