Up the stairs and around the corner, in the quiet Northwestern Room in Norris, tables sat waiting. Atop these tables were condoms and cardboard tri-folds, advertising organizations from both Northwestern and Evanston that offer aid in the areas of sexual health and assault.
Sexual Health and Assault Peer Educators’ events committee co-chair and School of Communication senior Emily Scherker organized this Sexpo. Last school year, Sexpo took place during Sex Week, but Scherker thought it important to bring awareness earlier in the year.
“We figured that […] we shouldn’t wait until April to just only then inform people about the sexual assault resources on campus,” Scherker said. “While if you take the time to seek them out, you can access them obviously, but I feel like a lot of people don’t know everything that’s available to them both at Northwestern and in the immediate Evanston area.”
SHAPE brought in organizations such as Porchlight, an Evanston counseling service offering off-campus advocacy and support group, University Police, College Feminists and Counseling and Psychological Services.
To ensure attendants got the most out of their visit, while also adding in an extra element of fun, SHAPE organized a bingo card with questions to ask each of the organizations present.
“[T]he idea is that the people will go around asking questions about where places are located, what their mission is, so they can find out how they can get to these places and what circumstances they would want to seek out these place,” Scherker said.
Additionally, SHAPE offered a raffle which included 100 condoms and two gift certificates to Early To Bed, a Chicago feminist sex store. That way, Sexpo attendees can try out what SHAPE’s T-shirts proclaim: safe and consensual sex.
