sex

Dr. Joycelyn Elders is no stranger to making controversial statements in public, so her support of California's Proposition 19, the marijuana legalization ballot initiative, shouldn't be surprising. After all, years ago she was ousted as Bill Clinton's Surgeon General after noting that a discussion of masturbation should be part of educating young people on avoiding HIV infection. Elders joins us via Skype from Arkansas, where she is professor emeritus at the University of Arkansas School of Medicine and an associate at Arkansas Children's Hospital, to discuss marijuana legalization, the return of masturbation as a campaign issue, and the ongoing struggle for universal health care in the U.S. Distributed by Tubemogul.

So maybe they're not so against stimulus after all. In fact, the Republican National Committee has been giving a little stimulus of their own to an overlooked demographic group: strippers. That's right, according to last year's financial filings, the RNC spent nearly $2000 at Voyeur West Hollywood last year. Scoping out the post Schwarzenegger candidate field? Well, maybe, but how open minded! Voyeur West's “a bondage-themed nightclub featuring topless women dancers imitating lesbian sex.” GRITtv with Laura Flanders brings participatory democracy onto your computer screen and into your living room, bridging the gap between audience and advocates. Watch any show, at any time: http://grittv.org Distributed by Tubemogul.

A new bill is making its way through the New York state legislature that would give minors the ability to consent to vaccinations for sexually transmitted infections, like Gardasil, the HPV vaccine to prevent cervical cancer. But parents are unhappy with the bill because it would allow children as young as nine to receive the immunization. Joining guest host Esther Armah to discuss the bill and the implications and issues for parents and young people around the country are Rita Palma, founder of My Kids My Choice, and Corinne Carey, Public Policy Counsel for the New York Civil Liberties Union.

If you see a bunch of people in your neighborhood carrying red umbrellas, it might not be about the weather. December 17 is the international day to end violence against sex workers, and the red umbrella has become a symbol of sex worker rights and safety. Why do we need such a day? Well, sex workers have long been targets. Part of what spurred Annie Sprinkle, author, activist and former sex worker to organize vigils on Dec.17 for the forgotten victims of the "Green River Killer." Now similar actions have bcome an annual event -- from Bangladesh to Toledo, Hong Kong to Halifax. There's lots to do... rules need to change. In Philadelphia just two years ago, a man accused of raping a sex worker was instead charged with ?theft of services" Because someone decided it's not rape anymore, it's a property crime, when the victim is a sex worker. Some sex workers around the world are organizing unions demanding legalization to make their work less dangerous, but all call for human rights as equal humans. Can any be free while all are not free? Sex workers say no one's safe as long as there's any category of person, or worker who under the law's considered fair game for brutal treatment. Those who agree just might want to find their red brolly.  - Laura Flanders