A few weeks ago, CollegeCandy posted a piece on How to Have the Best Vaginia in Town, a post that featured a number of ridiculous, but real vajazzling techniques (which, by the way, was not supposed to be taken as serious suggestions). But even with so many crazy options to choose from, the issue that really took over the comments was the idea of waxing at all.

The opinions were strong and varied and led to an eighty comment debate on the appropriate way to wax your pubic area, if there even is an appropriate way to do that. So with all that backlash, we thought it might be a good idea to create a post that attempts to dive into some of these issues as well as attempt to determine why such a personal choice has become such a public issue at all.

So really, we’re not answering any of your questions, we’re just trying to understand them. This post is not trying to sway you one way or the other. I’m just laying out some differing opinions and creating a forum for discussion. And I thought the best way to do that would be to go straight to your comments. So why is this such a big issue? Why do women have such differing opinions on it? And should we even be attempting to justify something that we ourselves have called medieval torture?  Let’s find out.

Comment # 1: Shaving down there is no worse than shaving ur legs or ur arm pits for that matter. It’s all in what u (as a woman) like. 

Can it be that simple? Can it be as easy as girls, to do what you want to do because you want to do it, whether that means living with an entire forest or going bare. Be comfortable and confident in your decision and just go with it. Don’t worry about what other men or women think. It’s a nice thought, but that’s easier said than done, especially after reading comments like the one below.

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I think we can all agree that college sports are a big deal. Whether it be March Madness or school rivalries or outstanding athletes, college sports are definitely worth commending. (And that includes women’s sports!) But even the best institutions have their issues and like many institutions before them some of the largest issues surrounding college sports right now are surrounding gender equality and Title IX.

Title IX is a federal gender equality law which seeks to ensure that equal opportunities exist for both men and women in college athletics. It requires that the number of sports available for men and women on a team are in proportion with the number of men and women on campus.

But in recent years, as the number of women attending college has begun to overtake the number of men  (women are now 56% of enrollment), the issues have begun to get more complicated. Unwilling to lose male athletes because of an increase in women attending college, athletic departments have begun searching for loopholes which would allow it to appear as though women and men are equally represented without actually increasing the number of female players. Whether that meant counting men who practiced with women as women, or putting women on the team, but never allowing them to play, schools like Duke, Marshall University, and Texas A & M have begun to get creative when creating the roster for their teams. Read More »

So I don’t know if you ladies have heard yet but a couple of frat boys didn’t heed CollegeCandy’s expert advice about being careful of what you post on the internet. And now we all get to read just what one member of USC’s Kappa Sigma chapter thinks about women, while being simultaneously insulted and disgusted by the rating system, code names, and vocabulary lesson he gives his brothers on what it takes to be an effective “cocksman” (read: someone who it taught to live by the two most applicable principles I know: The Pie [the vagina] and the Gullet [the mouth]).

Annoyed already? But oh, it get’s so much better…

I will refer to females as “targets”. They aren’t actual people like us men. Consequently, giving them a certain name or distinction is pointless.

I have to give these guys some credit. They make no attempt to hide what misogynistic, sexist, racist, horrible human beings they actually are from the very beginning, when they tilt the world backwards on its axis with this comment. I mean, really? Was there ever even a time when women weren’t at least viewed as human beings? Read More »

Women are responsible for 2/3 of the work done worldwide but earn only 10% of the income and 1% of the property.

Each year 70 million girls are deprived of a basic education and 60 million girls are assaulted on their way to school.

1 in 4 women are victims are domestic violence. And every week 2 women in the UK are killed by a current or former partner.

I know this now. But I didn’t know it before Daniel Craig dressed up as a woman and stood in front of a black backdrop and was told this information.

Are we equal, he was asked.

But I have a different question for CollegeCandy readers. Why did it take Daniel Craig dressing up like a woman to get people to notice this? March 8 is International Women’s Day and I didn’t know that, either. And I know it’s Women’s History month because CollegeCandy told me it is. But what about the rest of the world? What about every other day? Why are we not more aware of the fact that women have yet to be able to hear the question “are we equals?” and answer “yes”?

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Abortion and reproductive health have been in the news in a big way this past week:

The House in Arizona passed a bill to ban abortions performed on the basis of race or sex. This means women would have to justify the reason they want to have an abortion. This is especially problematic because a selective body could try and target a women’s race as the reason she wants an abortion rather than the fact that maybe she can’t afford to support a child at that stage in her life.

On Capitol Hill, Republican Congressman Pence is leading an attack against Planned Parenthood. He’s calling for the removal of funding for Title X, the national family planning program. Title X allows women to access birth control, cancer screenings, HIV testing and Planned Parenthood health centers. One in five American women makes at least one visit to Planned Parenthood during their lifetime, so this will affect women both at the moment and in the future. The reasoning behind the bill? To cut funding to an organization that provides abortion. It is already illegal to use government money to fund abortions, meaning this bill is really just cutting down on the center’s ability to dole out information on safe-sex, test people for STDs and help women (including college women!) get affordable birth control. Read More »

One of the most important issues we are facing today is violence against women. Based on data available, 70 percent of women experience physical or sexual violence from men in their lifetime.  This staggering  number alone stresses the importance of heightened awareness, and increased action toward ending violence against women.

It happens everywhere – at home, at school, and on the streets.  An estimated 150 million girls under 18 suffered some form of sexual violence in 2002 alone, and rape and domestic violence are a higher risk for women aged 15 to 44 worldwide than cancer, traffic accidents or malaria.  Beyond happening too often and in sickening quantities, violence against women harms family and communities, and deserves a call for action to stop it in its destructive path.

Say NO – Unite to End Violence Against Women has taken a giant leap to halt the violence.  The organization was created in November 2009 to end violence between women and girls through social mobilization.  Say NO aims to spark action amongst individuals, government, and civil society partners. These actions can vary from reaching out to speak at schools,  volunteering at local shelters, or donating to women’s violence programs.

UNiTe calls on anyone and everyone to take action, join forces, and address the global issue that is violence against women.  UNiTe believes if we stand together as a whole we are better able to speak out and make a difference. Read More »

Talking sex with your doctor isn’t always easy. Whether you are afraid she or he will judge you,  you just don’t feel comfortable sharing the intimate details of your life between the sheets, or you can’t think straight with a speculum between your legs, many people get tight lipped in the doctor’s office. But that doesn’t mean you don’t have questions.

After so many of you wrote in to ask Dr. Lissa Rankin questions during CollegeCandy’s STD Awareness Day, we thought we’d bring her back more regularly. So, every Thursday she will be answering your questions. The ones you couldn’t ask your doctor in person and didn’t really trust the Yahoo community to answer for you. Just leave your questions in the comments, or send em over to us. (We’ll keep it all anonymous for you.) Dr. Lissa will answer anything – really, anything – about sex and other lady things. Don’t be shy; she’s waiting for ya!

Q: I feel very uncomfortable with all things sex. I am not very experienced and get really nervous when the opportunity arises. How can I fix that?

A: To answer your question completely, I would want to know more about you. Why are you uncomfortable with all things sex?  Is it because you’re young and inexperienced, or have you had past experiences, such as rape or sexual molestation, that rock your foundations and understandably lead to uncomfortable feelings regarding sex?  And how is your relationship with your sexual partner?  Many people are uncomfortable with sexual activity when they don’t know or trust their partner well.  Are you uncomfortable because you don’t really understand your body? Or are you having pain?  There are many reasons why someone might feel uncomfortable with sex.  Sometimes, those feelings arise to protect you and are worth honoring. But sometimes, they get in the way of sexual bliss and can cause problems. Read More »