There are many innovative ways to make condom usage more appealing. Exotic flavors, ultra-thin latex, and textured condoms “ribbed for pleasure” all make condoms more exciting.

However, their rate of usage remains inconsistent.

Launching the Condom Design Contest

Faced with this challenge, Say It With A Condom partnered with Frannie Peabody Center to help make condoms more fun.

Frannie Peabody Center, a nonprofit in Portland, Maine, invited a class of students at the Maine College of Art to design condom packaging that raises awareness of testing and prevention on World AIDS Day.

Donna Galluzzo, the Executive Director of Frannie Peabody Center, sees World AIDS Day as an occasion to honor those lost during the AIDS crisis while raising awareness for modern prevention methods.

Creating the Condom Designs

For the graphic design class, this was an opportunity to gain real-world design experience. “This class treated us, Frannie Peabody Center, as their client,” says Galluzzo, “It’s a very real-world experience for them. We all meet together, they interview us, and they talk about what we are looking for.”

The more visually interesting a condom package, the more likely someone will pick it up to find out what it is. Frannie Peabody Center understood this, so they instructed the design students to combine positive messaging with unique patterns and colors.

After giving the class direction at the beginning of the fall semester, they had a mid-semester meeting to present their drafts and receive constructive feedback. This feedback culminated in the students’ final designs.

“We wanted the designs to be attractive and colorful, but they also had to spread the right message, respect our clients, and appeal to a large variety of groups,” Galluzzo notes, “That was a very fine line to walk, but I think the folks at Say It With A Condom really understood that. The class really got it as well, the designs all had something unique about them but they were all very respectful.”

Rocking the Vote

Once the entries were submitted, Say It With A Condom developed an online voting platform that allowed the community to vote on their favorite design. Not only did Frannie Peabody Center send people to vote online, they also went to events throughout Portland to conduct in-person voting sessions.

“It was really fun to engage the public,” says Galluzzo, “people of course were picking up the condoms and reading the messages. We got to hear what their thoughts were in real time. Some thought it was all about the style, while others thought it was more about the positive messaging. We even got to see parents explaining condoms to their kids right in the moment, so it was definitely quite the engagement!”

In total, over 850 votes were cast. The competition was close, but Hayden Jones’s “Every Connection Counts” design won!

Who Was Frannie Peabody?

Frannie Peabody, the namesake of her eponymous nonprofit, began her work as an activist at the age of eighty following her grandson’s AIDS diagnosis. “I wish that I had met Frannie,” says Galluzzo, “every time I talk to someone who did know her, she becomes a larger than life figure.”

Following the death of her grandson, she became involved in visiting support groups to meet with others who lost friends and loved ones during during the AIDS crisis. “She became an incredibly staunch advocate for people living with HIV and AIDS in the state of Maine,” Galluzzo says, “she went on a longstanding community campaign to raise awareness, to engage her personal community, to give, and to help.”

Asked what Frannie Peabody would have thought of the contest, Galluzzo says that “I’m sure she would have loved it.”

Visit Frannie Peabody Center’s Website, Facebook, and Instagram

Email contest@sayitwithacondom.com to Launch Your Own Condom Design Contest!

The post Frannie Peabody Center Hosts Condom Design Contest appeared first on Say It With A Condom.

Everything is black at this subversive soft-serve parlor, from the tinted windows to the interior décor. The edgy theme stands in stark contrast to the pastels associated with traditional creameries. Suzanne Serwatuk, the owner of Perverted Ventures, says that “we don’t serve vanilla cause we are not vanilla.” For Perverted Ice Cream, this is their X factor.

Since it opened last May, the shop has offered custom creations like “Beg For S’More”, a chocolate soft serve with cocoa, chocolate sauce, graham cracker and toasted marshmallow.

This October, Perverted Ice Cream launched its newest custom cone: “I Will Always Glove You.”

This date night special is made with cream ice cream, Oreo crumble, black chocolate drizzle and bourbon-soaked cherries.

It’s perfect for spooning!

For an extra $2, the cone is garnished with a condom on top, which can also be added to any of their existing flavors. The custom foils are complete with a black latex condom, consistent with Perverted Ice Cream’s ebony theme.  

Visit Perverted Ice Cream’s website, Instagram, and Facebook page to view their other custom cones! Visit our website to create your own custom foil.

The post Specialty Ice Cream Shop Serves Cones with Optional Condom Garnish appeared first on Say It With A Condom.

Revolución Con Don P Reaches a New Audience

The ubiquity of social media has created duality in health promotion. Raising awareness through traditional tabling methods remains crucial, but no campaign is complete without a visible online presence. Social media allows healthcare providers to overcome barriers in disseminating information to patients, and can also drive patient uptake for organizations like Fenway Health. Fenway Health is a healthcare, research, education and advocacy organization in Boston, Massachusetts whose mission includes serving the LGBTQ community. As social media grows more integrated in daily life, some providers have evolved their digital strategy to reach new audiences. Ricardo Holguin, the Bilingual Outreach Navigator at Fenway Health, has revolutionized outreach to the Latinx MSM (Men that have Sex with Men) population by developing an approachable persona on Snapchat.

Holguin built his campaign with a federally funded grant from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). The grant’s name is “Llegando a Cero,” which translates to “Getting to Zero” in English. This project was awarded to Fenway Health to enhance targeted outreach, social media marketing, and on-the-ground navigation services in order to help increase awareness of HIV and substance abuse prevention services, in part through the creation of Holguin’s current position as Bilingual Outreach Navigator. “Many campaigns adopt a very serious tone which can scare people away,” Holguin notes. “I asked myself how I could best engage with 18-24-year-old Latinx MSM.” Holguin knew that the best way to spread information is through social media, but he wanted to create something different. After weeks of deliberation, Holguin had a genius idea: Revolución con Don P. “Condom in Spanish translates to condón,” Holguin explains, “I separated the word and realized it translates to ‘with Don.’ In Spanish, Don is the male form of a courtesy title placed before the first name of someone as a way of showing respect. The name Don P is a play on words. Revolución Con Don P means ‘Revolution With Condoms.’” The “P” in Don P is variable, it can mean prevention, precaution, or even PrEP.

Don P is the face of Holguin’s social media campaign, which spans across Snapchat, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and dating apps such as Grindr. The persona primarily targets young Latinx MSM , a population that’s disproportionately affected by HIV. Research from the CDC projects that “one in four Latino gay and bisexual men will be diagnosed with HIV during their lifetimes.” Holguin’s goal is to reduce the stigma surrounding HIV while providing them with links to needed services. The anonymity and transience on Snapchat provides Holguin’s followers with a sense of privacy and freedom, emboldening them to ask questions they may otherwise feel uncomfortable asking.

Holguin acquires followers through word of mouth, but he also spreads awareness of Revolución con Don P by attending outreach events in person. As he began attending more events, Holguin realized he needed a memorable way to stay in touch with people. Fenway Health already provides safe sex kits, but Holguin needed something that included information about where people can get tested.  Holguin says that “as I began researching potential options, I found Say It With A Condom! It was exactly what I was looking for.”

After enlisting their services, Say It With A Condom connected Holguin with Gilberto Perez, the manager of the company’s graphic design team. “What I like about Ricardo is that he knows exactly how to approach the target demographic,” says Perez, “I found that his Snapchat campaign is a great way to interact with young people.” Benjamin Sherman, the founder and CEO of Say It With A Condom, remarked that “We’ve worked on a lot of campaigns, but this one is something that’s really special and what I hope will be very successful. It’s a lot different than everything else that has come to us or that we’ve designed.” The design, which includes Don P’s snapcode image on the back of the trifold, makes it easier for Holguin to gain followers.

“If people don’t want to give me their information, I have them follow Don P on Snapchat and let them know that they can always speak to him confidentially,” says Holguin, “Once that happens, I can build rapport with them and gain their trust. The more I start posting, the more people relate to the content.”

Add Don P on Snapchat by Using this Snapcode

The Don P condoms have already helped drive patient uptake. “People love the engagement,” says Holguin, “I get lots of people asking where they can get tested. Fenway Health has already had an influx of Latinos aged 18-24 coming in for testing since we launched the campaign.” Holguin hopes that by providing a space for people to engage his health expertise anonymously, he’ll be able to prevent risky behavior. Additionally, the campaign was created to bring more resources to the large population of Spanish speakers throughout Boston. By providing culturally sensitive care, Don P is able to confidentially connect more people from the Latinx MSM community to the resources that they need to protect their sexual health.

The post Fenway Health Maximizes Outreach with Custom Condoms appeared first on Say It With A Condom.

Throughout recent American history, those who suffer from addiction have been systematically imprisoned without receiving medical intervention. With no access to treatment, stable housing, or career opportunities, these individuals often find themselves in an ongoing cycle of abuse without the resources to begin recovery. While the United States spends upwards of $74 billion on “incarceration, court proceedings, probation, and parole for substance-involved adult and juvenile offenders,” just $632 million is spent on prevention and treatment initiatives.

Phoenix, Arizona in 1969 wasn’t immune from this public health crisis. Many young people were in “desperate situations, because of bad trips on drugs, overdoses, and drug-related suicide attempts.” Due to fear surrounding the police and hospitals, these young people had nowhere to turn, but a small group of friends “responded to their need and reached out to help them with a belief that people can change and with a commitment to not give up on them. That was the beginning of Terros.”

Terros, derived from the Latin root word “terr” meaning earth, serves to help “people high on drugs come down to earth and become grounded.” Today, Terros Health is a multi-faceted health organization specializing in primary medical care, mental health care, HIV/STI prevention, and addiction recovery. With four integrated clinics and eleven additional sites across Maricopa County, Terros Health meets a diversity of needs in the Phoenix region. With their new series of branded custom condom products, Terros has amplified their outreach capabilities. 

Staying Healthy for Life

During the growing AIDS crisis in 1987, Terros expanded their recovery initiatives to include HIV/STD prevention. By keeping their community safe when they needed it the most, Terros Health poised itself to become a leader in primary health care throughout the Phoenix region. Not only does Terros offer a full range of testing options, they also offer a robust assortment of educational programming and PrEP resources. With affordable treatment on a sliding pay scale, Terros recognizes the needs of the vulnerable in their community and makes their health a priority.

Seeking to raise greater awareness for the locations of their clinics and the services they offer, Terros enlisted the help of Say It With A Condom to provide a fun and easy way to engage with prospective patients.

Our Ambitious Project with Terros Health

Working with Terros Health was one of Say It With A Condom’s most ambitious projects to date. In total, we created 15,000 pieces, including:

• Condom Foils
• Condom Trifolds
• Condom Cubes
• Condom Canisters

Gilberto Perez, the manager of Say It With A Condom’s design team, tactfully incorporated Terros’s logo and essential information in a compelling, eye-catching design. This was the first project where Perez had the opportunity to create a custom condom canister. “What I liked about the Terros campaign was their consistent branding,” Perez notes, “the whole project was cohesive and complete, they created a very well-supported campaign!” The Terros logo, a bird taking off for flight, “evokes hope, transformation, and continuous movement, and aligns with the purpose of inspiring change for life.” This meaningful logo is accentuated by a thought-provoking question: “Everyone has a status. Do you know yours?” This encourages prospective patients to take account of their sexual health, potentially catalyzing them to come to Terros for testing.

According to Jose Vega, a Program Supervisor with Terros, the condoms have done just that. Vega notes that a growing number of new patients have sought out testing as a direct result of the information outlined on the condoms, thereby turning a persuasive design into tangible action. “People who received the Say It With A Condom swag items really like the way the information was displayed,” Vega says, “people thought they were really creative.”

For more information on Terros Health, visit their website

The post Custom Condoms Help Inspire Change for Life at Terros Health appeared first on Say It With A Condom.

Reproductive Rights in Texas

If you require an abortion in Texas, you may need to go on a road trip to receive professional care. Following the passage of Targeted Regulation of Abortion Providers (TRAP) in 2013, the number of abortion clinics in Texas reduced from 41 to 22. This left 96% of counties without an abortion clinic. An earlier blow to Texas abortion-providers, namely Planned Parenthood, occurred in 2011 when family-planning grants were cut by 66% across the state. These cuts not only caused centers to shut down, they also contributed to a rising birth rate. Additionally, clinics that remained open charged for services that were previously offered for free.

“There’s a misconception that Planned Parenthood is where pregnant women go when they’re in dire straits,” says Blanca Morales, “sometimes it is, but not all the time.” According to Planned Parenthood’s 2016-2017 Annual Report, abortion services made up just 3% of the total services provided that year. Planned Parenthood also provides STI testing & treatment, contraception, and cancer screenings. Despite budgetary setbacks, Planned Parenthood South Texas is one of the only facilities in Texas that provides professional abortion services.

Planned Parenthood South Texas: From 1939 to Present

Originally known as the Maternal Health Center, Planned Parenthood South Texas was founded in 1939 by a group of San Antonio women. The center provided reliable birth control such as diaphragms throughout the 1940s, prior to the passage of Roe v. Wade. More recently, Planned Parenthood South Texas has undergone a period of growth. The budget has allowed for an expansion of promotional events, many of which raise awareness for sexual health initiatives. This effort is led by Blanca Morales, the Marketing and Program Manager at Planned Parenthood South Texas. Morales works to drive patient volume by utilizing unique marketing tactics that increase the visibility of Planned Parenthood in Texas. “A lot of people don’t even realize that we’re still here,” says Morales, “they see Planned Parenthood in the news and they don’t know if we’re still open, they don’t know if we can provide needed services, so we’ve made efforts to let them know otherwise!”

Getting The Word Out With Custom Condoms

Morales and her team attend pride events, festivals, health fairs, and fundraisers to distribute information that helps prevent transmission of STIs. With a heavy emphasis on condom distribution, Morales saw an untapped marketing opportunity. “We used to distribute regular Lifestyles,” says Morales, “but I saw it as a missed opportunity because at the end of the day nobody is going to remember where they got them from, who they got them from, and why they got them.” After meeting with other marketing professionals from Planned Parenthood affiliates, Morales heard about Say It With A Condom. “They gave me samples of things they’ve ordered with you guys, and I thought it was perfect and exactly what we needed,” says Morales, “I need to be able to distribute condoms at whatever event we’re at and I need people to know that they came from Planned Parenthood. I need people to know that they can call us, schedule an appointment, and go to our website.”

The condoms, emblazoned with the witty phrase “We’re Your Friends With Benefits,” were inspired by condoms created by Planned Parenthood of Greater Texas. Morales recently distributed the condoms at the Kerrville Folk Festival, “the festival organizers called us at random and asked if we could hand out free condoms. I was able to give them some, including the ‘We’re Your Friends With Benefits’ condom.” Morales notes that Bexar County has a very high rate of HIV infections, and because festival season often lends itself to a more frequent rate of unprotected sex, access to condoms is essential. With the branded Planned Parenthood condoms, attendees will know where to go if they need testing. Morales believes that “by taking free condoms, people know they can call us, get STD and HIV testing, start a PrEP prescription, and even undergo hormone therapy. It’s all about getting our name out there!”

Title X: An Uphill Battle

This outreach is made more essential by a proposed gag rule on Title X, which provides affordable care to people with low-incomes. Planned Parenthood serves 41% of all Title X patients, which includes services such as wellness exams, cancer screenings, birth control, and testing. However, a proposal from the Trump administration would prevent healthcare providers from referring their patients for abortion services. The proposal would also allow providers to withhold information regarding one’s healthcare options and impose rules “designed to make it impossible for patients to get birth control or preventative care.” This ruling could remove access to care for millions of people, leaving centers to rely on internal marketing strategies and grassroots organizing to spread awareness of the potentially life-saving services offered by Planned Parenthood.

To take action, write to the Health & Human Services Director Alex Azar by following this link

To learn more about Planned Parenthood South Texas, visit them on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter

The post Custom Condoms + Planned Parenthood: Your Friend With Benefits appeared first on Say It With A Condom.

 

President Trump attended a groundbreaking ceremony in Mount Pleasant, Wisconsin earlier today for a planned Foxconn factory that has sparked controversy throughout the state. Foxconn, an electronics company known for producing Apple products, was given $3 billion in incentives by Wisconsin to build the factory. While proponents of the plant hope that it will spark job-growth and redefine the Milwaukee area as a digital technology hub, critics believe that Governor Scott Walker authorized the tax incentives to aid his re-election bid.

One Wisconsin Now, a progressive outfit based in Madison, believes the plant is not worth the multi-billion-dollar investment. The organization wanted to create a unique way to protest the proposed plant at the state’s Democratic Convention, and after some deliberation, they settled on custom condoms. While the condoms were a hit, they also provoked the local news media to ask whether the condoms “had gone too far.”

I spoke with Analiese Eicher, One Wisconsin Now’s Program Director, who created the custom condoms on our website. Analiese told me about the plant, the implications it has on Wisconsin’s economy, and her reaction to the blowback her condoms created in the local news.

Scott Walker, Donald Trump, Terry Gou, and Paul Ryan break ground for Foxconn’s planned facilities in Mount Pleasant, Wisconsin on June 28

Tell me more about this proposed Foxconn Plant and the controversy it’s stirred in Wisconsin

It’s a re-election year for Governor Scott Walker, he’s running for a third term despite his shortcomings as governor. Part of his re-election plan was to cut a deal with a Taiwanese manufacturer called Foxconn, and the deal involved handing over a significant amount of our taxpayer dollars to bring them here. There were a lot of unanswered questions regarding labor; we didn’t know if Wisconsin companies were being used to build the plant or whether or not Wisconsinites would be hired to work in the facility.

But one of the most shocking things was looking into other plants that Foxconn runs. The CEO of Foxconn has called his workers animals. Some of their plants actually have suicide nets outside of their buildings because of the terrible working conditions. Lots of concerns were raised, and there was a lot of opposition from our constituents. But, Governor Walker wanted to be able to say that he’s brought jobs into Wisconsin during an election year. We later found out that this was the largest give-away to a foreign company by a state in all of American history, at a cost of 4.5 billion dollars to taxpayers.

How did the idea for condoms originate and where were they distributed?

We were thinking about how we can push back against this plant and bring attention to the deal. We were preparing to table at the Democratic Party of Wisconsin’s convention. There are ten people who have made the ballot to challenge Governor Walker in this August’s Democratic Primary. One Wisconsin Now loves to have fun, so we were brainstorming in one of our morning meetings when Scot Ross, our Executive Director, said out of the blue that we should get condoms because “we’re all getting screwed.” Scot tasked me with figuring out the plan moving forward, so I started googling “custom condoms,” which is how I came upon your website! We started there and began thinking about what we would put on them and how Scott Walker’s image and our Twitter handle could be tied in, and that’s how the Foxconndoms came to be.

The condoms were very popular among all age groups. Our booth happened to be adjacent to the Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin table which also handed out condoms, and someone joked that our condoms won the condom straw poll.

How did you first hear that the condoms were reported on by the local news?

We’re pretty aware of what’s said about us and the things we’re doing online. We actually provided all of the press covering the convention with packets containing the Foxconndoms. This way, they could see what our booth was handing out while also learning about our economic agenda. We were hoping to draw attention to the latter, but everyone wanted to talk about the Foxconndoms! This led to the Facebook post.

I thought it was funny that they asked whether or not the condom went too far considering that contraception is an important part of sexual health. There are some who would like to see greater access to contraception and others that would like to see it eliminated, so we definitely don’t think it went too far. We found some of the backlash from the commenters pretty entertaining, but at the end of the day it drew attention to the issue of Foxconn and this 4.5 billion dollar handout that they were given by the state. That was our goal.

It seems like a major point of contention among the comments is that the plant will bring jobs to the state. How would you respond to these comments?

There’s really nothing in the proposal that guarantees the workers at this plant come from Wisconsin. This plant is going to be very close to the Illinois border, so we expect that many of the workers will come from Illinois. We’ve also seen in other Foxconn plants that human workers are being replaced with machinery and robots. There are no guarantees of long-term employment, that the workers will be paid a living wage, or that they will even have jobs. There’s a lot of uncertainty surrounding this proposal.

To learn more about One Wisconsin Now, visit their website

The post One Wisconsin Now Creates “Foxconndoms” to Raise Awareness for Controversial Plant appeared first on Say It With A Condom.

While rates of STD transmission have never been higher among American youth, the abysmal state of sexual health education suggests that public schools share culpability in these epidemic trends. Twenty-seven states require that an abstinence-only approach in sex-ed classes be stressed, and only thirteen states mandate that curricula be medically accurate. These unsettling facts have forced many students to take sexual health into their own hands.

Enter KC Miller, a high school senior who leads a movement advocating for comprehensive sex-education in Pennsylvania. At just seventeen years old, Miller founded Keystone CASE (Coalition for Advancing Sex Education), which aims to implement a standardized program of sex-education. According to Miller, comprehensive sex education promotes “the idea that sex is a healthy and normal part of the human experience.” Rather than stressing the debunked merit of abstinence, Miller hopes to put an end to abstinence-only education. “An absence of information is not education,” Miller emphasizes in his 2018 TEDx Talk, “it’s harmful to public health.”

In its place, Miller has drafted legislation entitled The Pennsylvania Healthy Youth Act. Based on The California Healthy Youth Act, Miller’s bill would require that Pennsylvania schools provide “ consistent, medically accurate, and unbiased instruction” that encompasses STD/HIV prevention, sexual orientation, contraception, and consent. To ensure the information remains up to date, Miller notes that “there are provisions in the bill that require curriculums to be reviewed consistently by medical professionals.”

Volunteers march with signs provided by Say It With A Condom, a proud sponsor of Keystone CASE

Currently, no such provisions exist. “Due to a lack of requirements by the federal government and individual states,” Miller says, “ it’s up to states and schools to choose what they teach. Unfortunately, these schools don’t have experts advising them with the best information.” Consequently, Miller believes that the federal government must mandate comprehensive sex education to ensure that the youth are receiving factual information.

While critics of comprehensive sex education claim that furnishing the young with this information would be equivalent to openly encouraging them to have sex, research indicates otherwise. Miller’s website cites a study which shows that comprehensive sex education programs “help delay the initiation of sex, lessen the frequency of unsafe sexual contact, reduce the number of sexual partners, and increase the use of FDA approved contraception among sexually active partners.” In California, the only state that has passed comprehensive sex education, data shows that thirty-two percent of California high school students have ever had sex, compared to forty-one percent nationally.

Despite the overwhelming evidence in his favor, KC Miller’s efforts remain politically controversial. Recently, the Trump administration announced that federal grants will be awarded to sexual health programs that favor abstinence as the best means of STD and pregnancy prevention. In his TEDx Talk, Miller cites “a study from the government reform committee, which looked into the thirteen most commonly used abstinence curriculums in the nation. Only two of them were factual. The other eleven, used by twenty-five states, contained ‘unproven assertions, subjective conclusions, and outright falsehoods.’” Outrageously, the federal government has spent two billion dollars on these programs over the last twenty years.

KC Miller, right, leads Keystone CASE at Philly Pride

The consequences of abstinence-only education extend beyond that of spreading falsehoods to children. The CDC reports that “half of the 20 million new STDS reported each year were among young people, between the ages of 15 to 24.” Moreover, a study from the National Survey of Family Growth finds that “teens who received comprehensive sex education were 50 percent less likely to experience pregnancy than those who received abstinence-only education.”

In addition to combatting abstinence-only education, Miller’s comprehensive sex education also promotes inclusivity among the LGBTQ community. “In some states, LGBTQ issues must be discussed in a negative way,” says Miller, “In some states, they are being taught that sexual orientation is harmful to society.” A study from 2015 finds that 12 percent of millennials said that same-sex relationships were covered in their sex-ed classes, and only twelve states require discussion of sexual orientation in sex education.

Miller, who tabled at the June 10^th Philadelphia pride parade, says that one of the biggest parts of his work is “reaching out to the LGBT community to distribute free information, free contraceptives, and free condoms… Pride is always a great time for those conversations because it’s always been a time to be proud and to express who we are.” Following his graduation from high school, Miller will attend UPenn to pursue a bachelor’s degree in nursing. He plans to continue this important fight at the college-level, and perhaps one day at the congressional-level.

The post Abolishing Abstinence-Only Education with KC Miller, an 18-Year-Old Sexual Health Activist appeared first on Say It With A Condom.

“The condoms are hilarious, but they’re also an educational tool…”

Not only are pets largely considered members of the family, but they’re also the subject of a niche economy. This year, Americans are projected to spend more than $72 billion on pet-related expenditures. Increasingly, young American couples opt for fur babies over real babies due to the reduced financial commitment offered by dogs and cats. Beyond the market for chew toys and gourmet food, dogs also play an unfortunate role in a far more sinister industry: consumer product testing.  

Despite America’s broadly positive attitude toward pets, they’re still used as unwilling subjects in animal testing. Approximately 60,000 dogs are used in laboratories for testing each year, and they’re subject to inhumane conditions and painful procedures. The breed of choice in animal testing is the Beagle, taken advantage of for their naturally docile behavior.

Based out of Los Angeles, The Rescue + Freedom Project makes it their mission to rescue these abused Beagles and to put an end to animal testing. The organization recently attended RuPaul’s DragCon to raise awareness of animal testing and the implications it has on the cosmetics industry. Using Say It With A Condom’s custom condom wallets, The Rescue + Freedom Project culminates a hilarious design with the educational resources needed to put power back in the hands of the consumer.

Say It With A Condom spoke with Nately Sych, who works as a Finance and Administration Associate for the Rescue + Freedom Project, about why her organization attended Rupaul’s DragCon and the ways consumers can embrace a cruelty-free lifestyle.

This interview has been condensed and lightly edited

                                                Nately Sych Displays the Rescue + Freedom Project Booth at DragCon

I’d love to start by asking you about DragCon! How did people respond to your booth and why did you choose DragCon specifically?

We understand that drag culture is heavily focused on makeup. This year, there were upwards of 40,000 attendees at DragCon, and many people who stopped by our booths had makeup on to complement the unique looks that they created specifically for the event. It’s great for us to be there not only as a support group, but also to talk about where your beauty really is, where your money is going, and to inspire a compassionate community.

We want to create a cruelty-free lifestyle by promoting companies that are no longer testing on animals, and luckily a lot of the vendors there were cruelty-free. We’re very inspired to see that new companies are choosing to be cruelty-free. They’re not using animals to conduct testing and they’re choosing not to sell in China, where testing on animals is mandatory by law. Unfortunately, many of the common makeup companies are no longer cruelty-free, or they’re bought out by a parent company that isn’t cruelty-free. For example, Estee Lauder, which sells in China, purchased MAC Cosmetics. Once they sold MAC in China, we deemed that they were no longer cruelty-free.

We’ve also created an app that you can download for free called “Cruelty-Cutter,” which allows you to scan the barcode on any cosmetic or household product and it will show you right away whether it’s cruelty-free or not. At DragCon, we showed people how to use it with live demos featuring an array of products that are and aren’t cruelty-free so that attendees could see how instant the results are. Whether you’re going to Target or Sephora, our app makes it super easy to determine whether or not a product has been tested on animals. This is how we inspire a cruelty-free lifestyle.

And of course, we wanted to give the attendees something to remember us by. You go to DragCon to create memories, so we wanted to give them something that’s memorable. The condoms are hilarious, but they’re also an educational tool and something to look back on and say ‘this is amazing. I can’t believe animals are still being used in laboratories.’ It was great to utilize such a unique way to raise awareness, and the condoms have always been my favorite.

When you showed the Cruelty-Cutter app to the attendees at DragCon, were they surprised to learn about the scale of products that aren’t cruelty-free?

We created a graphic that outlines brands that test on animals and brands that do not test on animals. When the attendees see logos on the poster, they’re often shocked because the brands are very familiar, but we’re able to show attendees which products to buy if they want to be a passionate consumer.

The goal is to give that inspiration at the end of the conversation where they want to become cruelty-free. People are making these changes, and they want to do the right thing and do right by these animals.

Tell me more about the pending legislation that Rescue + Freedom Project has in the works.

We are the creator of the Beagle Freedom Bill. What most people don’t know is that most laboratories are funded by our taxpayer money, we’re funding these places. We created this piece of legislation that prohibits laboratories from euthanizing animals once their studies are finished. Once the testing is completed, laboratories are instead required to adopt the animals out to either a rescue group or a family. Ideally, that rescue group would be us.

Unfortunately, these laboratories don’t like us. They don’t like what we’re doing because we’re trying to stop them. We’ve been able to pass the Beagle Freedom Bill in California, Nevada, Connecticut, Minnesota, Illinois, New York, Delaware, and Rhode Island. We’re introducing this bill in as many states as we possibly can because it protects the rights of these animals. It’s the first step of our overall goal, which is to end animal testing altogether. There is no other legislation out there that protects laboratory animals, we’re trying to get these animals out safely and provide them with homes.

Other legislation includes Cruelty-Free LA. We partnered with a congressman in the Los Angeles City Council that introduced a protocol to make sure that all government-funded facilities use cruelty-free products including cleaning supplies, hand soaps, and anything else you might need for a government-funded building. Los Angeles would be the first city to create this kind of legislation. We’re very excited to see if this will go through, and we hope that it will inspire other major cities to go forward with it and create a momentum for cruelty-free initiatives.

 Belle The Beagle, rescued from a laboratory in Northern California, gets some love at DragCon

What can the people reading this do to help support it?

Whenever the bill is introduced in a new state, we always ask our supporters to call their local representatives and show support for the bill. Another way is to live a cruelty-free lifestyle and not give money to companies who are testing on animals. If enough people stop buying Tide, for example, they’ll see that money is being lost. We want to encourage the public to understand that their money matters to these companies, and if we no longer give them our money, then they’re going to have to listen to us at some point and understand what consumers care about. If we show them that we care about cruelty-free products, we can help them to make that change.

Why should people care about animal testing?

The FDA doesn’t require laboratories to test on animals for cosmetics, it’s something that companies decide to do. We like to focus on the stories that we create after what the animals have gone through. We’re trying to make a positive change in the world, and if we keep focusing on the negative we don’t feel that we’re creating an inspiring change. Instead, we show the dogs with their families, stepping on grass or water for the first time, getting a treat for the first time, or getting their own dog bed that’s theirs. That’s the kind of footage and emotion that we like to focus on because it’s inspiring, it’s positive, and it makes you want to make that change for these animals.

Condom Graphics Designed by April Arrington, Brand Manager With The Rescue + Freedom Project

To learn more about The Rescue + Freedom Project, visit their website and follow them on social media:

Website: www.rescuefreedomproject.org

Facebook: www.facebook.com/rescuefreedomproject

Twitter: https://twitter.com/beaglefreedom

IG: @rescuefreedomproject

The post Condoms, Cosmetics & Cruelty: Putting an End to Animal Testing with The Rescue + Freedom Project appeared first on Say It With A Condom.

Whitney Bell, a feminist polymath with a distinguished presence on social media, uses her platform to spread conscious messaging that concerns gender equality, consent, and the de-stigmatization of family planning. You may remember Whitney from a number of her widely-publicized events; from challenging the defunding of Planned Parenthood by live-streaming her IUD insertion to participating in an empowering photo series funded by the Amber Rose SlutWalk, Bell is an undaunted voice for social justice.

More recently, Bell made waves by hosting a gallery event that highlights the harassment of uninvited nude photography. “I Didn’t Ask for This: A Lifetime of Dick Pics” features approximately two-hundred framed photographs of dick pics that Bell and other women have received.  “I wanted to show how invasive and pervasive sexual harassment is,” Bell says in a Bustle interview, “and how it affects every part of a woman’s life.”

Modelled after her own apartment, the gallery space uses an eclectic collection of personal items that are juxtaposed with jarring photos of genitalia. This contrast confronts the regularity of sexting harassment. Even when women are alone at home, they are liable to receive a torrent of unsolicited sexts via online dating apps.

While sexting can potentially be a normal, healthy part of burgeoning relationships, it’s still necessary to receive consent before sending explicit images. Although women are equally capable of sending an unwanted sext, statistics indicate that the trend is heavily skewed toward men. Research from McAfee, a software security firm, found that “61 percent of men partake in sexting and suggestive photo taking, while 48 percent of women do.”

What can account for such a discrepancy?

Dr. David Ley theorizes in Psychology Today that “in an anonymous environment, people, and especially men, are more likely to engage in sexualized behaviors,” also noting that “men notoriously misperceive women’s sexual interest in them and project their own sexual interests and desires onto women.”

Frontiers in Psychology research by Evita March and Danielle Wagstaff correlates the likelihood of sending an unsolicited explicit image to “dark personality traits” such as narcissism, Machiavellianism, psychopathy, and sadism: “the positive association between dark traits of personality and sexually exploitative behavior could extend to sending unsolicited explicit images, which have previously been defined as a form of online sexual harassment.” Interestingly, the study also notes that sending explicit images “may act as a signal of one’s willingness to engage in risky behaviors,” such as not using protection, which is corroborated by research from The Journal of Adolescent Health.

Bell emphasizes in a Vice interview that her gallery isn’t about “dick-hating or man-hating,” it’s about harassment. “All of these dicks are unsolicited,” Bell says, “they didn’t come from requests.” Underscoring the issue of unsolicited dick pics is the suppression of female sexuality and a fundamental misunderstanding of consent, which Bell hopes to alleviate through educational programming at future gallery events.

A New Promotional Campaign

Last March, Bell took on a new project. Utilizing the services of Say It With A Condom, Bell created a clever campaign that uses custom condoms to celebrate the virtues of consent and sexual positivity. The condoms are designed with the intention to make people consider feminism, LGBT equality, and the risks of unprotected sex.

The condoms, which include slogans such as “pleasure is power,” “open with consent only,” “don’t be a dick,” “respect women,” and “women don’t owe you shit,” are an easy and fun way to initiate a conversation about important feminist issues.

With a cute retro design, Bell’s condoms also serve to de-stigmatize female sexuality: “women were embarrassed to carry condoms,” says Bell, “but I’m going in the other direction by demanding that there be no shame.” In addition to spreading an important message, 100% of the proceeds from Bell’s condoms are donated to  amfAR (The Foundation for AIDS Research).

The condoms are sold on Bell’s unique online clothing store.

Getting The Word Out – Custom Designed Condoms

With the help of a “dream team of sexologists, activists, and influencers,” Bell organized a professional photoshoot to promote her charity campaign. Photographer Brandon Barnhart shot the series.

Kiran Gandhi, an activist and musician who toured as a drummer with M.I.A

GabiFresh, a businesswoman and blogger who runs a popular online store

Stephanie Beatriz, an actress famous for playing Detective Rosa Diaz on Brooklyn Nine-Nine

Jazzmyne Jay, a producer at BuzzFeed

Curly Velasquez, a writer for BuzzFeed

Dewanda Wise, an actress who plays Nola Darling in Spike Lee’s Netflix series She’s Gotta Have It

Gaby Dunn, the New York Times best-selling author of I Hate Everyone But You

Arisce Wanzer, a transgender supermodel

The post Learn How This Activist Uses Custom Condoms to Fund AIDS Research appeared first on Say It With A Condom.

Formerly called BEBASHI (Blacks Education Blacks About Sexual Health Issues), Bebashi Transition to Hope was founded in 1985 as the first full-service HIV/AIDS organization that caters primarily to people of color in Philadelphia. Bebashi aims to address the AIDS crisis among disadvantaged populations in their community by providing resources for sexual health education, HIV prevention, hunger relief, and other needed social services.

Dr. Rashidah Abdul-Khabeer, the founder of Bebashi, was struck by how undermined the black community was amid the growing AIDS crisis. “There was very little acknowledgment nationally or locally about the impact that HIV was having on our community,” says Abdul-Khabeer. Drawing from her experience as an activist in The Civil Rights Movement, Abdul-Khabeer believed that more needed to be done, which culminated in the foundation of Bebashi. In the words of Philadelphia Senator Vincent Hughes, “Bebashi was the first in the nation to walk into a space that everyone else walked away from.”

Bebashi serves approximately 21,000 individuals annually and provides a comprehensive array of services that empower low-income individuals to improve their health and overall well-being. Gary Bell, the Executive Director of Bebashi, believes that his organization is uniquely poised to spread culturally sensitive, health-related information in his community. “I think that’s what separates us,” says Bell, “because aside from the mission itself, there’s a cultural competence that we have that could reach folks with a message they will listen to and understand.”

A More Modern Campaign

Led by Brenda Alexander, Bebashi’s Communications Specialist, Bebashi took hold of its own marketing campaign. Alexander felt that Bebashi needed to implement a more modern approach to their marketing, so she employed the services of Say It With A Condom. While Bebashi has provided condoms to their community for decades, with Say It With A Condom, they will now be able to provoke a conversation about their initiatives while doing so.

The Custom Trifold Condoms, designed by Tiffany Mercer-Robbins (CEO of The Mercer Suite), combine a compelling message with eye-catching artwork that provides Bebashi with the tool they were looking for.

“People come into our offices every single day for condoms,” Brenda exclaims, “And the power of the Trifold, I think, is that it is more than just a condom; it is a weapon of education and information that will hopefully grab people’s attention.

 

Bebashi – Transition to Hope

Since being founded in 1985, Bebashi has expanded its community-based initiatives with a broad array of projects. In 2014, Bebashi founded the Resource Navigation program, which helps low-income individuals achieve self-sufficiency. In 2015, Bebashi launched an initiative to pay for state photo ID cards for those in poverty. In 2017, Bebashi initiated Trans Necessities, a resource where transexual individuals can obtain clothing, wigs, prosthetic breasts, binders and many other necessities.

Bebashi also boasts a committed body of volunteers who serve to make their organization more visible. “We are in the community. We like to be in the community. We don’t like to sit behind the desk,” says Antonio Adolphus, Bebashi’s Assistant Supervisor of Prevention Education, “I always like to talk about my coworkers, they’re always out there in the streets. We go to churches, we go to schools, we talk to the kids, we talks to the seniors. This is what makes Bebashi special.”

For more information about Bebashi, please visit their website at www.bebashi.org

The post Learn How Bebashi of Philadelphia Advertises Their Community Initiatives with Our Custom Condoms appeared first on Say It With A Condom.