To dream of a new approach to youth sexual health education – one that is focused on pleasure and joy – we must recognize how we arrived at where we are today.

Researched, written, and produced by Tomei Kuehl as part of Trailhead’s initiative to reimagine Colorado’s State of Adolescent Sexual Health report, commonly known as the SASH, this blog series stems from Trailhead’s Youth Sexual Health Program Board who identified a need to define and provide historical context for these isms, noting that many of these concepts may not have negative connotations for some people.

Here we explore the history that impacts sexual health and sex education, recognizing that these experiences are centered within an existing context rooted in colonialism, capitalism, racism, heteronormativity, ableism, classism, and other forms of oppression.