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Pleasure, Power & Pride: Embracing Positive Sexuality

Updated: Feb 4

Exploring Black Women’s Sexuality from a Positive Sexuality Lens


Black women's positive sexuality encompasses multifaceted understandings of their sexual identities, experiences, and expressions. The positive positionality is unique in that it not only affirm Black women's sexual autonomy, but also actively challenges and dismantles pervasive stereotypes that have historically marginalized them. This approach to sexuality is rooted in a recognition of the diverse and rich cultural backgrounds that Black women come from, and the acknowledgment that sexual health is influenced by a variety of factors, including history, culture, and personal experiences. By embracing their sexuality in healthy and affirming ways, Black women are able to confront and resist the negative messages they receive from families, communities, and broader cultural contexts. This directly increases their sexual wellbeing while simultaneously decreasing vulnerabilities to negative outcomes.


But what does positive sexuality research assert and how is it implemented in every day practices? To better understand the research exploring Black women's positive sexuality we are going to dive into this topic with Dr. Shemeka Thorpe (she/her), an award-winning sexuality educator and researcher. Her research focuses on the sexual well-being and reproductive health of Black women using sex-positive frameworks and Black feminisms. She has published over 50 peer-reviewed articles and in 2023, Buzzfeed listed her as one of the top 20 Black sexologists you should follow. She has been featured on numerous podcasts, online magazines, and blogs. Dr. Thorpe aims to make research relevant to Black communities by translating sex science in meaningful and tangible ways through social media.

To learn more about Dr. Thorpe, click here.


Works by Dr. Shemeka Thorpe:



THIS PODCAST WILL BE AVAILABLE FEBRUARY 3, 2025.


Season 2 Episode 3

Running Time:  24 minutes






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