Hey Big W, put Welcome to Sex back on your shelves!

Today in Parliament Abigail called out Big W for taking 'Welcome to Sex' off its shelves, highlighting the vital importance of comprehensive, healthy and informed sex education for all young people. 

Abigail gave notice of the following motion: 

(1) That this House notes that:

(a) Big W recently removed from its shelves all physical copies of the book entitled "Welcome to Sex" by Dr Melissa Kang and Yumi Stynes, supposedly after reports of employees being abused in stores,

(b) the book "Welcome to Sex" was written by experts in the field of sex education and was informed by 20 years of consultation with adolescents, including comprehensive interviews with young people and direct engagement with the magazine column entitled “Dolly Doctor” published in Girlfriend Magazine,

(c) comprehensive and informed sex education that begins during early childhood and continues throughout life is vital for encouraging healthy, safe and consenting sexual behaviours amongst young people and adolescents and increasing adolescents’ confidence and ability to make informed decisions, and

(d) the argument by conservative groups and individuals that categorises the book as “grooming” is not only factually incorrect but also waters down the reality of grooming and invalidates the experiences of victim-survivors.

(2) That this House:

(a) calls on Big W to immediately reverse its decision and put the book "Welcome to Sex" back on its shelves,

(b) calls on all retailers to ensure a safe working environment for their employees by utilising existing laws and rights to refuse entry to any person who is abusive or disrespectful, and

(c) re-affirms support for comprehensive, healthy and informed sex education that is available and accessible for all young people, adolescents, educators, parents and carers.

 

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