As the battle for the algorithm rages on, it’s important to continue stepping up and supporting our favorite small businesses and organizations. I’ve previously talked about The Vagina Museum and their stance on Instagram’s policies. Well, twelve days after the post my original article referred to, @Vagina_Museum was calling out Instagram’s censorship yet again. In partnership with @MyCallaly, The Vagina Museum posted a series of realistic vulva illustrations on their feed. Within a few hours it was taken down—even though the post had accumulated thousands of likes and hundreds of comments. Instagram’s reasoning? “Nudity.” The purpose of the illustration series was to exemplify Callaly’s three pledges: call a vulva a vulva, create better educational content, and promote accurate and diverse imagery of vulvas. The Vagina Museum responded to Instagram’s clear bias banning by stating:
“By removing this content, you’re supporting all three of those actions from taking place on your platform, creating shame and confusion as well as actively erasing people’s experiences.”
In an effort to spread some social media love, I’ve located accounts that both the Sexual Health Alliance and Respark do not already follow.
In an effort to continue spreading social media love and forcing the boundaries of “nudity” and othe censorship, I’ve collected more sexual education Instagrams—or Sextagrams—for you to peruse, support, and love.
Salty is a free newsletter for (and by) women, trans & nonbinary people. But they’re so much more than that. They’re pioneers of passing the mic and inviting everyone to speak. Their values are steadfast: Inclusivity, Celebration over Condemnation, Authenticity, Fun and Respect. A center point of their mission is censorship and so they created Salty’s Algorithmic Bias Research Collective that “explores and exposes algorithmic biases against our community.” Their mission is to “fight for digital visibility for women, trans, and non binary people and are working everyday to make sure our stories our not erased from the internet”
The newsletter and website is operated solely by donations and supporters. They have also been recognized by the United States Library of Congress to be a digital artifact of historical importance and is kept in the national digital archive.
Come Curious is a collective of friends passionate about their sexuality and sex education. Started in the UK by Florence and Reed, Come Curious is a space to talk and share conversations about sex. They belive that “being open and talking about sex will spread valuable knowledge and relieave some anxieties that surround the subject.” As Come Curious grows, they’ve added additional members to add as many perspectives as possible. “We are happy to share our experiences and opinions on sex, naked bodies, and anything else that we see relevant.”
The Sex Ed is a digital platform for educational resources like original essays, podcasts, a curated library, Sexpedia, and more. Their mission is big picture: “The cornerstone of our philosophy is considering sexual well-being from a holistic perspective that includes sexual health as an integral part of mind and body wellness.” On their Instagram, you’ll find bright quotes and definitions, body inclusive models, and a celebration of sex and our bodies. Their space is safe, fun, inclusive, and welcoming, so come hang out!
Dr. Jen Grunter is considered Twitter’s resident gynecologist. Her mission is to “build a better medical internet” and responds to women’s health misinformation. She is the author of The Vagina Bible and The Menopause Manifesto and currently writes the blog. Many of her blog and Instagram posts address new feminie hygiene products, how Covid-19 effects the placenta, and different medications for women’s “problems.” On her Instagram, you’ll find screenshots of her recent blog posts from The Vajenda as well as photos of her books, make-up free selfies, and bits of her daily life.
Jen is the author of Greedy: Notes from a Bisexual Who Wants Too Much. She created and writes for The Bi Monthly in which she says: “The Bi Monthly is a newsletter about bisexuality, the binary, & beyond. It comes out once a month (same tbh) and features cultural commentary, important links, & queer people you should be paying attention to.” Her Instagram is a capsule of her favorite things--her book, her partner, cool people, memes, the like--and raw selfies. Her page is a space of inspiration and a helpful dose of reality.
Honorable mentions and so many more!!
@Vagina_Museum (again! We can’t get enough!)
@VanessaCuccia (founder of Chakrubs)
@Whoregasmic
By Shelby Lueders