Editing Sexual consent (section)

==Responses==
===Consent contracts===
In 2003, sex therapist Dr. [[Ava Cadell]] suggested that celebrities and professional athletes ask partners in sexual encounters (she uses the slang term "[[groupie]]s") to sign a sexual consent form, which she calls the sexual encounter equivalent of the [[prenuptial agreement]]s that are signed before some marriages. Dr. Cadell says that like a prenup, a sex contact can reduce litigation.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20030731005753/en/Dr.-Ava-Cadell-Kobe-Bryant-Writing-Leading|title=Dr. Ava Cadell to Kobe Bryant: 'Get It In Writing' Before 'Getting It On'; Leading Sex Therapist Warns Celebrities and Athletes |author=<!--Not stated--> |date=31 July 2003 |website=www.businesswire.com |publisher=Business Wire |access-date=30 March 2019 |quote=}} </ref> The advocacy group named The Affirmative Consent Project is providing 'sexual consent kits' at US universities. The kits include a contract which the parties can sign, stating that they consent to having sexual relations. The kits suggest that the couple take a photo of themselves holding the contracts.<ref> {{cite web |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/women/sex/11738202/Sex-consent-contracts-for-university-students-Would-you-sign.html |title='Sexual consent contracts' are now a thing. Would you sign? 'Consent kits', complete with contracts, are being distributed to students at US universities with the intention of ensuring that both parties have agreed to sex. Olivia Goldhill reports |last=Goldhill |first=Olivia |date=15 July 2015 |website=www.telegraph.co.uk |publisher=Telegraph |access-date=13 June 2013|quote=}}</ref> 

NYU law professor Amy Adler commented about the depiction of consent contracts in the novel ''[[Fifty Shades of Grey]]''; she states the signing of the legal contract before sex could help to avoid uncertainty in sexual encounters.<ref name="Emma Green">{{cite web |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2015/02/consent-isnt-enough-in-fifty-shades-of-grey/385267/ |title=Consent Isn't Enough: The Troubling Sex of Fifty Shades: The blockbuster fantasy has become a big movie—and a bigger problem. |last=Green |first=Emma |date=10 February 2015 |website=www.theatlantic.com |publisher=The Atlantic |access-date=13 June 2018 |quote=}}</ref> In Emma Green's article about the film, entitled "Consent Isn’t Enough: The Troubling Sex of Fifty Shades", she disagrees with consent contracts as a solution on the grounds that "even explicit consent" may not be enough in hard-drinking college dorm environments where most students have little experience with negotiating sexual permission.<ref name="Emma Green"/>

Toronto sexual consent educator Farrah Khan disagrees with the idea of consent involving a signature on a contract, as she argues that it is an "ongoing conversation" that involves listening to one's sexual partner.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2018/09/26/kavanaugh-allegations-sex-ed |title=Kavanaugh Allegations Reveal Lack Of Comprehensive Sex Ed, Consent Educator Says |last=Khan |first=Farrah |date=6 September 2018 |website=www.wbur.org |publisher=WBUR |access-date=3 March 2019 |quote=}}</ref> David Llewellyn, who started the Good Lad Initiative at Oxford University, says that consent contracts could give participants the mistaken sense that once the consent contract is signed, they cannot withdraw consent and stop the encounter. Llewellyn states that even with a signed consent contract, both partners should ensure ongoing enthusiastic consent to sex, because he says consent is fluid and changeable.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.muscleandfitness.com/women/sex-tips/do-you-need-sex-agreement|title=Do you need a sex agreement |last=Demarco |first=Justin |date= |website=www.muscleandfitness.com |publisher=Muscle and Fitness |access-date=30 March 2019 |quote=}} </ref>

===Consent apps===
In the 2010s, smartphone apps have been developed to give couples the ability to electronically consent to sexual relations. Apps include We-Consent, Sa-Sie, LegalFling and Good2Go. LegalFling uses [[blockchain]] and sets out each person's terms and conditions, such as requiring condom use or agreeing to specific acts.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/columnist/2018/02/20/sexual-consent-apps-set-rules-intimacy-come-their-own-risks/328635002/ |title=People are talking about sexual consent. Would an app help? |last=Petrow |first=Steven |date=20 February 2018 |website=www.usatoday.com |publisher=USA Today |access-date=9 June 2018 |quote=}} </ref> However, concerns have been raised about these "consent apps". The Good2Go app gives a record of sexual consent that the company claims can be used as evidence of consent and capacity, from an intoxication perspective, for consent; however, the app was removed from sale because both men and women did not like clicking on a smartphone in the bedroom to record their consent.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/jan/29/rape-consent-sexual-partner-enthusiasm |title= Consent is not enough: if you want a sexual partner, look for enthusiasm|last=Hinsliff |first=Gaby |date=29 January 2015 |website=www.theguardian.com |publisher=The Guardian |access-date=9 June 2018 |quote=}} </ref> A lawyer states that legally, apps are redundant and could only serve as circumstantial evidence, because they generally do not take into account a person's right to withdraw consent at any point in the sexual interaction.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/consent-apps-problems-dating-uconsent-sexual-assault-legal-court-a8332706.html |title=Why Consent Apps Won't Work According to Criminal Lawyers |last=Petter |first= Olivia|date=14 May 2018 |website=www.independent.co.uk |publisher=Independent |access-date=9 June 2018 |quote=}} </ref>

In Reina Gattuso's article entitled "Seven reasons consent apps are a terrible idea", she criticizes consent apps on the grounds that: a person can withdraw consent at any point, including minutes after clicking yes on the app; the binary yes or no approach of the apps simplifies the complexity of consent; the app cannot legally confer agreement to each change in sex acts; they make consent too much about legal proofs and setting down evidence; and they change what should be a continuous process of communication into a quick action.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://feministing.com/2018/05/16/six-reasons-consent-apps-are-a-terrible-idea/ |title=Seven reasons consent apps are a terrible idea |last=Gattuso |first=Reina |date=May 2018 |website=feministing.com |publisher=Femisting |access-date=13 June 2018 |quote=}} </ref> Cricket Epstein states that using consent apps have a "[[victim-blaming]]" mentality that suggests that the person who is asked to click on the app may become a false accuser; as well, she says the app may protect perpetrators, because once agreement is clicked on the app, it will be harder for a complainant to say that she or he had sex acts done without consent.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://bust.com/feminism/193913-what-nick-cannon-gets-wrong-about-consent.html |title=Nick Cannon's "Consent App" Gets Consent Completely Wrong |last=Epstein |first=Cricket |date= |website=bust.com |publisher=Bust |access-date=13 June 2018 |quote=}} </ref>
===Consent culture===
Activists and educators promote "consent culture" by setting up consent education programs to publicize issues and provide information, hiring consent educators (or volunteers), using consent captains or consent guardians in entertainment venues, and introducing initiatives such as safety code words for bar patrons experiencing unwanted sexual attention. Some activists on campus hold "consent days" where there are panels and discussions on sexual consent and hand out t-shirts and condom packages with pro-consent messaging to build awareness.<ref name="Kitroeff">{{cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/09/education/edlife/students-advocate-for-consensual-sex.html |title=Making Consent Cool |last=Kitroeff |first=Natalie |date=7 February 2014 |website=www.nytimes.com |publisher=New York Times |access-date=3 March 2019 |quote=}}</ref> At Whitman College,  students founded All Students for Consent, which answers students' questions about seeking consent in intimate encounters.<ref name="Kitroeff"/>

====Consent educators====
The US non-profit organization Speak About It (SAI) hires consent educators to lead workshops on "sex, sexuality, relationships, consent, and sexual assault" for high-school and college students.<ref name="speakaboutit">{{cite web |url=http://speakaboutitonline.com/about-2/jobs/consent-educator/|title=Do you want to be a Consent Educator? |author=<!--Not stated--> |date= |website=speakaboutitonline.com |publisher=Speak About It |access-date=3 March 2019 |quote=}} </ref> SAI consent educators have included gender studies and women's studies students, university graduates interested in [[social justice]], sexual health educators, domestic violence prevention advocates, and theater professionals. SAI's hiring for the consent educator positions is inclusive of diverse "gender identities, racial backgrounds, sexual orientations, and sexual experiences."<ref name="speakaboutit"/> Yale University hires Communication and Consent Educators, who are students who lead workshops and training and start conversations about sex and consent.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://cce.yalecollege.yale.edu/ |title=Yale CCE Program  |author=<!--Not stated--> |date= |website=cce.yalecollege.yale.edu |publisher=Yale College |access-date=3 March 2019 |quote=}} </ref>

[[File:Jaclyn Friedman headshot.jpg|thumb|right|180px|Jaclyn Friedman is a sexual consent educator known for editing ''Yes Means Yes: Visions of Female Sexual Power and a World Without Rape''.]]

In January 2018, sexual consent educator [[Jaclyn Friedman]] wrote an article about the news commentary regarding comedian [[Aziz Ansari]] and sexual consent.<ref name="Friedman">{{cite web |url=https://www.vox.com/first-person/2018/1/19/16907246/sexual-consent-educator-aziz-ansari |title=I'm a sexual consent educator. Here's what's missing in the Aziz Ansari conversation. How demanding female sexual pleasure makes us all better at understanding consent.
|last= Friedman |first=Jaclyn |date=19 January 2018  |website=www.vox.com |publisher=Vox |access-date=3 March 2019 |quote=}}</ref> Friedman called for the need to "better educate young people in this country about sex, consent, and pleasure" by using consent education to teach about sexual communication, awareness of body language, and the need for checking in (if it not clear that the partner is enjoying the activities).<ref name="Friedman"/> The Consent Academy in Seattle is a collective of sex therapists, counsellors and educators who teach "consent culture", provide one-one-one consultations, review consent policies, and provide "consent advocates" for hire.<ref name="Consent Academy">{{cite web |url=http://www.consent.academy/ |title=The Consent Academy |author=<!--Not stated--> |date= |website=www.consent.academy |publisher=Consent Academy |access-date=3 March 2019 |quote=}} </ref>

====Consent staff in venues====
The Victoria Event Center has hired a Tanille Geib, a sexual health educator/intimacy coach, to serve as Canada's first “consent captain”<ref name="Kassam">{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/may/25/tanille-geib-consent-captain-canada-victoria-event-centre |title=Dancing clean: the woman helping clubbers deal with consent in the post-#MeToo world |last=Kassam |first=Ashifa |date=25 May 2018 |website=www.theguardian.com |publisher=The Guardian |access-date=3 March 2019 |quote=}}</ref> and stop sexual harassment and sexual assault at social activities.<ref name="Hatzitolios">{{cite web |url=https://www.theloop.ca/could-a-consent-captain-be-the-solution-to-sexual-assault-in-bars/ |title=Could a 'Consent Captain' be the solution to sexual assault in bars?: The superhero we wish we didn't need, but are sure glad to have. |last=Hatzitolios |first=Chloe |date=9 May 2018 |website=www.theloop.ca |publisher=The Loop |access-date=2 March 2019 |quote=}}</ref> The consent captain intervenes if she sees people who are getting stared at, harassed, or touched without consent. She talks to the person who is feeling uncomfortable and then, if the first person agrees, speaks to the individual whose conduct is unwanted.<ref name="Hatzitolios"/>

Like a regular [[bouncer (doorman)|bouncer]], the consent captain warns the person engaging in unwanted behavior that those acts are not tolerated in the venue; if the unwanted acts continue, she may "eventually ask them to leave". The consent captain also checks on people who are intoxicated, to prevent people from taking advantage of their impaired state. Since the consent captain is, in this case, a sexual health educator, she is better able to notice risk situations regarding consent and harassment that regular bouncers might not notice.<ref name="Hatzitolios"/> Geib says that since the [[Metoo|#Me Too]] movement, people have become aware that "there’s this whole grey cloud area around what acting in consent and consensual relationships are.”<ref name="Kassam"/> Geib says that her role is not to police the patrons, but is rather to start conversations about creating a "consent culture".<ref name="Kassam"/>

In Seattle, the Consent Academy hires out "consent advocates" for events and parties, who act to deter incidents and to help those who experience unwanted contact.<ref name="Consent Academy"/>

The House of Yes nightclub hired a "consenticorn", a staffer who acts as a "dance-floor monitor" (also called a "consent guardian") for the venue.<ref name="Mahdawi">{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/dec/22/metoo-movement-office-parties-decline-weinstein-moonves |title=#MeToo doesn't mean an end to socializing and fun |last=Mahdawi |first=Arwa  |date=22 December 2018 |website=www.theguardian.com |publisher=The Guardian |access-date=3 March 2018 |quote=}} </ref> The consenticorns roam the venue during the sex-themed party wearing a lighted unicorn horn (to aid guests in finding the consent staffer), distribute condoms and ensure that guests comply with the rules on condom use and mandatory "express, verbal consent" for all physical contact.<ref name="Witt">{{cite web |url=https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/02/11/is-2019-the-year-of-the-consenticorn |title=Is 2019 the Year of the Consenticorn? |last=Witt|first=Emily |date=11 February 2019 |website=www.newyorker.com |publisher=New Yorker |access-date=3 March 2019 |quote=}}</ref> The consenticorns were trained by Emma Kaywin, a sexual-health educator; the goal is not to "police but [rather] to educate" the clubgoers.<ref name="Witt"/> Arwa Mahdawi from ''The Guardian'' praised the House of Yes' initiative, saying the "...stricter we are about consent, the more fun everyone can have.”<ref name="Mahdawi"/>{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/dec/22/metoo-movement-office-parties-decline-weinstein-moonves |title=#MeToo doesn't mean an end to socializing and fun |last=Mahdawi |first=Arwa  |date=22 December 2018 |website=www.theguardian.com |publisher=The Guardian |access-date=3 March 2018 |quote=}} </ref> 

Slovenian philosopher [[Slavoj Žižek]] states that the consenticorn approach does not understand "human sexuality" as these venues are "creating spaces that fail to acknowledge the nuances of intimacy and pleasure" by enforcing "tight control" that is delegated to an "external hired controller".<ref name="Žižek">{{cite web |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/consent-sex-clubs-house-of-yes-consenticorns-sadomasochism-freud-capitalism-a8705551.html |title=Apparently, clubs now need to hire consent guardians – clearly we've misunderstood human sexuality|last=Žižek |first=Slavoj |date=31 December 2018 |website=www.independent.co.uk |publisher=The Independent |access-date=3 March 2019 |quote=}} </ref> As well, Žižek asks how the consent guardians will be able to tell the difference between "consensual sadomasochism" and exploitative" behaviour.<ref name="Žižek"/>

====Safety code words====
For bar patrons who are feeling uncomfortable with the behavior of their date, such as a person who is getting touched without their consent, some venues have a safety code system that enables patrons to alert staff.<ref name="Hatzitolios"/> Some bars have posters in washrooms and drink coasters informing patrons that if they need to signal a bartender that they feel unsafe with their date (or any other bar patron), they can use a codeword (a fictional mixed drink name, for example), and then bar staff will escort the patron out of the venue to make sure they get safely to their taxi.<ref name="Hatzitolios"/>

===Intimacy coordinator===
In the television and film industry, in 2018, some production companies are hiring an "intimacy coordinator" to ensure that actors and actresses' consent is obtained before shooting romantic scenes and simulated sex scenes.<ref name="Hughes">{{cite web |url=https://news.avclub.com/hbo-now-requiring-all-of-its-shows-to-have-an-intimacy-1830046784 |title=HBO now requiring all of its shows to have an "intimacy coordinator" on set during sex scenes |last=Hughes|first=William |date=27 October 2018 |website=news.avclub.com |publisher=A.V. Club |access-date=3 March 2019 |quote=}} </ref> To address concerns about the "vulnerability...and the massive power balance that can happen when a powerful showrunner or director asks an actress or actor...to get naked and simulate sex for the camera", [[HBO]] hires an intimacy coordinator for these scenes. The intimacy coordinator is a mix of an [[acting coach]] (who makes sure that scenes look realistic) and an advocate for actors and actresses who ensures that the onscreen performers' boundaries are respected and that their physical and emotional comfort is protected.<ref name="Hughes"/>