Sexpert Sue Johanson
Speaks at Peel Fundraiser
For Interim Place
"Her Life, Her Words"

Peel - She could be your Mom; she could be your Grandma. Then she starts speaking and her topic tells you immediately that she's not like any other mom or grandma you've ever met because her topic is sex. And she speaks frankly, explicitly and graphically about all aspects of sex. She speaks with no euphemisms, no hesitance. She can be shocking.

Sue Johanson is Canada's foremost sex educator. She spoke on May 27 at the first of a series of 3 luncheons presented by Interim Place at their annual fundraiser, 'Her Life, Her Words'.

Proudly wearing her Order of Canada pin, Canada's highest honour received in 2001 for lifetime achievement for her work educating and informing the public about birth control and sexual health, Sue exudes a warmth and candor that guarantees a rapt audience.

In 1970, she set up the first North American sexual-health clinic located in a high school in Toronto at Don Mills Collegiate. She offered free sex education, birth control pills and counseling to kids of any age. And she guaranteed anonymity. Sue quickly moved on to doing her famous Sunday Night Sex Show on Toronto radio station Q107 and that led to her TV show on Rogers Cable Community Television teaching sex-active kids about birth control, STDs, pregnancies and relationships. Her frank, no-holds-barred responses to phone-in questions made her famous worldwide.

Last month, May 2008, was her last TV show and Sue will now be focusing on her speaking tour across Canada where she speaks annually to some 50,000 university students. "I try to fill in the gaps. My presentation is very very explicit and graphic. That's what kids want to know because those topics were never discussed in other school programs".

Sue Johanson is an animated, passionate, impromptu speaker. "I never use notes". Her opening sentence is "Probably talking about sex is the hardest thing you'll ever do as a parent." And she makes it look easy to speak openly and to speak with humour about a topic many still consider taboo. Sue tells funny stories, often in a myriad of voices, to illustrate her points about how necessary it is to educate our teens today.

"We have to give females permission to learn about their own bodies. Nice girls don't masturbate is still the predominant thinking and females need to learn about their own bodies, about what pleases them, before they can have expectations of a good sex life with a partner".

"A big difference between 1972 when I started this and today is that today I have a sense that teenage females are being pressed into oral sex, rainbow sex, anal sex, to avoid intercourse. Oral was the last taboo until females became comfortable with it".

"My biggest worry today is anal sex – it's very popular and it terrifies me. There is only 1 layer of tissue lining inside the anus, compared with several layers inside the vagina, and so it rips so easily, exposing females to every STD known".

Following her talk, Sue took questions from the floor. When asked if she believed in sex before marriage, she replied, "It doesn't matter what I believe; it's what the couple feels about the role of sex in their lives. I will not be judgmental".

When I asked Sue what advice she would give to women entering the dating field after divorce or the death of a spouse, she was very clear, "Get a book to learn again about sex, give yourself permission to enjoy it, get some condoms and have fun. Maybe have the best sex of your life".

Interim Place has been providing shelter and support services for women in Peel Region who face violence for over 25 years. The MC for this event was Antoinette Antoine, currently a volunteer Board Member and former child resident of Interim Place's emergency shelter. "I'm a volunteer to help Interim Place because they helped me at a crucial time in my life. Abuse is a local and global issue for women and our mission at Interim Place is to work towards the elimination of violence. Our programs are designed to help women and their children who have had their lives turned up-side-down. We provide the women who come to us with the means to start new lives and it's vitally important that we raise the funds to do so. Her Life, Her Words, is a great way to raise awareness of the issues that Interim Place has to deal with on a daily basis".

There are 2 upcoming Her Life, Her Words luncheons. On June 10 the speaker will be Janet Kestin, Co-Chief Officer at Ogilvy & Mather, one of the country's leading ad agencies. Janet, along with Nancy Vonk, launched 'Evolution and Onslaught' on YouTube, which drew seven million views as part of Dove's Campaign for Real Beauty. Susan Aglukark will speak on June 26; a three-time Juno award winner who never strays far from her roots in Arctic Canada. Now a leading voice in Canadian music, she captivates and inspires listeners from all walks of life.

brampton.com is proud to be a media sponsor of this event, to support Interim Place and their goal of ending violence against women through responsive, accessible services, and to address conditions that create violence in the lives of women and children throughout Peel Region.