Favelinha is one of the over 13, favela communities in Brazil that are made up of more than 5 million informal residencies. Housing within favelas is not formally regulated, and many homes are overcrowded with multiple generations living under one roof. Sexual and gender-based violence, unintended teenage pregnancies, and STI infections are part of the reality in these communities. Their work in communities living in poverty replaces the conventional pregnancy, infection, and violence prevention narrative typical in these contexts, with sex-positive and pleasure-based conversations.
People with more unearned privilege s tend to altogether discard the experience of pleasure in communities of lesser class- and race privilege. Beyond pregnancy and STI transmission prevention, condom use is a means of engaging in safer sexual behaviours that provide pleasure. When we acknowledge that pleasure is one of the main motivators for engaging in consensual sexual activity, gender, sexual orientation, race, class, income level, eye colour and shoe size become irrelevant โ and we can focus on telling everyone, including Carla, that condoms can make sexual activity feel less consequential and therefore more pleasurable: integrating the use of condoms into sexual play reduces possible fears or worries about the risks, making sexual activity more sexy, and therefore even more enjoyable for everyone involved.
Starting in January , Carla and her neighbours will have access to a WhatsApp number that will provide information and answers to their questions related to sexual pleasure, health and rights, referring users to relevant local public healthcare providers where necessary. The initiative will provide detailed insights into the local needs, and has the potential to become a more comprehensive and automated source of pleasure-based, sex-positive information for people living in poverty across favelas in Brazil.
The ability to have pleasure is not a privilege โ the ability to have pleasure is a human right. Follow TabuTabu on Instagram tabutabuorg to see their work with underserved communities in Latin America, or sign up to their newsletter if you would like to receive updates about what they are up to. View Our Privacy Policy.
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