*If you have issues with nudity or the stylised depiction of sex and/or genitalia, you might want to stop reading this post. If you have children in the room, send them out before scrolling down…
My generation was the first to endure the threat of sexually transmitted diseases as a fully-fludged cultural meme. One day in junior high, the tenor of our “don’t get pregnant” sex-ed class changed completely when people came to talk about the potential lethality of unprotected sex. They literally scared our pants back on. Gone were the horrifically graphic venereal disease slide-shows and the “this is where the penis goes” lectures. The message that used to be a cocktail of monogamy and abstinence with a “wear a condom” rim was now in “whip it out and die” territory. In the back row of class, the giggling stopped.
To at least some extent, it seems to have worked:
According to academic research on sexual habits, people born between 1965 and 1985 have significantly fewer sexual partners and are less likely to be unfaithful than those who came before and after them.
But what about Generation Y? Not so much. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, two-thirds of those affected by STDs are under the age of 25. Nevermind how it happened (too busy playing Nintendo during the act to remember protection?). It’s a big problem – a crisis of prevention – that needs to be addressed more strongly than ever before. Education hasn’t worked. Statistics haven’t worked. So what’s the solution?
Speak to them in the only language they understand: marketing
Here are Scout’s picks for print ads and posters designed to work for the kiddies. Some are funny, some are sexy, and some make you never want to get undressed again…
Awesome finds. Fear mongering! hahah! I do think it’s important to note that a lot of STI’s are treatable if caught soon. I’d love to see a segment on creative ads promoting testing.
[…] Sex To A Clueless Generation “Y” March 3, 2009 at 6:10 pm | In Rants | Tags: health From Scout Magazine “According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, two-thirds of those […]