Expounding on beloved fictional characters’ sex lives and relationships. And what lessons/cautionary tales can be gleaned from those pairings.
Read MoreFictional Sex
Shibari Appropriation Redux
As I had hoped, my last post on Shibari and Appropriation generated some really interesting and important feedback. Some people identified some perceived blind spots in my post, as well as aspects of this issue that went unaddressed or under-addressed. A few people noted, and rightly so, was that the issue was not about cultural appropriation, but rather...
Read MoreShibari and cultural appropriation
Is Shibari cultural appropriation? The answer is complicated.
Read MoreEt Tu, Gottman?
So, I was getting ready to finally get off my tail and write my last Sound Relationship Dungeon entry, when a dear friend messaged me on Facebook Chat. He said: Aww, man! Gottman is hating on porn. He also linked to this open letter from Gottman’s blog. Gottman writes: With pornography use, much more of a normal stimulus may eventually be needed to...
Read MoreTrigger warnings revisited
A while ago, I wrote a post about my issues with trigger warnings. In short, I wasn’t against them, but wary of how they could be used. Recently, I’ve had some conversations that have shifted my stance. When I wrote the post, I made a common, but inaccurate assumption: a trigger warning’s purpose is to shield people from challenging...
Read MoreAccountability in Kink Communities
I initially posted this along with my CatalystCon Live tweets. However, on further reflection, I decided it warranted its own post. In addition to my talk, there was also a panel at CatalystCon on addressing abuse in alternative relationships. Cunning Minx of Polyamory Weekly published her roundup of that conversation here. I was glad to see other people...
Read MoreTroubleshooting Power Exchange Annotated
For those of you who missed it, here is a link to the webinar I gave last month on Troubleshooting Power Exchange. I’m really glad I had the opportunity to teach this class. I’m grateful to Jen, Dr. Bob, and Ava Durga of Creative Sexuality for inviting me to speak. I’ve been processing that webinar, and how it went, though I have yet to...
Read MoreLessons in Abuse Response
So, in my Breaking Silence talk, I ask the audience what they think is one of the worst things you can say to someone experiencing abuse. The answer is “You have to leave!” Because in stripping a survivor of the ability to make their own choices, you’re essentially re-victimizing them. Also, one of the most dangerous and unpredictable...
Read MoreAnniversary
It has been just over a year since I started this blog. Amazing how quickly the time has gone. When I began this blog, I set out to create a space where I could work out my thoughts, tackle some hot button issues, and hopefully providing a unique perspective on kink, sexuality and abuse. I like to think I’m doing an ok job thus far. A lot of very...
Read MoreThe Sound Relationship Dungeon Part 7: Life Dreams
Today I bring you the seventh and penultimate installment of my Sound Relationship Dungeon Series: Making Life Dreams Come True. The Gottmans Describe this level of the relationship house as an atmosphere that encourages each person to talk honestly about his or her hopes, values, convictions and aspirations. In most healthy relationships, there is a space...
Read MoreThe Oppression that Wasn’t There
The Rachel Dolezal story has a lot of people shaking their heads. I’ll let Jon Stewart explain: http://thedailyshow.cc.com/videos/9pxi9w/whaaaaaaat—–black-ish-ish In the wake of this story breaking, pundits and bloggers of all political stripes have compared this story to Caitlyn Jenner’s coming out as trans. The term...
Read MoreShaming, Labels, and the Internet
Today’s post is an expansion of a note I wrote on the Book of Faces, in response to the hullabaloo around Joss Whedon’s Black Widow plotline in the newest Avengers...
Read MoreRace, Kink, Community
With everything that has been happening in the world at large, race, racism, and institutional oppression are at the forefront of social consciousness in this country. It has become something that can no longer be ignored. These conversations have also hit segments of the kink community, as is to be expected. The IMsL community in particular has been...
Read MoreI Read The News Today…
I had a post planned out today about shame and empathy. It’s sitting in my drafts folder right now. Perhaps I’ll post it next week or the week after. Today, I just didn’t have it in me to click the post button. I’ve been reading a lot about the protests in Baltimore. One more black man shot down by the people we pay to protect the...
Read MoreHealthcare and Kink
For kink identified people, finding judgment free healthcare can be tricky. It is one of the reason’s why the National Coalition for Sexual Freedom has compiled a directory of kink aware professionals. For those who are sexual masochists, submissives, and the like, deciding whether to explain bruising or power dynamics to a medical provider is not...
Read MoreCreative Commons
Safety Beyond Safewords is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.