Hautetalk: Why Are We So Afraid Of Talking About Vaginas And Penises?
I recently came across the news of BJP’s leader Chitra Wagh and Asha workers asking the Maharashtra government to remove rubber models of male and female reproductive organs from the family planning counselling kits. Reading that news got me wondering what century we live in. As far as I remember it is the 21st century, and yet here we are still upholding the stigma around vaginas and penises. For whatever reason, we’re still shy to talk about male and female reproductive organs – forget talking, we shy away from using the words vagina and penis!
What makes this entire news miffing is the fact that the accredited social health activist (ASHA) workers are the ones shying away from using these models. I mean, c’mon, they are the ones put in charge of fostering sexual and reproductive health and it is them who are uncomfortable talking about male and female reproductive organs or even using the terms – vagina and penis.
Also Read: BJP’s Chitra Wagh Criticises Maha Govt For Including Models Of Vagina And Penis In Family Planning Counselling Kits. Why Are We So Shy About It?
It boggles my mind that we are so afraid of vaginas and penises and yet somehow we’re one of the highest populated countries in the world. Why is it that we feel this constant urge to use food, animal names, euphemisms, and even flowers (really?) to refer to the reproductive organs? Isn’t a vagina or a penis an organ just like a heart or a liver? Then why do we have an unnecessary stigma around it?
And even if I forget the whys of it all, then what is left is to take steps to destigmatize this very stigma we have around vaginas and penises. Educating and spreading awareness among society is the only way we can normalise talking about sexual and reproductive health. In fact, I’d even go as far as to say that this will even result in schools/colleges openly teaching sex education without it being “offensive” to anyone. And sex education in turn will help both the genders understand their own and each other’s bodies much better. It might even stop the youth of today from going on to porn sites to look for information and come back with nothing more than unrealistic standards for beauty and sex.
Also Read: This 15-Year-Old Who Was Brought Up As A Girl Found Out That She Had Male Reproductive Organs.
Honestly, I believe that the initiative that is taken by the Maharashtra government to include rubber models of male and female reproductive organs in the family planning counselling kit is a step in the right, progressive direction. I understand that initially it will be (just like it already is) met with a lot of hesitance and resistance, but the end goal is worth the fight. It is high time we normalise the terms vagina and penis as well as talk about it openly. And no it doesn’t make one ‘besharam’ or ‘unsanskari’, it just makes one a well-educated person who is aware of the human body.
