As of May 2018, only 12 states require discussion of sexual orientation and of these, only 9 states require that discussion of sexual orientation be inclusive (California, Colorado, Delaware, Iowa, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, and Washington). [ 38 ]  Additionally, several states have passed legislation that bans teachers from discussing gay and transgender issues, such as sexual health and HIV/AIDS awareness. [ 36 ]  As of 2022, five states require that heterosexuality be emphasized over homosexuality. [ 38 ]


Before the late 1800s, delivering sex education in the United States and Canada was primarily seen as a parent's responsibility. [ 36 ]  Today, programs under the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States (SIECUS) begin comprehensive sex education in pre-kindergarten, drawing criticism related to the age at which it is appropriate to address sexual matters with children. [ 30 ]


An  Act Relative to Healthy Youth , or the  Healthy Youth Act , is a bill (HD.3454/SD.2178) that would require any public school in Massachusetts with a sex education curriculum to be fully comprehensive. This would include materials that are age-appropriate, medically-accurate, LGBTQ-inclusive, and consent-focused. Content would address how to build healthy relationships and how to prevent pregnancy and  STIs  when a person does have sex. The  Healthy Youth Act  was initially filed in January 2011 and has been revised multiple times since. This bill is a framework that does not mandate a particular curriculum, but does require that schools where sex education is already being taught fit this framework. Parents will be given 30 days-notice to review the material and opt-out.


In 2021, the  Healthy Youth Act  was cosponsored by Senator Sal N. DiDomenico and Representatives  Christina A. Minicucci , Vanna Howard, and Jack Patrick Lewis of the 192nd  General Court of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts . Bill SD.2178 has been advocated for over 10 years and has successfully passed the  Massachusetts Senate , however it has yet to be passed by the  Massachusetts House of Representatives [ needs update ] .


Reactions to the  Healthy Youth Act  have been mixed, but it has gained increased support over the years. Some of its most dedicated supporters include  Fenway Health , the Healthy Youth Coalition,  The Massachusetts Healthy Youth Consortium , and  Getting to Zero . The  Planned Parenthood  League of Massachusetts states that "comprehensive sex education is about more than just sex – it helps creates a culture of consent, recognizes and prioritizes LGBTQ youth health needs, and gives young people the tools to build healthy relationships... We can combat sexual assault at its roots by teaching young people how to build healthy, respectful relationships". In 2018, a poll of Massachusetts residents showed that 92% of people agree that students should receive comprehensive sex education in high school. In a testimony in support of the bill, supporters claim that "sex education is a perfect opportunity for youth to develop skills like communication, healthy relationships, decision-making, planning, and critical thinking. Such life skills can contribute to their positive development throughout adolescence and into adulthood".


The Massachusetts Family Institute (MFI), a conservative organization that promotes traditional Judeo-Christian values and the bill's main opponent, highlights the article "Pornographic 'Comprehensive Sexuality Education' in Massachusetts Public Schools" on the front page of their website. This article refutes Planned Parenthood's claims, stating that "it’s no wonder that Planned Parenthood is pushing it in our schools. Planned Parenthood administrators know that if they sexualize young people, they will create new customers who seek out their abortion services, sexually transmitted infection treatments, and transgender hormone therapies". Instead, MFI argues that the  Healthy Youth Act  would inappropriately expose underaged youth to "pornographic" content that would encourage youth to engage in sexual behaviors, concluding that "state education officials and local school administrators ought to reject Comprehensive Sexuality Education as the poisoner of children that it is".


Sexual Risk Avoidance  (SRA) curricula has been promoted in direct opposition to the  Healthy Youth Act . Advanced by Ascend, this curricula promotes an abstinence-only approach to sex education. Within SRA education programs "Ascend works with SRA educators, community organizations and more as they educate youth using a primary prevention health model".


The Healthy Youth Act in California, a department of Education mandate on January 1, 2016, requires school districts to provide students with integrated, comprehensive, accurate and comprehensive health and HIV prevention education from trained instructors at least once in middle school and once in high school. [ 39 ]


The purpose of the act is to provide comprehensive, accurate and unbiased sexual health and HIV prevention education. [ 40 ]


Preventive education must meet all requirements of the law except for the requirements for specific contents of grades 7 to 12. All "education on human development and gender, including education on pregnancy, contraception and venereal diseases" (EC 19 51931(b) is by definition a comprehensive sexual health education and should be satisfied, regardless of what schools call it by name. HIV prevention education is defined as "the nature of HIV and AIDS, the methods of transmission, strategies to reduce the risk of HIV infection, and guidelines for social and public health issues related to HIV and AIDS" (EC 551931(d). [ 40 ]


The law has five main objectives:


Although there is no federal mandate that requires states to teach sexual education, there is federal funding available to assist with sexual education programs. [ 42 ]


Historically, funding for abstinence education has always been favored over CSE. In 1996, during Bill Clinton's presidency, legislation was passed to promote abstinence in education programs. Under Title V Section 510 of the Social Security Act, the Abstinence Education Grant Program (AEGP), was passed. AEGP has always been renewed before its expiration date, and each time funds gradually increase from fifty million dollars per year to seventy-five and as high as $6.75 million per state grant in 2015. The way the funds are disbursed are based on the proportion of low-income children in each state. So far, thirty-six states have been given AEGP funds. [ 5 ]


Part of Section 510(b) of Title V of the Social Security Act, contains the "A-H guidelines", which are the eight criteria that programs must abide by order to be eligible to receive federal funding. [ 42 ]  They are as follows:


In addition to abiding by these 8 conditions, AEGP compliant programs cannot discuss contraception, STIs, or methods for protecting against STIs, except when describing failure rates. [ 5 ]


More recently legislation has pushed for funding that goes beyond abstinence only education. [ 42 ]  In 2010, President Obama introduced the Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program (TPP),  which provides a total of $114.5 million annually to sex education programs that are "medically accurate and age-appropriate." [ 5 ] [ 42 ]  TPP falls under a subsection of United States Department of Health and Human Services ("HHS") which is overseen by the Office of Adolescent Health. Funding for TPP is dispersed if "they emulate specific evidence-based programs promulgated under TPP." [ 5 ]


In January 2016, the California Healthy Youth Act amended the California Comprehensive Sexual Health and HIV/AIDS Prevention Education Act to include minority groups and expand health education. Before, it authorized schools to provide comprehensive sex education and required all materials to be made accessible to students with a variety of needs; it also focused solely on marital relationships. It now mandates that schools provide comprehensive sex education and states that "materials cannot be biased and must be appropriate for students of all races, genders, sexual orientations, and ethnic and cultural backgrounds, as well as those with disabilities and English language learners." Additionally, education must now include "instruction about forming healthy and respectful committed relationships," regardless of marital status. Furthermore, it is now required to have discussions about all FDA-approved contraceptive methods in preventing pregnancy, including the  morning-after pill . [ 5 ]


In conclusion now requires that all sex education programs promulgated in the state should: [ 5 ]


Some critics state that young people's access to CSE is grounded in internationally recognized  human rights , which require governments to guarantee the overall protection of health, well-being and dignity, as per the  Universal Declaration on Human Rights , and specifically to guarantee the provision of unbiased, scientifically accurate sexuality education. [ 16 ]


These rights are protected by internationally ratified treaties, and lack of access to sexual and reproductive health (SRH) education remains a barrier to complying with the obligations to ensure the rights to life, health, non-discrimination and information, a view that has been supported by the Statements of the  Committee on the Rights of the Child , the  Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women  (CEDAW) Committee, and the  Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights . [ 16 ]


The commitment of individual states to realizing these rights has been reaffirmed by the international community, in particular the  Commission on Population and Development  (CPD), which – in its resolutions 2009/12 and 2012/13 – called on governments to provide young people with comprehensive education on human sexuality, SRH and  gender equality . [ 16 ]


Other analysis show that comprehensive sex education is not an international right nor a human right because it not clearly stated in either a treaty or custom. By international law, states are required to provide access to information and education about reproductive health, but this does not require a sex education curriculum. It may take different forms such as mandating that local school districts create a system for providing information to students, or mandating that health clinics and practitioners dispense information to patients. [ 30 ]


As CSE gains momentum and interest at international, regional and national levels, governments are increasingly putting in place measures to scale-up their delivery of some form of life skills-based sexuality education, as well as seeking guidance on best practice, particularly regarding placement within the school  curriculum . Sexuality education may be delivered as a stand-alone subject or integrated across relevant subjects within the school curricula. These options have direct implications for implementation, including teacher training, the ease of evaluating and revising curricula, the likelihood of curricula being delivered, and the methods through which it is delivered. [ 16 ]


Within countries, choices about implementing integrated or stand-alone sexuality education are typically linked to national policies and overall organization of the curricula. The evidence base on the effectiveness of stand-alone vs. integrated sexuality education programming is still limited. However, there are discernible differences for policy-makers to consider when deciding the position of CSE within the curriculum. [ 16 ]


As a stand-alone subject, sexuality education is set apart from the rest of the curriculum, whether on its own or within a broader stand-alone health and life skills curriculum. This makes it more vulnerable to potentially being sacrificed due to time and budget constraints, since school curricula are typically overcrowded. [ 16 ]


However, a stand-alone curriculum also presents opportunities for specialized teacher training pathways, and the use of non-formal teaching methodologies that aim to build learners' critical thinking skills. The pedagogical approaches promoted through sexuality education – such as learner-centred methodologies, development of skills and values, group learning and peer engagement – are increasingly being recognized as transformative approaches that impact on learning and education more widely. As a standalone subject, it is also significantly easier to monitor, which is crucial in terms of evaluating the effectiveness of programming, and revising curricula where it is not delivering the desired learning outcomes. [ 16 ]


When sexuality education is integrated or infused, it is mainstreamed across a number of subject areas, such as biology, social studies, home economics or religious studies. While this model may reduce pressure on an overcrowded curriculum, it is difficult to monitor or evaluate, and may limit teaching methodologies to traditional approaches. [ 16 ]


Apart from the different teaching methods, terminology also differs. Abortion, homosexuality and abstinence have connotations and definitions that vary by state and by nationality. For example, the word "abstinence" may refer to disengaging from all forms of sexual activities until marriage or may refer to only disengaging from sexual intercourse. Furthermore, the degree of sexual activity that "abstinence" connotes is often unclear, because sexual behavior that is not sexual intercourse may or may not be included in its definition. As a result, students are left confused about what activities are risky and teachers do not know what they can and cannot teach.


The term "comprehensive", is also falls on spectrum, therefore can be considered an umbrella term. CSE means something radical for some institutions while it can mean something moderate and even conservative for others. [ 25 ]


According to the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States (SIECUS), the guidelines for comprehensive sexuality education are as follows: [ 42 ]


Just as teaching methods and curricula vary by state,  excusal from sex education also varies by state. States may have an opt-out or opt-in policy. In some states, students can opt out of receiving sexual education without specifying a particular reason. In other states, students can only opt out for religious or moral reasons. In an opt-in provision, parents must actively agree to allow their children to receive sex education prior to the start of the sexual education. [ 5 ]


Since 1997, the amount of sexual content on TV has nearly doubled in the United States. [ 43 ]  Additionally, a study done in 2008 showed that nearly 40% of popular music lyrics contained sexual references which were often sexually degrading. These lyrics were also often accompanied with mentions of other risk behaviors, such as substance use and violence. [ 43 ]


Teens (ages 13–15) in the United States, use entertainment media as their top source for education in regards to sexuality and sexual health. Additionally, a study found that 15–19-year-olds in the U.S use media far more than parents or schools to obtain information about birth control. [ 43 ]  Some studies have found that, "very few teen television shows mention any of the responsibilities or risks (e.g., using contraception, pregnancy, STIs) associated with sex and almost none of the shows with sexual content include precaution, prevention, or negative outcomes as the primary theme." [ 43 ]  Television shows  16 and Pregnant  and its spin-off,  Teen Mom , which first aired on MTV in 2009 received major disapproval from some parents as they thought the shows glamorized teen pregnancy and motherhood. However,  16 and Pregnant  actually led to a 4.3 percent reduction in teen pregnancy, mostly as a result of increased contraceptive use. [ 5 ]  In contrast, other data shows that exposure to high levels of sexual content on the television causes adolescents to have twice the risk of becoming pregnant in the following three years, compared to those who were exposed to low levels. [ 43 ]


The film  Mean Girls , directed by Mark Waters shed light on the state sex education in some parts of the United States. In the film the health instructor states, "At your age, you're going to have a lot of urges. You're going to want to take off your clothes and touch each other. But if you do touch each other, you will get chlamydia and die." This line is meant to be satirical, but it illustrates common flaws within sex education in the U.S. It depicts simplistic descriptions of sexual activity and implementation of fear without any legitimate basis. [ 5 ]


Comprehensive sex education is the main topic in the documentary  The Education of Shelby Knox  (2005) about  Lubbock, Texas , which has one of the highest  teen pregnancy  and  STD  rates in the nation; the "solution" to which is a strict  abstinence-only sex education  curriculum in the public schools and a conservative preacher who urges kids to pledge abstinence until marriage.


In 2013,  How to Lose Your Virginity  was released, a documentary that questioned the effectiveness of the  abstinence-only sex education movement  and observed how  sexuality  continues to define a young woman's morality and self-worth. [ 44 ] [ 45 ]  The meaning and necessity of virginity as a  social construct  is also examined through narration and interviews with notable sexuality experts, such as former Surgeon General  Joycelyn Elders , "Scarleteen" [ 46 ]  creator and editor  Heather Corinna , historian  Hanne Blank , author  Jessica Valenti , and comprehensive sex education advocate  Shelby Knox .


Not only have films portrayed sex education, but so has  social media .  Platforms such as  YouTube ,  Facebook , and others are used as a tool to uplift the narratives of marginalized communities such as  persons of color  and LGBT persons in hopes to "strengthen sexual health equity for all." [ 36 ]


As a result of the mass amount of sex content in media,  media literacy  education (MLE) has emerged. It was created to address the influence of unhealthy media messages on risky health decisions, such as intention to use substances, body image issues, and eating disorders. [ 43 ]  A study analyzed the effectiveness of a teacher-led MLE program, called Media Aware Sexual Health (MASH), which provides students with accurate health information and teaches them how to apply that information to critical analysis of media messages. This comprehensive sex education resulted in increased intentions to talk to a parent, partner and medical professional prior to sexual activity, and intentions for condom use. [ 43 ]


Due to knowledge gaps in most sex education curricula for teens, free online resources like  Sex, Etc. , Scarleteen.com, and teensource.org [ 47 ]  have been created to promote comprehensive, inclusive, and shame-free sex education for teenagers.


This article incorporates text from a  free content  work. Licensed under CC-BY-SA IGO 3.0 ( license statement/permission ). Text taken from  Emerging evidence, lessons and practice in comprehensive sexuality education: A global review 2015 , 14, 15, 25, 29, UNESCO, UNESCO. UNESCO.


A  conjugal visit  is a scheduled period in which an inmate of a  prison  or  jail  is permitted to spend several hours or days in private with a visitor. The visitor is usually their legal partner. The generally recognized basis for permitting such visits in modern times is to preserve family bonds and increase the chances of success for a prisoner's eventual return to ordinary life after release from prison. They also provide an incentive for inmates to comply with the various day-to-day rules and regulations of the prison.


Conjugal visits usually take place in designated rooms or a structure provided for that purpose, such as a trailer or a small cabin. Supplies such as soap, condoms, lubricant, bed linens, and towels may be provided.


In  Australia , conjugal visits are permitted in the Australian Capital Territory and Victoria. [ 1 ] [ 2 ] [ 3 ]  Other jurisdictions, including Western Australia [ 4 ]  and Queensland, [ 5 ]  do not permit conjugal visits.


In  Brazil , male prisoners are eligible to be granted conjugal visits for both heterosexual and homosexual relationships, while women's conjugal visits are tightly regulated, if granted at all. [ 6 ] [ citation needed ]


In  Canada , all inmates in federal correctional facilities, with the exception of those on disciplinary restrictions or at risk for family violence, are permitted "private family visits" of up to 72 hours' duration once every two months.  Eligible visitors, who may not themselves be prison inmates, are: spouse, or common-law partner of at least six months; children; parents;  foster parents ; siblings; grandparents; and "persons with whom, in the opinion of the institutional head, the inmate has a close familial bond".  Food is provided by the institution but paid for by the inmates and visitors, who are also responsible for cleaning the unit after the visit. Prison staff have regular contact with the inmate and visitors during a visit. [ 7 ]


In the  Czech Republic , a prison warden has the authority to allow an inmate "a visit without visual and auditory supervision of the employees of the  Prison Service ". [ 8 ]  Inmate's medical check and mental health check is required before such visit is permitted. [ 9 ]


In  Denmark , conjugal visits are permissible.  The State Prison of East Jutland  has apartments for couples, where inmates who have been sentenced to more than eight years in prison can have visitation for 47 hours per visit. [ citation needed ]


Conjugal visits of up to 72 hours with (including  de facto ) spouses or registered partners or relatives are permitted at least once every half year. This is permitted assuming no safety issues with the inmate or lack of confidence in the reputability of the visitor. The visits last 24 hours by default, but may be extended to 72 hours rewarding inmates' good behaviour. Visits take place in designated rooms on prison grounds without supervision. [ 10 ] [ 11 ]


In  France , inmates are permitted conjugal visits. Visits last up to 72 hours and take place in mini-apartments consisting of two small rooms, a kitchen and a dining area. [ 6 ] [ citation needed ]


Germany  allows prisoners and their spouses or partners to apply for conjugal visits. Those who are approved are allowed unsupervised visits so that prisoners can preserve intimate bonds with their partners. Prisoners are to be searched before being allowed a visit. In 2010, an inmate murdered his girlfriend and attempted suicide during a visit, leading to additional criticism of the lax security in German prisons. [ 12 ]


Hong Kong  does not permit conjugal visits. [ 13 ]


In 2015, the Punjab and Haryana High Court held that the right of married convicts and jail inmates to have conjugal visits or artificial insemination for pregnancy was a fundamental right. [ 14 ] [ 15 ]  In January 2018,  Madras High court  allowed a two week conjugal visit to an inmate serving life term in  Tamil Nadu  prison for the "purpose of procreation". [ 16 ]


In October 2022, Punjab became the first state in India to allow  conjugal visits  to prisoners. According to a senior official, this decision was taken to keep the stress levels of inmates under control and ensure their re-entry into society, and this also fulfills a basic biological need. Under this scheme, prisoners who exhibited good conduct would be allowed to spend two hours in private with their spouses after every two months. Some categories of prisoners are kept out of this program, which includes high–risk prisoners, terrorists, gangsters and those imprisoned for domestic violence, child abuse and sexual crimes. Moreover, both spouses must be free from infectious diseases like HIV,  STDs  and  Tuberculosis , to avail this program. [ 17 ] [ 18 ]


Ireland  does not allow conjugal visits.  Marie and Noel Murray , an  anarchist  married couple imprisoned for a 1976 murder, lost a 1991 appeal for conjugal rights. [ 19 ]  The  Supreme Court  ruled that the  Constitutional  right to beget children within marriage was suspended while a spouse was lawfully imprisoned. [ 20 ]


The  Israel Prison Service  (IPS) allows standard conjugal visits to inmates who are married or are in a common-law relationship or if their partner has been visiting them frequently for at least two years, and have a record of good behavior. Inmates who receive prison furloughs are not eligible for conjugal visits. Conjugal visits can be withheld on security grounds or as a means of punishment for misbehavior. IPS guidelines were clarified in July 2013 to allow conjugal visits of same-sex partners.
Israel only extends this right to citizens of the state, while Palestinians and Gazans imprisoned in Israeli jails are denied conjugal visits. [ 21 ] [ 22 ] [ 23 ]


In  Japan , conjugal visits are not allowed. [ 24 ]


Conjugal visits are a universal practice in  Mexico , independent of a prisoner's marital status; in some correctional facilities entire families are allowed to live in prisons with their imprisoned relative for extended periods. [ 25 ]  Specifically in  Mexico City , in July 2007, the prison system in that city has begun to allow gay prisoners to have conjugal visits from their partners, on the basis of a 2003 law which bans discrimination based on sexual orientation. [ 26 ]


The  Netherlands  allows for one unsupervised visit ( Bezoek zonder Toezicht ) per month, provided the imprisonment period is at least six months and there is a close and durable relation between the partners. This does not apply to maximum security penitentiaries. [ 27 ]


New Zealand  does not permit conjugal visits. [ 28 ]


In  Pakistan , conjugal visits prior to 2009 were permitted only under special circumstances. [ 29 ]  In August 2009,  Federal Shariat Court  ruled that married prisoners should be allowed conjugal visits at the designated facilities within the jail complex and alternatively, they should be granted a short parole to visit their spouses. [ 30 ]  Following the ruling, the Province of  Sindh  was the first to adopt legislation providing conjugal visits for married prisoners within Jail premises. [ 31 ]  Human Rights Book 2010 reports that Conjugal visits are now available for Prisoners in all Provinces and Federal territories if they are male and married. [ 32 ]  Since homosexuality is considered a criminal offense in Pakistan and same-sex marriage is not recognized by law, this privilege applies only to heterosexual couples.


In the  Russian  penal system, since a campaign of prison reform that began in 2001, well-behaved prisoners are granted an eighteen-day holiday furlough from incarceration to see loved ones. Prisoners also get extended on-site family visits, approximately once per month. [ 33 ]


In  Spain , prisoners are allowed conjugal visits every four to eight weeks. They are held in private rooms and can last up to three hours. Couples are provided with condoms, shower facilities, and clean towels. [ 6 ]


Since April 2013, the Turkish General Directorate of Prisons and Detention offers conjugal visits as a reward to well-behaved prisoners. [ 34 ]


The  English ,  Welsh ,  Scottish  and  Northern Irish  prison systems do not allow conjugal visits. However, home visits, with a greater emphasis on building other links with the outside world to which the prisoner will be returned, are allowed. These home visits are usually only granted to prisoners who have a few weeks to a few months remaining of a long sentence. Furthermore, home visits are more likely to be granted if the prisoner is deemed to have a low risk of absconding (i.e. prisoners being held in  open prisons  have a better chance of being granted home visits than prisoners being held in closed conditions).


The first state to implement conjugal visits was Mississippi in the  Mississippi State Penitentiary  (Parchman). It was enacted to convince black male prisoners to work harder in their manual labor. [ 35 ]  This was done unofficially at first, but had become official policy at Parchman Penitentiary by the 1950s. [ 35 ]


In  Lyons v. Gilligan  (1974), the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio held that prisoners have no federal constitutional right to conjugal visits with their spouses during sentences. [ 36 ]


As of 2008, conjugal visitation programs are now known as the extended-family visits or family-reunion visits because mothers, fathers, and other family members may attend these visits. The focus is on family ties and rehabilitation. [ 37 ]


The  United States Federal Bureau of Prisons  does not allow conjugal visits for prisoners in federal custody. [ 38 ]


For prisoners in state custody, the availability of conjugal visits is governed by the law of the particular state. The four states that currently allow conjugal visits are California, Connecticut, New York, and Washington. [ 39 ]


Where conjugal visits are allowed, inmates must meet certain requirements to qualify for this privilege: The visitor may be required to undergo a background check, and the inmate must also be free of any  sexually transmitted diseases . As a matter of procedure, both visitor and inmate are searched before and after the visit, to ensure that the visitor has not attempted to smuggle any items into or out of the facility. [ citation needed ]


Jorja Leap , a professor of social welfare at the  Luskin School of Public Affairs  at the  University of California, Los Angeles  stated that criminologists believe allowing conjugal visits would build family ties and reduce recidivism. [ 40 ]  Over the last 40 years, most new prisons included special buildings specifically designed for conjugal visits. [ 37 ]


By the early 1990s, 17 states had conjugal programs. According to Leap, conjugal visits declined after an increase in attitudes that prison should be a place for punishment and that conjugal visits were not appropriate for people being punished, and also because academic literature in the 1980s and 1990s argued that it was not possible to rehabilitate some criminals. [ 40 ]  Many states that once allowed conjugal visits have since eliminated the programs. In April 2011, New York adopted legislation to allow family visits for married partners. [ 41 ]  In January 2014, the head of the  Mississippi Department of Corrections , Chris Epps, terminated the state conjugal program. [ 40 ]  New Mexico announced it was also ending its program in May 2014. [ 42 ]


In June 2007, the  California Department of Corrections  announced it would allow same-sex conjugal visits. The policy was enacted to comply with a 2005 state law requiring state agencies to give the same rights to domestic partners that heterosexual couples receive. The new rules allow for visits only by registered married same sex couples or domestic partners who are not themselves incarcerated. Further, the same-sex marriage or domestic partnership must have been established before the prisoner was incarcerated. [ 43 ]


The  consummation of a marriage , or simply  consummation , is the first officially credited act of  sexual intercourse  following  marriage . In many traditions and statutes of civil or religious law, the definition usually refers to  penile–vaginal penetration  (i.e.,  heterosexual ), and some religious doctrines hold an additional requirement prohibiting  contraception . [ 1 ]  In this sense, "a marriage is consummated only if the conjugal act performed deposits  semen  in the  vagina ." [ 2 ]


The religious, cultural, or legal significance of consummation may arise from theories of marriage as having the purpose of  producing  legally recognized  descendants  of both  partners , or of  providing sanction  to their  sexual acts  together, or both, and its absence may amount to treating a  marriage ceremony  as falling short of  completing  the state of being married, or as creating a marriage which may later be repudiated. Thus, in some legal systems, a marriage may be  annulled  if it has  not been consummated . Consummation is also relevant in the case of a  common-law marriage . The historical importance of consummation has resulted in the development of various  bedding rituals .


In addition to these formal and literal usages, the term also exists in informal and less precise usage to refer to a sexual landmark in relationships of varying intensity and duration.


The relevance of consummation in a  civil marriage  varies by jurisdiction. For example, under section 12 of the  Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 , a refusal or inability to consummate a marriage is a ground of  annulment in England and Wales , [ 3 ]  but this only applies to heterosexual marriage because Paragraph 4 of schedule 4 of the  Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act 2013  specifically excludes non-consummation as a ground for the annulment of a  same-sex marriage . [ 4 ]  Other  common law  jurisdictions, such as  Australia , have abolished the legal concept of consummation. [ 5 ] [ 6 ]


In some countries, such as  Egypt ,  Syria , [ 7 ]   Jordan , [ 8 ]  the  United Arab Emirates , [ 9 ]   Saudi Arabia ,  Yemen ,  Libya ,  Mauritania , and  Indonesia , [ 10 ]  religious marriage is the only legally binding marriage. In other countries, a religious marriage without civil registration may or may not be legally binding.


In the case of common law marriage, consummation may be a required component in the creation of the marriage itself. [ citation needed ]


According to traditional  Christian theological interpretations , "It is intended by God for the husband to be the one to break his wife's  hymen ", which when perforated during intercourse creates a  blood covenant  that seals the bond of  holy matrimony  between husband and wife. [ 11 ]  Consummation is particularly relevant in a  Catholic marriage . Within the  Catholic Church , if a matrimonial celebration takes place (ratification) but the spouses have not yet engaged in intercourse (consummation), then the marriage is said to be a marriage  ratum sed non consummatum . Such a marriage, regardless of the reason for non-consummation, can be dissolved by the  pope . [ 12 ]  Additionally, an inability or an intentional refusal to consummate the marriage is probable grounds for an  annulment .  Catholic canon law  defines a marriage as consummated when the "spouses have performed between themselves in a human fashion a conjugal act which is suitable in itself for the procreation of offspring, to which marriage is ordered by its nature and by which the spouses become one flesh". [ 13 ]  Thus some theologians, such as  Fr. John A. Hardon, S.J. , state that intercourse with  contraception  does not consummate a marriage. [ 1 ]


In many traditions, consummation is an important act because it suggests the bride's  virginity ; the  presence of blood  is erroneously taken as definitive confirmation that the woman was a virgin. [ 14 ]


In the  family law  defining  civil marriage  in some jurisdictions, particularly those where the civil  marriage laws  remain influenced by  religion  (albeit they are officially secular), non-consummation of a marriage may be a ground for  annulment  (an annulment is different from a  divorce  because it usually acts retrospectively). This stipulation has been in recent years heavily criticized on a wide variety of grounds, ranging from the mixing of religious doctrine into secular law, to being degrading to women given its negative historical connotations of ownership of the wife. [ 15 ]  It has been argued that the purpose of this ground is not clear: it is neither procreation (the act need not end in pregnancy, and neither is there a need of the  possibility  of it, given the fact the consummation is legally valid even if one or both parties is sterile), neither is it the expectation of sexual satisfaction in marriage (one single act of sexual intercourse is sufficient, even if the spouse following the consummation says they will never again engage in intercourse). [ 16 ]  Andrew Bainham argues that this law (in  England and Wales ) is outdated and must be abolished "in a modern society committed to equality and human rights in personal relationships". [ 17 ]


In a 2001 report, the  Law Society of Ireland 's Law Reform advocated abolishing the concept of a  voidable marriage  altogether (since divorce had been introduced in 1996) and criticized the consummation ground, writing the following: [ 18 ]


The rationale behind this ground is not immediately apparent. It is not concerned with the capacity of either or both parties to procreate, still less with the ability of the parties to satisfy each other sexually during the marriage.   [...] It remains a rather curious anomaly in the law, a relic perhaps of medieval times, when the first act of intercourse was thought to 'mark' a new bride as the 'property' of her husband. Whatever its origins, it is not entirely clear what modern purpose this ground serves and it is suggested that it should be dispensed with.


Another concern is  sexual violence , especially since in most countries the criminalization of  marital rape  is recent, having occurred from the 1970s onwards; the maintaining in law of the concept of consummation is argued to foster cultural and societal attitudes and understandings of marriage that make it more difficult to acknowledge these violations; and to be a remainder of an oppressive tradition. [ 15 ] [ 19 ]  Commenting on the case of  R v R , which criminalised marital rape in England and Wales, Harris-Short and Miles write:


[A] historical view again throws useful light on the matter: until 1991, husbands were permitted to have sexual intercourse with their wives regardless of whether they were then actually consenting, the original act of consummation and the resultant marital status entitling the husband to sexual relations thereafter. [ 20 ] [ 21 ]


Cruising for sex  or  cruising  is walking or driving about a locality, called a  cruising ground , in search of a  sex partner , usually of the  anonymous ,  casual ,  one-time  variety. [ 1 ] [ 2 ]  The term is also used when technology is used to find casual sex, such as using an Internet site or a telephone service. [ 3 ] [ 4 ]


According to historian and author  Tim Blanning , the term cruising originates from the Dutch equivalent  kruisen . [ 5 ]


In a specifically sexual context, the term "cruising" originally emerged as an  argot  "code word" in  gay slang , by which those "in the know" would understand the speaker's unstated  sexual  intent, whereas most heterosexuals, on hearing the same word in the same context, would normally misread the speaker's intended meaning in the word's more common nonsexual sense. This served (and in some contexts, still serves) as a protective  sociolinguistic  mechanism for  gay men  to recognize each other, and avoid being recognized by those who may wish to do them harm in broader societies noted for their  homophobia .


In the latter half of the twentieth century, decriminalization of homosexual behaviour increasingly became the norm in English-speaking countries. The protective barrier once provided by the term "cruising" as a "code word" has therefore largely broken down and, arguably, become increasingly irrelevant. Thus the specifically sexual meaning of the term has passed into common usage to include the sexual behavior of heterosexual persons, as well. [ citation needed ]


Public health officials have noted that cruising locations are frequented by  men who have sex with men , but do not identify with being homosexual or bisexual, who are closeted, married, or in relationships with women, do not date men or frequent gay bars, clubs or websites, or have otherwise no other way of meeting men for sex. [ 6 ]


The cruising places are often considered meeting places for men who are otherwise living more conventional lifestyles. For instance, it was noted in  Laud Humphreys ' 1970 study about anonymous gay sex meeting places that most men who visited those places were at least seeming heterosexuals who had families. [ 7 ]


In the United States, the term "cruising" was used predominantly to denote exclusively homosexual behavior, but in Australia and the United Kingdom it is used by both homosexuals and heterosexuals to describe their own behavior, as witnessed in the common male heterosexual derivative phrase "cruising for chicks". [ 8 ] [ 9 ] [ 10 ]


In the United States, cruising often takes place in  gay bars ,  adult video arcades  often through  gloryholes ,  adult movie theaters ,  public toilets , parks,  saunas , gyms or  gay bathhouses .  Engaging in such activities in public places like parks has led to participants being charged with  indecent exposure .


In  Poland , the term  pikieta  ( plural :  pikiety ; translated as "picket" or "piquet") is used to describe a similar practice. Origination around the turn of the 19th century, pickets were especially popular during the  Polish People's Republic  period, when homosexuality was more taboo and few people decided to be open about their sexuality. In  Warsaw , one of the most prominent locations for pickets was the northern  frontage  of  Three Crosses Square . In the early 21st century, pickets became less popular due to the development of a network of premises for  sexual minorities , such as bars, discos and saunas, as well as communication via the Internet. [ 11 ] [ 12 ] [ 13 ]


Cruising for sex is alluded to in songs such as " Cruisin' the Streets " by the  Boys Town Gang [ 14 ]  as well as "I'm a Cruiser" by the  Village People , on the album titled  Cruisin' .


In 1980, director  William Friedkin  made the film  Cruising , starring  Al Pacino . The film introduced many audiences to homosexual activities and the linguistic codes used for them, but  gay rights  groups perceived a negative depiction of the  gay community  in the film and protested its production. [ 15 ]


Cruising features prominently in the storylines of Joe Pitt and Louis Ironson in  Tony Kushner 's 1991 play about the AIDS crisis in New York City,  Angels in America , as well as its  2003 miniseries adaptation  by HBO. The miniseries specifically depicts the popular cruising location of  The Ramble  alongside other locations in  Central Park .


The opening scene of the first episode of the  HBO  series  Looking  involves the main character Patrick ( Jonathan Groff ) cruising in a park, mainly out of curiosity of whether the activity is still in practice or not. [ 16 ]


Cruising for sex was explored in  Cruising Pavilion , a 2018 art installation associated with the  Venice Biennale of Architecture . [ 17 ]


Death  can occur during  sexual intercourse  for a number of reasons, generally because of the physical strain of the activity, or because of unusual extenuating circumstances. There are various  euphemisms  for death during sex, including "dying in the saddle" or the French " la mort d'amour " ( lit.   ' death of love ' ). [ 1 ]


Sexual intimacy, as well as orgasms, increases levels of the hormone  oxytocin , also known as "the love hormone", which helps people bond and build trust. [ 2 ] [ 3 ] [ 4 ]  Sexual activity is also known as one of many  mood repair strategies , which means it can be used to help dissipate feelings of sadness or depression. [ 5 ]


A 2011  meta-analysis  in the  Journal of the American Medical Association  found that each additional hour of sexual activity per week resulted in an increased risk of 2–3  myocardial infarctions  and one  sudden cardiac death  [SCD] per 10,000 person-years. [ 6 ]  Sexual intercourse can also trigger a  subarachnoid hemorrhage  via the  Valsalva maneuver . [ 7 ] [ 8 ]  A 2011 meta-analysis published in  Journal of Sexual Medicine  found that men who were unfaithful were significantly more likely than those who were faithful to experience severe or fatal cardiac events during sex. [ 9 ]   Basilar artery dissection  has also been reported in connection with sexual activity, though most  coital cephalalgia  is benign in nature. [ 10 ]


Deaths during consensual sex account for approximately 0.6% of all sudden deaths. [ 8 ] [ 11 ]  In the UK, of all people under 50 who suffered SCD, 0.2% did so within an hour of sex. [ 12 ]   Sildenafil , although generally considered to be a safe drug, has been linked to SCD during sexual activity among elderly or otherwise infirm men. [ 11 ]  A number of deaths during consensual sex have been linked to the use of other prescription or recreational drugs, such as  cocaine . [ 13 ]  The majority of deaths due to cardiovascular causes during sex occur in males. [ 14 ]


The heart condition  endothelial dysfunction  is a contributing cause to both  atherosclerosis  and  erectile dysfunction . [ 15 ]  Because of the link between these conditions, rates of  coronary heart disease  are higher among patients with erectile dysfunction. [ 15 ]  One treatment for erectile dysfunction is  cGMP-specific phosphodiesterase type 5  inhibitors, which enable patients to resume having sex despite having a cardiac condition, by lowering blood pressure. [ 15 ]  These drugs, including  sildenafil , inhibit the action of the phosphodiesterase, allowing for a higher concentration of  cyclic GMP  in the penis when it is physically stimulated. Cyclic GMP is a  second messenger  in the  nitric oxide  pathway, responsible for erections via the  vasodilating  function of nitric oxide. [ 16 ]   Sudden cardiac death  can be caused by  myocardial ischemia , and the physical activity of sexual intercourse in patients with coronary artery disease can result in myocardial ischemia. [ 15 ]  The phosphodiesterase can act as a  potentiator  for other drugs which lower blood pressure and which could be used to treat heart conditions, and so may be  contraindicated  to prevent negative health consequences. [ 17 ]


The  decriminalization of sex work  is the removal of criminal penalties for  sex work  (specifically,  prostitution ). [ 2 ]  Sex work, the  consensual  provision of sexual services for money or goods, [ 3 ]  is criminalized in most countries. [ 4 ]   Decriminalization  is distinct from  legalization [ 5 ]  (also known as the "regulationist" approach). [ 6 ]


Advocates of decriminalization argue that removing the criminal sanctions surrounding sex work creates a safer environment for sex workers, [ 7 ]  and that it helps fight  sex trafficking . [ 8 ]  Opponents of decriminalization argue that it will not prevent trafficking (or even increase trafficking [ 9 ] ) and could put sex workers at greater risk. [ 10 ]  Evidence demonstrates that decriminalization is an evidence-based  harm reduction  approach. [ 11 ] [ 12 ]


Organizations including: the  Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS  (UNAIDS), the  World Health Organization  (WHO),  Amnesty International ,  Human Rights Watch ,  United Nations Population Fund  (UNFPA), and the medical journal  The Lancet  have called on countries to decriminalize sex work in the global effort to tackle the  HIV/AIDS epidemic  and ensure sex workers' access to health services. [ 13 ] [ 14 ] [ 15 ] [ 16 ]  Almost all  organisations run by sex workers themselves  around the world favour the decriminalisation of sex work, and it tends to be their main goal. [ 17 ] [ 18 ] [ 19 ] [ 5 ] [ 20 ]


However, a European Parliament resolution adopted on 26 February 2014, regarding sexual exploitation and prostitution and its impact on gender equality states that, "decriminalising the sex industry in general and making procuring legal is not a solution to keeping vulnerable women and under-age females safe from violence and exploitation, but has the opposite effect and puts them in danger of a higher level of violence, while at the same time encouraging prostitution markets – and thus the number of women and under-age females suffering abuse – to grow." [ 10 ]


Two countries have decriminalized sex work. In June 2003,  New Zealand  became the first country to decriminalize sex work, with the passage of the  Prostitution Reform Act . [ 21 ]  The one remaining criminal law surrounding commercial sexual activities in New Zealand is a requirement to adopt safer sex practices. [ 22 ]  Despite decriminalisation, its sex industry is still controversial, with some issues remaining. [ 23 ]  In June 2022,  Belgium  became the first country in Europe and the second country in the world to decriminalize sex work. [ 24 ] [ 25 ]


There are a wide variety of legal approaches to regulating prostitution. NGOs, academics, and government agencies typically use five different models to organize the different approaches. [ 26 ]  Scholars have also used three-fold and four-fold classifications, and terminology may differ between studies. [ 27 ]  Some may equate the term "criminalisation" with "prohibition(ism)", while others regard all policies except "decriminalisation" as a certain degree of criminalisation. [ 27 ]


Hindle et al. (2008) stated: "Prohibitionism seeks to eliminate prostitution by criminalizing all aspects of the prostitution trade. Under this approach, prostitution is seen as a violation of human dignity. Criminal law and effective law enforcement are viewed as critical tools in reducing the number of individuals involved in prostitution." [ 26 ]  Kulick (2003) stated that prohibitionist models "criminalise the actual transaction of selling sex." [ 28 ]  Scoular (2015) noted that those taking a prohibitionist approach believe that the sex trade is a violation of moral (usually religious) beliefs, and seek "to deter parties from engaging in prostitution by punishing one (usually the female sellers) or, increasingly, both parties." [ 29 ]


Hindle et al. (2008) stated: "Abolitionism is often described as the middle ground between prohibitionism and legalization. Advocates of this approach maintain that even though prostitutes may choose to enter the trade, it is nevertheless immoral. They believe that governments must take the necessary steps to allow prostitution to take place only as long as it does not infringe on public safety and order. Generally, abolitionists call for the criminalization of public solicitation." [ 26 ]  Kulick (2003) defined abolitionism as "a legal system that holds that prostitution in itself is not an offence, but the exploitation of the prostitution of others is; thus any third party recruiting, profiting from, or organising prostitutes is penalised." [ 28 ]


Neo-abolitionism, also called the  Nordic or Swedish model , is used in  Sweden ,  Norway ,  France  and other countries. While selling sex is not criminalized under this approach, the buying of sex is illegal. Neo-abolitionists claim these models do not punish prostitutes, but instead penalize those who purchase sex from sex workers. This model is criticized for causing sex workers to do their business in areas with less police, which often makes it more dangerous. [ 26 ] [ 30 ] [ 31 ]


Legalization is also referred to as "regulationist". [ 6 ]  In countries that legalize prostitution, it is no longer prohibited, and there is legislation to control and regulate it. [ 26 ]  The extent and type of legislation varies from country to country and may be regulated by work permits, licensing or tolerance zones. [ 26 ]


Decriminalization is the removal of criminal penalties for sex work. In countries that decriminalize sex work, sex workers receive the same protection and recognition as workers in other industries. [ 2 ]  The very first line of the  World Charter for Prostitutes' Rights , written and adopted by the  International Committee for Prostitutes' Rights  on 15 February 1985 at the first World Whores Congress in Amsterdam, states: "Decriminalize all aspects of adult prostitution resulting from individual decision." [ 32 ]


According to the  World Health Organization  (WHO), sex workers are considered one of the key populations at risk for  HIV  infection, [ 33 ]  and sex workers who inject drugs are at even more risk due to unprotected sex, syringe sharing, alcohol or drug dependence, and violence. [ 34 ]  Stigma, poverty, and exclusion from legal social services have increased their vulnerability to HIV infection. [ 33 ]  Health risks and transmission of HIV as well as other  sexually transmitted infections  (STIs) are increased in incidences where condom usage and accessibility is limited or used to identify and criminalize sex workers. Many sex workers are managed by 'gatekeepers' who may be brothel owners, clients, or law enforcement figures, who often dictate condom usage. [ 35 ]  In Cambodia, a survey showed that 30% of sex workers who refused to put on condoms were sexually coerced. Fear of law enforcement and incarceration also discourages possession of condoms since they provide evidence for officers to prosecute and arrest. [ 35 ]  Evidence suggests that HIV risk can be sharply reduced when sex workers are able to negotiate safer sex. [ 13 ]  Decriminalization of sex work decreases the risk of HIV infection by breaking down stigma and increasing access to health services, reducing the risk of HIV/AIDS and STIs. [ 13 ]


According to a 2020 study, criminalisation of sex work in one district in  East Java , compared to neighbouring districts where sex work was not criminalised, increased the rate of sexually transmitted infections among female sex workers by 58%, made their income after leaving sex work lower on average, and their children more likely to begin working to supplement household income rather than go to school (as school expenses were harder to meet). [ 36 ]  A 2018 study found that the 2003–2009 decriminalization of indoor  prostitution in Rhode Island  led to reduced sexually transmitted infections (female gonorrhoea incidence declined by over 40%) and fewer rapes (reported rape offences fell by 30%). [ 37 ]  A 2017 study found that the introduction of legal prostitution zones in the Netherlands substantially reduced drug-related crime, sexual abuse and rape (the latter two by 30–40% in the first two years). [ 38 ]


According to a 2021 study, the openings of adult entertainment establishments (strip clubs, gentlemen clubs and escort girl services) in New York City were associated with a 13% decrease in sex crime one week after the opening (while having no impact on other forms of crime). The evidence suggests that potential sex offenders frequent such establishments rather than commit sex crimes. [ 39 ]


Sex workers experience significant stigma and discrimination as a result of criminalization. [ 40 ]  Though they consider sex work a legitimate income-generating activity, sex workers are viewed as immoral, deserving of punishment, and thus excluded from healthcare, education, and housing. [ 13 ] [ 40 ]  Criminalization laws exclude sex workers from health systems that provide access to preventative care such as condoms and regular HIV or STI testing. [ 41 ]


Sex workers, as a population that suffers disproportionately from HIV/AIDS, are often denied many human rights such as the right to freedom from discrimination, equality before the law, the right to life, and the right to the highest attainable standard of health. [ 42 ] [ 14 ]  A study conducted in more than 11 countries by Sex Workers' Rights Advocacy Network (SWAN) concluded that more than 200 sex workers have experienced violence and discrimination. [ 43 ]  These acts of violence toward sex workers often include abuse, rape, kidnappings, and sexual violence. Sex workers also face extortion and unlawful arrests and detention, which profoundly impact their mental, physical, and social wellbeing. [ 44 ]  It is difficult for sex workers to seek criminal justice when it is reported that many police officers are partaking in the sexual and violent abuse. In North Macedonia, police sexual assault towards sex workers is particularly high: 82.4 percent of sex workers were assaulted by police in 2007. [ 43 ]  Criminalization also forces sex workers to work in unsafe settings to avoid police detection which increases their risk of being forced of coerced into sex trafficking. [ 45 ]  Criminalization laws such as bans on buying, solicitation, and the general organization of sex work perpetuate an unsafe environment for sex workers, provide impunity for abusers, and prevent sex workers from reporting the crime to the police. [ 14 ]


In countries where sex work is a crime, encounters with law enforcement and the judicial system can cause great financial difficulty for sex workers. Frequent arrests and legal fines may accumulate over time, and because a fair share of sex workers come from impoverished backgrounds anyway, the toll can be immense. In Washington, D.C., for example, a sex worker's first offense will result in a fine for as much as $500. [ 46 ]  The financial impact can then magnify over time after an encounter with law enforcement. Having a sex work offense on their record may complicate or completely prevent sex workers from acquiring housing. If a sex worker with a criminal record seeks employment in another industry, they may face discrimination or be disallowed from applying. [ 46 ]  55% of Black trans sex workers who participated in a 2015 survey reported being unemployed, while 40% of trans sex workers had experienced gender discrimination when seeking employment. [ 46 ]


Over the course of the past several decades, the demand for male sex work has risen dramatically as people's opinions on not just homosexuality but prostitution as well have begun to change to look at both in a more favorable light. As society's opinions on homosexuality and prostitution have changed in different parts of the world, there has been a subsequent push for the changing of the laws and regulations regarding these matters in some countries, which have helped to increase the demand for male sex work around the world.


The demand for the decriminalization of sex work has also increased. Organizations like the Sex Workers Project, the Sex Workers Outreach Project, the International Committee on the Rights of Sex Workers in Europe, the Asia Pacific Network of Sex Workers, and the African Sex Workers Alliance all work internationally to fight for the rights of both male and female sex workers and for the decriminalization of sex work as whole. This reflects how much the atmosphere surrounding the decriminalization of sex work has changed in the past several decades, as none of the organizations listed above existed before the 1990s.


Similarly to female sex work, there is a long history of discrimination against male sex work, but for different reasons. Much of the sentiment against male sex workers has come from its association with  homosexuality , which for much of history was not socially acceptable. Much of this anti-homosexual sentiment stems from the fact that traditionally the three major Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Christianity, and Islam) taught that homosexuality was sinful, citing Leviticus 18:22 where it states, "You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination" as the main reasoning for this belief. [ 47 ]  As a result, homosexuality was made illegal in many societies, and punishments were put in place for homosexual behavior. [ 48 ] [ 49 ] [ 50 ] [ 51 ]


Anti-homosexual sentiment still exists in some parts of the world. In some places, it is still illegal and punishable by death to be gay. For example, in countries like Yemen, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Mauritania, Nigeria, Brunei, Qatar, Pakistan, Sudan, United Arab Emirates, Somalia, and Afghanistan being homosexual is still punishable by death. [ 52 ]  In other countries, it is not punishable by death but is still illegal and is punishable in other ways. Punishment in these countries can range, 0–10 years, 10–life, and lashes/corporal punishment. Therefore, in many of these countries male sex workers work in unsafe conditions where they run a higher risk of experiencing violence, or sexual abuse to avoid detection by the police who are sometimes the proponents of this violence. Another issue associated with working in these unsafe conditions is the risk of contracting an STI or HIV is much higher. [ 53 ] [ 54 ] [ 55 ]


There has been a push in the past several decades for the decriminalization of sex work in general and more specifically male sex work. The success of some of these movement in achieving the decriminalization and in some cases even legalization of sex work has increase the demand for male sex workers worldwide. Even in countries where neither legalization nor even full decriminalization has been achieved, these movements have at least been successful in relaxing the regulations regarding sex work in general and more specifically male sex work. Which as a result of the relaxing of these regulations even where unsuccessful in achieving full decriminalization, there has been a general increase in the demand for sex work and thereby male sex workers. [ 56 ]  The advent of the internet has also only worked to further increase the demand for male sex work as not only has it allowed male sex workers to connect with their clients more easily, but it has also allowed them to do so more discreetly, which is important in countries where prostitution is still illegal and for clients who want to keep their business private. [ 56 ] [ 57 ]


There are a number of organizations internationally who fight for the rights of sex workers and the decriminalization of prostitution which just to mention a few include the Sex Workers Project, the International Committee on the Rights of Sex Workers in Europe, and the African Sex Workers Alliance. These organizations serve as the leaders in the fight for the decriminalization of sex work as they use the power of their numbers to help them influence policy makes. Which leads to the argument for the decriminalization of male sex work. The argument for the decriminalization of male sex work shares many of the same key points as the arguments for the decriminalization of female sex work. With the main argument for the decriminalization of male sex work and sex work in general being that it is in the best interest of the public health to decriminalize sex work, to ensure that sex workers are capable of going through more professional channels to do their work. Allowing sex workers to use more professional channels in their work would allow them to more easily access protection, get tested for STIs and HIV, and enforce that their clients wear protection and be tested. [ 58 ] [ 56 ]


STIs and HIV are major issues in the field of male sex work, with some studies finding that up to 50% of male sex workers tested positive for HIV in some regions, many of whom were completely unaware. [ 56 ]  The rates of STIs and HIV amongst male sex workers varies wildly based on income level, race, and sexual preference. This a prime example of an area that would become more equitable to male sex workers of all income levels, races, and sexual preferences, if male sex and sex work in general were to be decriminalized and could only improve even further with full legalization. In general the rates of HIV were highest amongst male sex workers who identified as gay, and it is suggested that this may be partially the result of a lack of education regarding the need and importance of still using protection when engaging in gay sex. [ 56 ]  It has also been suggested that male sex workers may be unable to enforce that their clients use condoms due to the risk of experiencing violence for refusing to engage in condomless sex. [ 56 ]  These would both be less of an issue if male sex work and sex work in general were to be decriminalized, as it would allow them to go about their work in more professional settings that would greatly reduce the risk of them experiencing violence or contracting STIs and HIV.


Transgender sex workers experience a disproportionate amount of discrimination and violence, and many activist groups advocate for decriminalization of sex work because it would greatly benefit transgender individuals in the industry. For example, the National Center for Transgender Equality expressed its support for the Amnesty International resolution in support of decriminalizing sex work on the basis of its goal to protect the human rights of workers in the sex industry. [ 59 ]


One study of transgender sex workers that examined their reasons for involving themselves in the industry found that many transgender female sex workers experienced worry that they would not be hired by other employers because of their gender identity. Therefore, they sought work in the sex industry because they felt it was their only choice. [ 60 ]  However, many transgender female sex workers express satisfaction with their occupation because their clients approach them as "real females", and they experience less gender discrimination than they do in their daily lives. [ 60 ]  Many advocates view this sort of positive experience as evidence supporting the need to decriminalize sex work. In various qualitative studies, interviews with transgender female sex workers revealed their experience with policing and law enforcement, and numerous reported believing that their gender identity combined with their job in the sex industry resulted in discriminatory treatment from law enforcement, including verbal and physical abuse. [ 60 ]  The criminalization of sex work also imposes a unique risk to transgender sex workers because, if arrested and incarcerated, they experience highly disproportionate levels of physical and sexual violence at the hands of cisgender male prisoners in the facilities where they are required to be housed. [ 60 ]


This section compares some examples of various legal models in practice.


Brazil operates within the abolitionist model of sex work. This means that selling sex in exchange for money is legal, and sex workers can even claim pensions and benefits when employed in the industry. However, it is illegal to employ sex workers or to profit off the work of a sex worker. In practice, this means that brothels and pimps are criminalized as is sex trafficking. Despite selling and buying sex being legal (only when occurring between sex workers and their clients), there are still many laws and regulations that limit those working in the sex industry. For example, sex workers in Brazil are often charged with vagrancy, loitering, or public disorder when law enforcement sees them soliciting clients. In Rio de Jainero specifically, legal authorities set up campaigns to dissuade sex tourism, and many individuals known to be promoting prostitution have been arrested. [ 61 ]


In 2013, a study was conducted in  Vancouver , where purchasing sex was enforced by the  Vancouver Police Department  as illegal but selling it was not. The study found that while the introduction of this policy did improve relations between sex workers and the police, it also "reproduce[d] the harms created by the criminalisation of sex work, in particular, vulnerability to violence and HIV/STIs". [ 62 ]


Canada 's prostitution law was challenged in 2013 by Terri-Jean Bedford, Amy Lebovitch, and Valerie Scott in the  Bedford v. Canada  case. [ 63 ]  The plaintiffs argued that the criminal laws disproportionately increased their risk of violence and victimization by preventing them from being able to employ safety strategies during the course of their work. In a 9–0 ruling, the Supreme Court of Canada determined that the communication provision, the bawdy house provision, and the living on the avails provision violated  sex workers' rights  to security of the persons. [ 64 ]  To give the  Government of Canada  time to respond, the declaration of invalidity was suspended for one year. [ 64 ]


In 2014, the Government of Canada enacted the  Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act  (PCEPA). [ 65 ]  This legislation is modelled after the  Nordic Model , and criminalizes buyers of sexual services as well as third-party supporters (brothel ownership and pimping are also illegal). Most Canadian sex workers' rights groups rejected the Nordic model, because it was deemed to be "harmful and inconsistent with sex workers' constitutional rights to health and safety", according to the Canadian Alliance for Sex Work Law Reform (CASWLR). Instead, they favoured New Zealand's model of decriminalisation, because it supposedly 'decreased violence against sex workers and increased police protection while improving employment conditions, including protection from harassment by the sex worker's employer'. [ 66 ]  In February 2020, an Ontario court judge struck down three parts of the PCEPA as unconstitutional: the prohibitions on advertising, procuring and materially benefiting from someone else's sexual services were violations of the 'freedom of expression' and 'security of the person' as defined in the  Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms . If upheld, this would allow third-party involvement, which sex workers said would provide them important protections, but Christian anti-trafficking activists claimed would facilitate sex trafficking. [ 67 ]


In 2016, the French federal government estimated that there were around 30,000 prostitutes in the country, and 93% of them were foreign. [ 68 ]  In April 2016, the French National Assembly passed a law that partially decriminalized sex work. [ 69 ]  While selling sex, loitering, and public soliciting by prostitutes is now legal, paying for sex carries a fine of around 1,500 euros. [ 70 ]  People found guilty of paying for sex may also have to complete an "awareness-raising course on the fight against the purchase of sexual acts". [ 69 ]


The French government also attempted to fight prostitution by providing compensation to sex workers who wanted to leave the sex industry. However, although the government hoped to help 600 prostitutes by 2018, only 55 sex workers signed up for the program. [ 68 ]  Some sex workers argue that the monthly stipend, which is 330 euros, is not enough money to make ends meet. [ 68 ]


The 2016 law has also resulted in increased violence against sex workers. Because of the heightened police presence, the sex work that does happen has been pushed off the streets and into areas with limited surveillance. [ 71 ]  This has created more dangerous conditions for prostitutes that continue to work. According to a survey conducted by the French NGO Médecins du Monde, 42% of percent of prostitutes in France say that they have been exposed to more violence since the law took effect in 2016. [ 72 ]


Sweden  passed a law in 1999 which criminalised buying sex, while maintaining that selling sex is legal. Kulick (2003) and Matthews (2008) have labelled this Swedish law 'prohibitionist' (with Kulick arguing Sweden was 'abolitionist' before 1999), while Niklas Jakobsson & Andreas Kotsadam (2010) called it 'neo-abolitionist'. [ 28 ]  Since the implementation of the law, supporters of this approach have claimed the number of prostitutes has decreased. However, this may just be a result of the increased police surveillance, as many sex workers are leaving the streets and turning instead to other spaces, including the internet. [ 71 ]


Pye Jakobsson, a spokeswoman for the Rose Alliance which represents sex workers, believes that this reduction in numbers of street workers may not necessarily mean less prostitution, pointing to the 50% of sex workers who work indoors. Jakobsson claims that "you can't talk about protecting sex workers as well as saying the law is good, because it's driving prostitution and trafficking underground, which reduces social services' access to victims." [ 73 ]


In a 2010 review, the Swedish government agreed with Swedish sex workers that this model has increased stigma against sex workers. However, the Swedish government viewed this as a positive outcome, arguing that sending a message about sex work is more important. [ 74 ]


Sex workers have reported a number of human rights violations as a direct result of these laws, including the deportation of sex workers, increased evictions, increased vulnerability to homelessness, and high rates of discrimination from authorities. The 1999 law has also led to sex workers being used as witnesses by the police in cases that they did not want to be a part of. [ 71 ]  In addition, because police oftentimes use condoms as evidence in these cases, condom use has gone down among Swedish sex workers and customers. [ 71 ]  By 2021, the Christian anti-prostitution and anti-pornography NGO Talita reportedly had major influence in the public debate about sex work, as it was frequently cited in news and opinion articles in Swedish media, which tended to focus on the alleged harmful aspects. [ 75 ]  Swedish sex workers think that Talita and the media used "overly negative wordings", and attempts to incorrectly link all sex work to human trafficking only increased stigmatisation. [ 75 ]  Workers have argued that "it would be better to hold a realistic discussion about the pros and cons, instead demonising it as a whole." [ 75 ]


In  Denmark , prostitution was legalised in 1999, allowing for both selling and buying of sex to be legal as long as both participants are above the age of 18. Brothels and pimping, however, still remain illegal in the country. [ 76 ]  Previously, sex workers were permitted to work as long as it was not their only source of income. [ 77 ]


Germany  legalized sex work in 2002. [ 71 ]  The 2002 law mandated that sex workers register themselves and pay taxes. In return, their employers would have to provide benefits like health care and paid leave. In addition, customers of sex workers are not allowed to deny payment because they "aren't satisfied". [ 71 ]  After the law was put in place, the German sex industry boomed. According to 2005 estimates by the German federal government, there are about 400,000 sex workers in Germany, and over 1.2 million men pay for their services every day. [ 78 ] [ 71 ]


The implementation of the law was flawed because of a lack of outreach and training. [ 71 ]  As a result, the law was interpreted differently in different cities. In Berlin, the law was interpreted in ways that are favorable to sex workers; in Cologne, a "pleasure tax" that only applies to sex work was imposed. [ 71 ]


A 2014 article in  The Daily Telegraph  claimed that, while this law was designed to protect the rights of sex workers and recognise their occupation as a job like any other, it has instead resulted in massive, multi-story brothels and the introduction of roadside " sex boxes " (German:  Verrichtungsboxen ). [ 78 ]


The  Netherlands  lifted the 1911 brothel ban in 2000, earning its international status as a symbol of a 'liberal' approach to sex work. The Dutch legalisation model was contrasted with the neo-abolitionist model introduced by Sweden in 1999. [ 79 ]  According to Heumann et al. (2017), the 1911 brothel ban was vaguely formulated, poorly enforced, and sex workers themselves were not criminalised, but despite this pre-2000 'regulated tolerance' (Dutch:  gedoogbeleid ), they were still stigmatised as 'fallen' or 'sinful' women, or 'psychiatrically disturbed'. [ 79 ]  Feminists (concerned about women's rights and oppression) and conservatives (concerned about public order, 'morality' and women's 'dignity') reached a rough agreement in the 1980s to legalise sex work while countering sex trafficking. [ 79 ]  However, the Repeal Bill (to lift the 1911 brothel ban) and Trafficking Bill proposed together in 1987 and passed by Parliament were put on hold in the Senate, and finally blocked in 1989 by the new fervent abolitionist Justice Minister  Ernst Hirsch Ballin  ( Christian Democrats ). [ 79 ]  He heavily revised both bills to the effect that all migrant women were considered trafficking victims; these proposals were strongly opposed by the Senate in 1992. [ 79 ]  Eventually a thoroughly altered version of the Trafficking Bill was approved in 1993, while the Repeal Bill was postponed indefinitely. [ 79 ]  The Repeal Bill was taken up again in 1997 by the first secular government coalition of the Netherlands, involving social democrats (PvdA), conservative liberals (VVD) and progressive liberals (D66), who agreed on lifting the ban in 1999, which went into effect in 2000. [ 79 ]  The theory behind the government's legalisation was harm reduction, to increase the visibility of criminal activities and to fight trafficking, and overall better governmental control over prostitution. [ 79 ]  Notably, migrant sex workers without a residence permit were not allowed to work legally. [ 79 ]  After 2000, certain interpretations of the law and further local legal restrictions introduced various neo-abolitionist elements into the Dutch situation, pushing especially migrant sex workers into illegality. [ 79 ]  Moreover, sex workers' rights including labour rights were pushed to the background and undermined, either by the government by invoking 'protection', or by the major brothel companies, who were the only ones capable of complying to the strict licensing requirements and paying for them, and capable of using lawyers to evade taxes and undermine the rights of sex workers. [ 79 ]


Nevada  is the only state in the United States in which prostitution is legal, although only in 10 rural counties and only in licensed houses.


There was no state law on prostitution in Nevada until 1971, when a section of the Nevada Revised Statutes effectively legalized prostitution in counties with a population of under 400,000. [ 80 ]  In the mid-1970s, a man named Walter Plankinton attempted to open a brothel in  Nye County, Nevada . County officials initially blocked him from opening the brothel (which he planned to call "The Chicken Ranch"), citing a 1948 state law that called brothels a "nuisance". However, this law was overturned by the Nevada Supreme Court in 1978. [ 80 ]  In 1980, the  Nevada Supreme Court  officially legalized prostitution in counties with a population of under 400,000. However, prostitution outside of a "licensed house of prostitution" was not banned until 1987, when the Nevada Revised Statutes made it explicitly illegal. [ 81 ]


Sex work in Nevada is regulated in the ten counties and five cities [ which? ]  that permit it. [ 80 ]  Prostitutes are regulated by a patchwork of both state and local laws that address a number of different areas. Zoning laws in Nevada prohibit brothels from being located near a school, house of worship, or main road. [ 82 ]  Brothels are also barred from advertising on public roads or in districts where prostitution is illegal. The county licenses for brothels are very expensive, to the point of being a significant item in county revenue. Other existing regulations mandate STI testing before prostitutes are hired, and weekly testing once they are employed. Sex workers with HIV are also prohibited from working. Sex workers who continue to work after testing HIV-positive can be punished with two to ten years in prison or a $10,000 fine. [ 80 ]


In March 2022,  Belgium  moved to become the first  European  country to decriminalise sex work. [ 83 ]
 [ 84 ]  On 17 March 2022, the  Chamber of Representatives  of Belgium approved a sexual crimes legislation reform bill, developed under the responsibility of Justice Minister  Vincent Van Quickenborne . The reform bill  inter alia  envisioned a phased decriminalisation of sex work for adults (18 years or older). In the first step, sex work was only legally allowed for self-employed sex workers where they would only be permitted to advertise their own sexual services via designated types of media. [ 85 ]  This law came into effect on 1 June 2022. [ 86 ]


Starting 1 December 2024, Belgium’s amended labour law decriminalised sex work under official employment contract, becoming the first in the world to do so. Sex workers working for an employer enjoy all social benefits also enjoyed by other workers, such as maternity leave and state pensions, but also have special protections not found in other sectors, such as requiring employers install a panic button and employees being able to quit without notice. [ 87 ] [ 88 ]


In November 2022, the Cabinet of  South Africa  has approved a bill for decriminalizing sex work. The bill has not yet been written into law and once published in the Gazette will be open to the public to comment.   [ 89 ] [ 90 ]


Laws covering sex work in  Australia  are state and territory based, with different regulations in different places.  New South Wales , which includes the city of  Sydney , decriminalised sex work in 1995 after the  Wood Royal Commission  showed that police were inappropriate regulators of the sex industry, because criminalisation led to police corruption, great health risks to sex workers and the community, as well as public nuisance. [ 91 ] [ 92 ]


New South Wales amended the  Police Offences Act  in 1908 to criminalise men, but not women, who lived off the earnings of prostitution, so that male brothel owners henceforth risked prosecution. [ 91 ]  The 1924 amendments to the  Crimes Act  increased these penalties, while police were given more power over the movement of prostitutes; the latter were more exposed to police arrest and violence from clients by these legal restrictions on their male associates. [ 91 ]  Combined with the criminalisation of gambling and newly introduced drugs, criminal gangs emerged in Sydney, which waged "razor wars" in the streets for the control of all these profitable illegal activities. [ 91 ]  Changes to the law in 1929 gave the police more power to combat the criminal gangs, who were quickly crushed, but replaced by corrupt police control. [ 91 ]  By the 1960s, the police corruption over prostitution in Sydney had solidified, and sex workers had to pay regular bribes (called "weighing-in") to the two police branches in the area. [ 91 ]  Nevertheless, sex workers could still be arrested by the police and be convicted for various prostitution-related offences such as soliciting, consorting, and 'offensive behaviour'. [ 91 ]  The arrival of American troops from the  Vietnam War  from 1966 and onwards quickly stimulated the rise of drug- and prostitution-related violent rival criminal syndicates which collaborated with the corrupt police. [ 91 ]  The conservative  Askin Government  ( Liberal Party ) further criminalised sex work in 1968 by introducing extra offences, increasing penalties, and also making it a crime for women to live off the earnings of prostitution; as a result, police bribes and arrests increased, and sex workers were driven further underground. [ 91 ]


When the progressive  Wran Government  ( Labor Party ) took office in 1976, libertarians – arguing the state should not interfere with private sexual acts between consenting adults – and feminists – arguing the law discriminated against women, because women selling sex were criminalised, but men buying sex were not – pushed for decriminalisation of most aspects of prostitution, except when it caused public nuisance or involved exploitation. [ 91 ]  The 1979 legal amendments decriminalised public soliciting and for sex workers to be found on premises used for prostitution, while brothel-keeping was still criminal per the  Disorderly Houses Act , and advertising and selling sexual services under the guise of other services such as massage were criminalised; as a result, street prostitution boomed. [ 91 ]  The police campaigned against these reductions of their authority, while local communities pressured the government for better city planning to avoid public nuisance created by prostitution (the latter caused legal amendments in 1983 prohibiting soliciting near schools, churches, hospitals and dwellings). [ 91 ]  The new conservative  Greiner Government  (Liberal Party) taking office in 1988 reversed some Labor policies with the new  Summary Offences Act , which increased penalties for all prostitution-related offences and also criminalised customers – although few men have been charged; police corruption increased once again. [ 91 ]


The new  Carr Government  (Labor Party) appointed Justice  James Roland Wood  to lead the  Royal Commission into the New South Wales Police Service  (1995–1997) to deal with, amongst other things, the police corruption relating to sex work in the state. [ 91 ]  The Commission concluded that the  Disorderly Houses Act  enabled police corruption, and because the lack of secure brothels forced many sex workers into the streets, posing greater health risks to themselves and the community, the Commission concluded it was better to enable safe brothels for sex workers. [ 92 ]  The Government acted upon its findings by amending the  Disorderly Houses Act  in 1995, making brothels normal businesses requiring no special licence or registration. [ 91 ] [ 92 ]  Brothels could now only be shut down by a formal complaint to the  Land and Environment Court , taking away the power of the police to shut down, or threaten to shut down, any brothel as a 'disorderly house', which had been an importance cause of the police corruption. [ 91 ] [ 92 ]  The 1995 amendments also allowed third parties to work with prostitutes again. [ 92 ]  Thus, New South Wales decriminalised sex work in 1995. [ 93 ]  A governmental review in 2016 resulted in continuing "support of decriminalisation of sex work as the best way of protecting sex workers and maintaining a more transparent sex work industry". [ 93 ] [ 94 ] : 2


In June 2010, the NT Government rejected calls from the NT Sex Workers Outreach Programme for legalisation of brothels. As elsewhere in Australia, legalisation was opposed by the  Australian Christian Lobby . [ 95 ] [ 96 ]


In February 2022, Victoria passed legislation to decriminalise sex work. "The Sex Work Decriminalisation Act 2021 will partially abolish street-based sex work offences and associated public health offences, remove the licensing system and move to regulate the industry through existing agencies." [ 101 ]  From 1 December 2023, a sex services business will be able to operate exactly the same way as any other business in Victoria. [ 102 ]


New Zealand  became the first country to decriminalize prostitution in June 2003 with the passage of the  Prostitution Reform Act 2003 . [ 103 ]  The purpose of this law was to "decriminalise prostitution (while not endorsing or morally sanctioning prostitution or its use); create a framework to safeguard the human rights of sex workers and protect them from exploitation; promote the welfare and occupational health and safety of sex workers; contribute to public health; and prohibit the use of prostitution of persons under 18 years of age." [ 103 ]  The PRA also established a certification regime for brothel operators". [ 103 ]


Catherine Healy , the national coordinator of the  New Zealand Prostitutes' Collective  (NZPC), who was part of the driving force for the original 2003 law, in an interview twelve years later, had "detected a marked change in police-sex worker relations after passage of the PRA. 'After decriminalization that dynamic shifted dramatically, and importantly the focus on the sex worker wasn't on the sex worker as a criminal. It was on the rights, safety, health and well being of the sex worker. ' " [ 104 ]  Further, "sex workers in New Zealand are beginning to assert their rights now that the stigma associated with sex work has begun to decrease" as demonstrated by a sex worker successfully prosecuting a brothel owner for sexual harassment by her employer. [ 104 ]


On 14 January 2021, Prosecutor  Eli Savit  of  Washtenaw County, Michigan  County Prosecutor's Office announced his office would no longer prosecute consensual sex work. The change applies to both sex workers and those seeking to buy sex. In their publicly released policy directive, the office outlined the justification for such change. First, they said, criminalizing sex work is antithetical to Constitutional principles of bodily autonomy and personal liberty. They also emphasized that prohibitionist policies generally result in exploitation and noted that criminalization often causes sex workers to operate in more dangerous environments where they are more likely to be victimized. The Prosecutor's Office also mentioned the negative health effects of criminalization, as well as the disproportionate negative effect of prohibition on transgender sex workers and those from racial and ethnic minorities. Finally, they noted that working in the sex industry is often not an individual's first choice, and the criminal charges they potentially face make it more difficult to seek work in other industries. The policy directive makes special mention of the criminality of instances where a client refuses to use a condom despite the sex worker asking and when a buyer does not pay a sex worker with whom they have engaged in sexual activity. The policy specifies that "pimps" still face criminal charges, but the victims of trafficking do not. [ 105 ]  Washtenaw thus became the first county in the United States to decriminalise sex work, and the first outside Nevada to legally allow sex work, with  Oakland County  Chief Assistant Prosecutor  David Williams  indicating he wanted to follow Washtenaw's example. [ 106 ] [ 107 ]


On 22 June 2022, the city council of  Montpelier, Vermont  pushed for the decriminalization of sex work and the repeal of a local ordinance that prohibits prostitution. [ 108 ] [ 109 ]  On 24 August 2022, Montpelier repealed its prostitution ordinance and is the second city in Vermont to do so. [ 110 ]


Demisexuality  is a  sexual orientation  in which an individual does not experience primary  sexual attraction [ 3 ] [ 4 ]  – the type of attraction that is based on immediately  observable characteristics  such as  appearance  or  smell , and is experienced immediately after a first  encounter . [ 1 ]  A demisexual person can only  experience  secondary sexual attraction – the type of attraction that occurs after the development of an  emotional bond . [ 5 ] [ 6 ] [ 1 ]  The amount of time that a demisexual individual needs to know another person before developing sexual attraction towards them varies from person to person. [ 7 ]  Demisexuality is generally categorized on the  asexuality spectrum . [ 8 ] [ 9 ] [ 1 ]


The term was coined in the  Asexual Visibility and Education Network  Forums in February 2006. Based on the theory that  allosexuals  experience both primary and secondary sexual attraction and  asexuals  do not experience either, the term  demisexual  was proposed for people who experience the latter without the former. [ 6 ]  However,  David Jay  suggested a similar word in 2003, called semisexual. [ 10 ] [ 11 ] [ 12 ] [ 13 ]


Demisexuality, as a component of the asexuality spectrum, is included in  queer   activist   communities  such as  GLAAD  and  The Trevor Project . Demisexuality also has finer divisions within itself. [ 14 ] [ 15 ]


The word gained entry to the  Oxford English Dictionary  in March 2022, with its earliest usage recorded in 2006 as a noun. [ 16 ]


Since 2019, the  app Tinder  includes demisexual as an option for self-descriptors of sexual orientation on profiles. [ 17 ]


Demisexuality has been described as a sexual orientation where a person feels sexually attracted to someone only after developing a close or strong emotional bond with them. [ 18 ] [ 1 ]  Some demisexuals will also feel romantic attraction, while others do not. The duration of time and the degree of interpersonal knowledge and bonding required for a demisexual person to develop sexual attraction may be highly variable between individuals. There is a lack of clear definitions for what qualifies as a close or strong bond in this context, which can cause confusion. [ 5 ] [ 1 ]


Unlike other words used to describe sexual orientations, the term "demisexuality" does not indicate which gender or genders a person finds attractive. [ 1 ]


After secondary sexual attraction is developed, demisexuals are not only aroused by personality traits. They also may or may not experience arousal or desire based on the physical traits of the persons whom they have already experience secondary sexual attraction towards. [ 19 ] [ 20 ]


A misconception is that demisexual individuals cannot engage in  casual sex . [ 21 ]  Demisexuality refers to how an individual experiences sexual attraction; it does not describe a choice or an action, but describes a feeling instead. [ 5 ] [ 22 ]  While it is common for demisexuals to not desire  sex  without feeling sexually attracted to the other person, this is not required to be considered demisexual. Many demisexuals may choose to engage in casual sex even without experiencing sexual attraction towards their  sexual partner . [ 23 ]


Demisexuals may experience  aesthetic attraction  and can have an aesthetic preference. An aesthetic attraction is an attraction to another person's appearance that is not connected to any sexual or romantic desire; [ 24 ]  it is so called because of its similarity to other aesthetic desires. [ 25 ]


Demisexuals can be  attracted to fictional characters , and can also be attracted to a character played by an actor without experiencing attraction towards the actor when out of character. [ 26 ]


Some demisexual,  gray-asexual  and  asexual  individuals (all included under the "ace umbrella") use the terms  positive ,  favorable ,  neutral  or  indifferent ,  averse , or  repulsed  to describe how they feel about sex. [ 1 ]  Nonetheless, these terms can be used by anyone, regardless of if they are asexual spectrum or not. [ 27 ]


These terms are generally used to refer to someone's opinion about engaging in sexual activities themself. However, they might also be used to describe how they feel reading, watching, hearing about, or imagining these activities. The term  -repulsed  in particular is often used to refer to one's feelings about engaging in sexual activities or being around them. One's feelings can vary depending on the situation or other factors such as identity, societal context, common social understanding or intent of actions or comfort level with another individual. For example, someone who is aegosexual may enjoy thinking about sexual activities involving others but may feel repulsed upon the thought of personally participating in such activities. [ 31 ] [ 32 ]


Demisexuality is a common theme (or  trope ) in romantic novels that has been termed "compulsory demisexuality". [ 33 ]  In this genre, the paradigm or trope of sex being only truly pleasurable and fulfilling  when the partners are in love is a trait most commonly associated with female characters. The added requirements for a connection to occur may engender or reinforce feelings that the connection is unique or special. [ 34 ] [ 35 ]


Human sexual  promiscuity  is the practice of having  many different sexual partners . [ 1 ]  In the case of men, this behavior of sexual nondiscrimination and  hypersexuality  is referred to as  satyriasis , while in the case of women, this behavior is conventionally known as  nymphomania . [ 2 ]  Both conditions are regarded as possibly compulsive and pathological qualities, closely related to  hyper-sexuality . [ 2 ]  The results of, or costs associated with, these behaviors are the  effects of human sexual promiscuity .


A high number of sexual partners in a person's life usually means they are at a higher risk of  sexually transmitted infections  and life-threatening  cancers . [ 3 ]  These costs largely pertain to the dramatic consequences to physical and mental health. The physical health risks mainly consist of the sexually transmitted infection risks, such as  HIV  and  AIDS , that increase as individuals have develop sexual partners over their lifetime. [ 3 ]  The mental health risks typically associated with promiscuous individuals are  mood , and  personality disorders , often resulting in  substance use disorders  and, or permanent  illness . [ 4 ]  These effects typically translate into several other long-term issues in people's lives and in their relationships, especially in the case of adolescents or those with previous pathological illnesses, disorders, or factors such as family dysfunction and  social stress . [ 4 ]


Research has also shown that there might be some benefit regarding the health fitness of the offsprings of promiscuous females in some animals. [ 5 ]


The prevalence of promiscuity, in the case of  adolescents , is known to be a root cause for many physical, mental, and socio-economic risks. [ 6 ]  Research has found that adolescents, in particular, are at a higher risk of negative consequences as a result of promiscuity. [ 6 ]


In  sub-Saharan Africa , adolescents engaged in promiscuous activities face many health and economic risks related to  teenage pregnancy ,  maternal mortality ,  labor complications , and loss of educational opportunities. [ 6 ]


It is suggested that the increasing association of sexually transmitted infections among adolescents could be a result of barriers to prevention and management services, such as infrastructural barriers (improper medical treatment facilities), cost barriers, educational barriers, and social factors such as concerns of  confidentiality  and  embarrassment . [ 7 ]


Incidence and prevalence estimates suggest that adolescents, in comparison to adults, are particularly at higher risk of developing sexually transmitted infections, such as  chlamydia ,  gonorrhea ,  syphilis  and  herpes . [ 7 ]  It is accepted that adolescent females are especially at risk to develop sexually transmitted infections. This is claimed to be due to the increased cervical ectopy, which is more susceptible to infection. [ 7 ]  In addition to these risks, adolescent mothers, whose  offspring  are generally first-births, are at a higher risk of certain  pregnancy and labor complications , which can affect the mother and the offspring, as well as the entire community and future generations. [ 6 ]