Reykjavík Grapevine - 08.10.2010, Side 11

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The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 16 — 2010 Guys - use a condom! Seriously, while STDs and unwanted pregnancies may
sound all fun and laffy daffy, they're really not (we hear).

“If this seems like f lawed logic,
it is, since there has been an
average of 4394 births per year in
Iceland since 2000. Presenting
her with the question of
infections, she replied that people
date within their circle of friends
and know if anyone caught
anything. “Everybody knows
each other. I think it’s only with
foreigners that you get worried.””
Sex | Condoms
It’s 4:30 in the morning at the 10-11 on
Austurstræti, as a night of steady drinking,
sweaty dancing and anonymous groping
comes to an end. Couples slobber and dry-
hump through the aisles, clutching sand-
wiches and Coke to power-up for a night of
sloppy fucking and awkward re-introduc-
tions in the morning. At the check-out line,
the display rack of condoms and lubricants is
practically untouched and ignored.
For the most part, Icelandic culture is more open
and accepting of casual sexual activity than most
places in the world. This cultural aspect has been
popularised overseas to the point that the coun-
try’s leading airline managed to advertise ‘Dirty
Weekend’ trips for years and Reykjavík is now a
classic stag party destination for hooting British
males. What the airline’s marketing campaign
did not divulge to horny tourists was that ‘dirty’
should be taken quite literally and they might go
home with more than they bargained for. The con-
dom is not very popular in Iceland.
THE PINk ELEPHANT ON THE ISLANd
The condom is in fact so unpopular that the coun-
try is known as “the Nordic champion of Chla-
mydia,” according to Guðrún Sigmundsdóttir
at the Icelandic Directorate of Health’s statistics
department. In 2008 alone, 1834 people were di-
agnosed with the infection—that’s 0.6% of the
population—and the number looks the same or
worse for each year of the preceding decade. In-
fections of Gonorrhoea are also on the rise, with
a sudden jump from single to double digits in the
past five years and while HIV and AIDS are still
relatively low in numbers, they are growing glob-
ally and should be taken seriously locally.
Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are
a steady problem that few people outside of the
medical profession are willing to acknowledge. I
spoke with several sexually active young Iceland-
ers about their attitude towards using condoms
and found that most didn’t even consider STIs
when deciding whether or not to wrap up. “Ev-
eryone is on birth control so we aren’t really wor-
ried about getting pregnant,” said Ragnheiður*,
20-years old, when explaining why she does not
use condoms. If this seems like f lawed logic, it is,
since there has been an average of 4394 births per
year in Iceland since 2000. Presenting her with
the question of infections, she replied that people
date within their circle of friends and think they
would know if anyone caught anything. “Every-
body knows each other. I think it’s only with for-
eigners that you get worried.”
A more relatable explanation came from 21-
year old father-to-be Míkael*. “They are just too
expensive here,” he said. “I was living with my
girlfriend last year and of course we were having a
lot of sex. We were both pretty broke, so of course
you buy food and pay for rent first. After there just
wasn’t enough left to buy condoms. Now there’s
a baby on the way.” A quick trip to the protection
section at a pharmacy is astonishing—no less
than 2500 ISK for twelve latex condoms. This of
course raises the issue of much one values their
sexual health and future in order to budget for it.
Unplanned pregnancies and children are much
more expensive in the long run, after all.
NO GLOVE, NO LOVE
None of the young people I spoke with had any
reasonable explanation for why there is such a
pervasive aversion to slapping on a jimmy-hat
and seemed apathetic to think of one. I turned
to Sigurlaug Hauksdóttir for answers. Sigurlaug
is a social worker at the Icelandic Directorate of
Health and holds a Masters degree in parental
sexual education. Her view is that condom use in
the country is, indeed, insufficient, attributing it
to several factors. “One reason is people here start
to have sex very early, especially girls,” she told
me. “European research has showed that Icelan-
dic girls are the third youngest to start having sex,
behind Greenland and Denmark. When kids start
having sex very young, they are very vulnerable.
It’s harder to assert themselves, say no and insist
on using a condom.”
The problem is greatest with youth aged 15–
25, although sexual education is supposed to be
taught in school at the primary level. Sigurlaug
does think that an investigation into how sexual
education is being taught is in order, as well as
continual education at the secondary school level.
“Teachers think it’s a difficult area to teach, but a
lot teachers and especially nurses have been do-
ing a great job,” she said. “It is important to know
as much you can, so you can have a sex life that’s
as interesting and healthy as possible. We need to
have a better discourse.” She also praised the work
of the sexual health clinic at the hospital in Reyk-
javík’s Fossvogur district where people can receive
anonymous care and free medications.
Other factors she addressed are an overall neg-
ative view of condoms—that they take away the
pleasure or show a lack of trust in one’s partner—
as well as the issue of price, saying that people
should use their money more wisely. “It would be
nice not paying at all, but going to the movies or
buying chocolate, for instance, costs more and is
less important, yet we always seem to have money
for that,” she argues. “People should use condoms
with a more positive mind. There are many types
of condoms that vary in taste and colour and shape
and texture. Figure out what you like best with
your partner and have fun with it.”
BLAME yOuR PARENTS
Her main concern in the struggle to increase con-
dom use and sexual education in Iceland is the in-
volvement of parents in their children’s health and
lifestyle as they transition from young children
into adolescence. “They have a good relationship
until they hit puberty and then the relationship
drops,” Sigurlaug told me. “We have to change
our practices with our children, talking more and
doing more together.” She does understand that
talking to one’s children about sex can be incred-
ibly awkward. “I know they can be very insecure
about discussing it. They didn’t grow up having
these discussions in their homes,” she commiser-
ated. “Parents should be offered more education
and support to make them more confident about
talking to their kids about sex. I think most par-
ents would be interested in that because they care
so much about their children in every way.”
ALWAyS WEAR RuBBER
In the end, it seems as though the problem needs
to be attacked from every angle—from young peo-
ples’ attitudes and assertiveness to a more open
discourse in the general media. Iceland is excep-
tional in its open nature towards sex, but denial
of the problem of condom use and passing it off
as a non-issue creates an environment of sexual
irresponsibility. “I think it is good that people can
go to the sex clinic and receive STI medication for
free, but people could be more responsible about
getting checked up,” Sigurlaug contends. “There
could also be more discussion about it in the mass
media, to help teach our children to be more criti-
cal about pornography and the pressure to have
sex. There is so much sex everywhere and it cre-
ates a lot of pressure on young people. We need
to stress more that condoms are the only way to
prevent diseases. We have easy access to condoms
in nearly every store or by ordering online. There
is no reason not to use them.”
*Names have been changed to protect identities
A Nation Of Barebackers
Why Icelanders aren’t using condoms and how to get them to wrap it up
Words
Rebecca Louder
Photography
Hörður Sveinsson
MEDIEVAL MANUSCRIPTS – EDDAS AND SAGAS
The Ancient Vellums on Display
ICELAND :: FILM – Berlin – Copenhagen – Reykjavík
Icelandic Filmmaking 1904-2008
ICELANDERS – AN EXHIBITION OF PHOTOGRAPHS
The spirit of the Icelandic nation in words and images.
EXHIBITIONS - GUIDED TOURS
CAFETERIA - CULTURE SHOP
The Culture House – Þjóðmenningarhúsið
National Centre for Cultural Heritage
Hverfi sgata 15 · 101 Reykjavík (City Centre)
Tel: 545 1400 · www.thjodmenning.is
Open daily between 11 am and 5 pm
Free guided tour of THE MEDIEVAL MANU-
SCRIPTS exhibition Mon and Fri at 3:30 pm.