Gustavus Sexual Assult Response Team (SART) is teaming up with Health Services and the Peer Assistants to put on Gustavus’ first Safer Sex Carnival. The carnival, which will take place on Tuesday, March 25, aims to promote safe sexual decisions and STI testing, while also promoting the decision of abstinence.
Office Coordinator for the Center for Servant Leadership and member of SART Jill VanOsdol hopes to see this event take off after its premiere.
“We are hoping that The Safer Sex Carnival will be a way to let students make their own choices about sex, whether it be abstinence, contraceptives, STI testing, or healthy relationships in general. We are hoping that it is a kind of fun and different event that can be an annual thing at Gustavus now,” VanOsdol said.
The carnival will take place over lunch hours, from 11 a.m. -1 p.m. in the Courtyard Café and will feature activities, games, and information from the Chaplain’s office, Peer Assistants, SART, Health Services, Student Athletics, and LGBTQ groups. The event will have many carnival-themed aspects, complete with games, trivia, prizes, candy, drinks, and a photo booth. The carnival will also feature a table that focuses specifically on male sex questions.
Senior Peer Assistant Abby Lyle, who is one of the leads for the initiative, hopes to see the event eliminate some of the stigmas that come with talking about sexual health.
“Sex can be kind of a taboo topic and we want people to feel comfortable talking about it,” Lyle said.
Senior Adwoa Afreh, this semester’s SART intern and one of the main brains behind the event, said that sexual health and STI education is a bigger need than many students and staff realize.
“Though Gusties know about these type of diseases, they know, but they don’t know, because they don’t get tested, and thus we become very oblivious to these diseases even though we know they exist,” Afreh said.
Lyle is especially excited about the involvement of the Peer Assistants with the event.
“I personally think that it’s important for Gusties because we have to educate ourselves, and being a peer assistant we are also educators and activists,” Lyle said.
Lyle also highlighted the importance of the carnival’s timing.
“I think that we definitely talk about it at the beginning of the year, I know the Peer Assistants do and health services does, but we kind of forget about what we were reminded of in the fall, and it is a well-timed opportunity because you know, it’s never a wrong time to talk about it, but it’s definitely a good time right before Spring Break,” Lyle said.
Lyle also stated that the Peer Assistants will kick off their ‘Spring Break Kits’ at the Safer Sex Carnival by handing out free condoms to promote safer sex. The Spring Break kit items will be handed out one at a time on multiple days during the week preceding Spring Break. Other items will include sunglasses and chapstick to promote ‘safe sun’ and mugs with alcohol facts to promote safe alcohol consumption.
Although the carnival features many fun and humorous games, the educational aspect will be the highlight. Afreh stressed the importance this focus.
“Being a college campus, it has to be something that you have to be aware of. I think education is very important. When you learn things, you become more aware of how it works and how you can avoid whatever those consequences are,” Afreh said.
VanOsdol strongly encourages every student to stop by the carnival.
“Don’t be nervous, we’re just going to have fun, play some music, play some games, have a photo booth, and it’s not anything scary,” VanOsdol said.