The Gay and Lesbian Latino AIDS Education Initiative is bringing game-changing sex-positive talk to Philadelphia. Last weekend, GALAEI hosted “Beyond Our Bodies,” an afternoon of discussion on sexual health led by gay porn star, writer and lecturer Conner Habib. The event set the stage for the launch of GALAEI’s new campaign, SEXO. The multimedia project grew out of Sexo Latex, started in 1992 by GALAEI founding executive director David Acosta, Peter Lien and Kevin Kendall, to use sex-positive messages as HIV-prevention techniques. GALAEI executive director Elicia Gonzales said the resurrection of the campaign has been in discussion for some time. “Early conversations about wanting to bring it back to life came around last summer,” she said. “We were talking about what it would look like since then. So far, it is turning into a movement that we ideally see no end to.” The campaign will use sex-positive imagery to promote sexual health through art exhibits, events and multimedia efforts. The campaign is volunteer-led and includes support from a number of community members, such as Lien. Lien said the campaign can revamp the current conversation on sexual health. “SEXO is not just focused around gay men but on holistic health and the complete package of looking at health,” Lien said. “We want to start creating a more-inclusive, deeper context for sexual dialogue within our communities.” The campaign will kick off with an art exhibit next month at William Way LGBT Community Center, 1315 Spruce St., that will feature images that reflect on SEXO in 2013, compared to two decades ago. There will be an opening reception from 6-8 p.m. April 12 at the center. Gonzales said the exhibit will blend “bathhouse, bedroom and back-alley” forums into an environment where individuals can start a conversation on sexual realities in their communities. SEXO volunteer Aaron Stella said he hopes the campaign will grow into a movement, both on the grassroots and institutional levels. “It is creating awareness, asking questions and celebrating realities that people have,” Stella said. “Especially about their sex lives, if there are things they want to change about themselves, they can do that. I hope it takes off and it does great and grows slowly and surely over time as a brand.” Gonzales said SEXO will be reflective of all genders and identities, and she hopes people from across the LGBT spectrum will take part in the conversations it spurs — which last weekend’s “Beyond Our Bodies” already started. “The room was representative of the community that we serve. It was multi-generational, -gendered and -racial. People were so courageous and brave to talk about sex and sexual health in a safe environment,” she said, noting that future SEXO events will have a similar tone. “My hope is that SEXO will create conversation and awareness and community and comfort. I hope it will create sex and love and that the conversation that we start with the opening of the exhibit will be the starting point.” For more information, visit www.facebook.com/events/233959043416337/.
