If your vagina could talk, what would it say? If you could dress your vagina, what would it wear? Think about it. Come up with an answer. Share it with the world. This is the mantra of the Vagina Monologues, a performance written by Eve Ensler that began in 1966.
This past weekend Women’s Initiative performed the 2014 version of the Vagina Monologues. All students, staff, and faculty were invited to attend and tickets proceeds were donated to My Sister’s Place, a local women’s domestic abuse shelter. The monologues opened with a dance routine by the “V-Squad,” a group of five girls who helped the show to transition between performances. The performances went on to teach women audience members to embrace their bodies and celebrate their sexuality, while encouraging the men to be open to learning something new about women and sex.
In case you missed it, here are the six main lessons to take away from the performance:
1. Hair is good. Hair is empowering.
The first performance titled “Hair” featured a character who decided she would no longer shave her vagina because it was painful for her and only pleasurable to her boyfriend. Her boyfriend was so upset he had an affair; however, the woman remained empowered because she took control of her own body and chose not to participate in an act that only pleased her partner. Message— Your pleasure and comfort should always come first.
2. You’re never too old to embrace your sexuality.
“Flood” featured an elderly woman who described “down there” as “damp, clammy, and smelly.” The humorous skit focused on what happens when women become sexually excited, similar to a man getting an erection. The woman was embarrassed by her body’s reaction to become “wet down there,” so she “closed the whole store, locked it, and never opened it again!” Message— Every woman reacts differently to sexual pleasure and excitement, and you should honor, rather than shame, the way your body acts.
3. Masturbation is normal.
“Shell” was another comedic skit about a woman finding her clitoris. As a young woman she said she also walked around worrying that her vagina was like “a dark hold sucking up everything around it.” When she wasn’t finding pleasure in sex, she was advised to go to a workshop that taught women how to find their sexuality. There she learned that the clitoris is the only organ in the body with the sole purpose of a pleasure—a gift women should celebrate. Message— You don’t have to just find your clitoris. You have to be it!
4. Sanitary products are awkward and uncomfortable for many women.
As “My Angry Vagina” showed us, we don’t necessarily embrace the world of tampons, pads, fragrances, and vaginal examinations with open arms. Stuffing “dried wads of cotton” into our bodies and spraying underwear with “rain-scented” fragrant spray, is not the most comfortable experience. Message— Feminine products aren’t super comfortable so try to limit their use to only when its necessary.
5. It’s okay to moan.
One skit—potentially the best skit of the night—featured a female sex worker for other women. The skit discussed pleasing other women and taking the time to find out what a woman enjoys, sexually. Of course it was accompanied by a multitude of impressive moans including the “clit-vag moan”, “mountain moan”, “zen moan”, “baby moan”, “elegant moan”, and “college moan” (which consists of making loud noises and hitting the ground to disturb everyone living around you). Message— Don’t be afraid to enjoy sex, noises and all.
6. Hard hitting statistics to know.
- 3 million girls and women undergo Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) every year
- Last year the number of rapes reported increased in DC by 37%
- Rape in conflict has become an epidemic—48 women between the ages of 15 and 49 are raped every hour in the eastern Congo.
Women’s Initiative is a section of AU’s Student Government (AUSG) that is student-run and advocates for women at AU. Their mission reads, “We strive to represent the issues, concerns, and interests of all women at AU. Our goal is to insure that AU is a safe and empowering environment for all women.”
Photo Credit:
http://www.cherwell.org/culture/reviews/2012/02/10/review-vagina-monologues