Young People Break With Old Norms About Gender and Love

A Break With Gender Norms

A new survey from the AIDS Foundation’s Checkpoint clinics reveals a significant shift in young people’s approach to love and sex. Sexuality is no longer a fixed category, but a spectrum where gender plays a much smaller role than it used to.
According to the initial results, 6.3% of heterosexual young people have had sex with someone of the same gender. At the same time, 8.5% of young people who have only had sex with the other binary gender define themselves as bisexual or pansexual.

A Joyful Freedom to Explore

“Young people experience that there is more room to step outside the norms for gender and sexuality,” says Thomas Hübertz, Head of National Programs at the AIDS Foundation. He points out that we can no longer assume who people are together with—even when they define themselves as heterosexual.
This open approach creates a joyful freedom to explore both identity and attraction without having to fit into narrow boxes.

Checkpoint as a Safe Space

The survey also shows that many young people choose the Checkpoint clinics because they are met there with a stigma-free, relaxed, and nonjudgmental attitude towards sex. “A healthy development is underway, where there is more space for discovering who you are and what you like,” says Hübertz.

With their informal setting, the clinics function as an important alternative to the established healthcare system—and as a place where young people can ask questions and get answers without being judged.

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