“When parts of our bodies go undescribed, we often feel they are wrong or forbidden. Outspoken Sex Ed is a step toward universality and acceptance – for ourselves and for each other”
– feminist icon Gloria Steinem
NEWS YOU CAN USE
Singer Olivia Rodrigo, age 23, on the controversy over wearing babydoll dresses
“What’s really, like, disturbing is I feel like I have worn outfits that are maybe revealing onstage. I’ve been onstage in a sparkly bra, little shorts, which is my right. That’s fun. I felt cool and comfortable in that.
And that wasn’t ‘inappropriate’ – but me fully covered up in a dress that people deem to be, like, childlike was ‘inappropriate’.
It’s just this rhetoric that we’re fed as girls since we’re so little, which is: “Don’t wear that because then a man is going to sexualise your body and it’s your fault.’ Like, it’s so weird. And I didn’t think I looked sexy
in that at all.
I was like: ‘This is so cool. I feel like I look like singers Kathleen Hanna or Courtney Love’ – all these people who are my heroes. And I felt cool and comfortable in it. If we start dressing in a way that’s like: ‘I don’t want some freak to think that I am sexy like a baby’ or some crazy thing like that, it’s like losing the plot a little bit.
I’m very protective of younger women and girls, and
I don’t ever want them to be fed that rhetoric.
You shouldn’t be responsible for some guy sexualising you in a way that was never your intention”
WORDS Olivia Rodrigo responds to babydoll dress controversy (NME, 28/5/26)
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WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING…
“When parts of our bodies go undescribed, we often feel they are wrong or forbidden. Outspoken Sex Ed is a step toward universality and acceptance – for ourselves and for each other”
Gloria Steinem – feminist icon, leading social political activist, speaker and author of My Life On The Road
“We’re all trying to figure out how to talk to our children about this tricky stuff, and I’m turning to Outspoken Sex Ed for a few tips”
Anna Whitehouse – author, columnist and founder of Mother Pukka
“The best support and protection parents can offer young people is ensuring they have all the information they need to make decisions about their health, body, sexual exploration and emotions – which is what Outspoken is all about”
Sara Pascoe – comedian, author and member of Outspoken Advisory Board
”As a parent I felt enabled and empowered to have age-and-stage appropriate conversations with my children after the Outspoken Sex Ed workshop. This suddenly felt like a challenge I could take on with gusto rather than shying away from”
Dr Pooky Knightsmith – child and adolescent mental-health expert and author
“I totally love Outspoken Sex Ed and everything it stands for! This is wonderful work and very much needed”
Dr Naomi Sutton – NHS sexual-health consultant on E4’s The Sex Clinic and member of Outspoken Advisory Board
“Misinformation about sex has always been part of teenage life. But today, with pornography and social media, young people are exposed to a tsunami of false and damaging ideas and information. It’s therefore our duty to provide young people with a healthy counter-narrative. The work of Outspoken – which provides resources for parents and teachers to have open, honest conversations about sex and relationships – is therefore more crucial than ever”
Natasha Devon MBE – mental-health and body-image campaigner
Incredibly helpful. I feel much better equipped to deal with what I thought would be awkward conversations – actually I don’t think they are at all!
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