Mass Effect 3, the latest installment of the M-rated Mass Effect video game franchise, has a new feature, which has many video gamers up in arms. What’s the new feature? Players, who play as a male, can have a same-sex relationship with another male. (Same-sex relationships were already allowed when you played as the female Commander Shepard.) While the new feature is included in the game, it is only an option. It isn’t mandatory. Players get to choose their character’s sexual orientation. If you don’t want your character to be gay in the game, then you don’t have to play the game that way.

I love that this new feature integrates lesbian and gay characters into the gaming culture. The creators of Mass Effect 3 are now acknowledging that heterosexual relationships aren’t the only ones that exist. However, comments made by some gamers on the YouTube page of a clip that was leaked before the game’s release are filled with outrage and blatant homophobia. The uproar shows just how unaccepting some people in the gaming community can be. Others, though, think it’s great and they love the idea of a gay character in a video game. I agree with them and think it’s awesome. After all, heterosexual people aren’t the only people who play video games.

—Lina Chappelle, 18, Staff Writer

The new season of MTV’s 16 and Pregnant kicked off on Tuesday, April 3rd, highlighting the lives of 12 new girls with 12 different stories. One of the first episodes features Briana, a college-bound, high school graduate and teen mom-to-be.

Briana, 18, lives in Florida with her mom and sister. She was afraid of her mom’s reaction when she dropped the news that she was pregnant, and it didn’t help that Briana’s older sister Brittany got pregnant around the same time. Although they were both pregnant, Briana and Brittany made different choices.

Brittany, who had broken up with her boyfriend, decided it was best to have an abortion. She didn’t want to worry about the possibility of raising a child by herself. Later on in the episode, she admits to sometimes wanting to go back and change her mind.

When Briana made her decision to become a teen parent, she was still with her boyfriend Devon. One month and a breakup later, Briana wonders if she made the right choice when she decided to become a parent and tells her sister that she regrets not having an abortion.

This episode of 16 and Pregnant definitely highlighted for me that there are options for girls if they become pregnant. But, it is also easy to see from what Briana and Brittany experience how difficult it may be to make that decision. Abortion is the right choice for some girls, while parenting or adoption is the right choice for others.

In the end, it’s up to the girl whether or not she decides to carry a pregnancy to term or be a teen mom. But, whatever her choice may be, she needs support from loved ones. In Briana’s case, it was clear that both she and Brittany got that from their mom and each other.

—Luisa Tinapay, 15, Staff Writer

Did you know that there’s slavery still going on today? There’s human trafficking going on around the world, including in the U.S. This modern day slavery happens when people control others and use them to profit from their services—usually sexual.

Sex trafficking is when a person is forced into the commercial sex trade, which includes child prostitution and child pornography. Labor trafficking happens in different industries from farming to factories, from nail salons and restaurants to even people’s homes. People who are citizens, in the U.S. without a visa or undocumented workers are all used in labor and sex trafficking. Human trafficking enslaves between 12 and 27 million people across the world.

MTV’s Against Our Will campaign encourages everyone to take action in some way. Some suggestions are spreading the word about human trafficking, becoming an advocate, educating yourself and others, volunteering, organizing, fundraising or reporting any act of human trafficking. These are all ways, big and small, to make a difference.

Few people know that human trafficking is happening, which makes it difficult to get others involved in helping to make a difference. Only seven states have “safe harbor” laws for slavery, and there is limited funding to help the victims of human trafficking. Being informed that human trafficking occurs in the U.S. and around the world really had an impact on me. I am definitely moved to take action, first by spreading the word. What will you do?

Read “Girls Are Not for Sale” to learn more about commercial sexual exploitation and what you can do to help.

—Casandra Fetchik, 18, Staff Writer

Androgynous models—who have a combination of masculine and feminine characteristics—are becoming more and more popular among world-class brand names like Givenchy. Since their gender can be so ambiguous, they can model either men or women’s clothes.

There are, however, significant differences between some of the most well-known androgynous models. For instance, Andrej Pejic is a Serbian gay male, whereas Lea T. is heterosexual and transgender. In 2011, Pejic modeled during Paris Fashion Week for Jean Paul Gauthier in women’s clothing, then for Mark Jacobs in menswear.

But what does it really mean that androgynous models are becoming more popular in fashion? Have we become a more accepting, less homophobic and transphobic society? We have become more accepting of the ambiguity androgyny invites. Fashion may be more about creating a certain aesthetic appeal than challenging stereotypes, but the success of Andrej Pejic and Lea T. shows that the general public is less afraid of blurring gender roles and identity.

—Olivier Vanasse, 18, Staff Writer

Lots of women want to look like those gorgeous models in magazines, but we all know that in reality even models don’t look like the images in these publications. Photo enhancing applications, like Photoshop, are used every day in the fashion industry. Ads that claim to “Get rid of cellulite fast!” have edited out every skin imperfection that a model has and offer empty promises.

Jesse Rosten’s video Fotoshop by Adobé helps us laugh at these ridiculous advertisements rather than get caught up in how our bodies do or do not matchup to the unattainable edited images of models and celebrities. More than that, the video’s satirical tone calls beauty products out on what they’re (not) doing.

—June Rosen, 15, Staff Writer

If you’ll be a high school sophomore, junior or senior in the fall of 2012, apply to write for us. Our teen writers are paid to write stories that educate teens about sexual health.

Come find out what it’s like to be on our teen staff. Join us at our annual recruitment meeting on Saturday, April 21st from noon to 4 p.m. at:

Answer
41 Gordon Road, Suite C
Piscataway, NJ 08854

Get directions to Answer on Google Maps.

In October 2011, Grace Brown, a student at New York School of Visual Arts, started a project she calls “Project Unbreakable,” a photo blog that shows sexual abuse and assault victims holding up signs of quotes from their abusers and attackers.

Looking through the blog, which is hosted on Tumblr, and seeing the photos of survivors with the words of their abusers, is powerful. Some of the posts are photographs by Grace; others are photographs by survivors who submitted them. Some posts show the faces of the survivors, while others do not. Some contain merely the quote on a piece of paper, while others have more of the story in a caption.

Yvonne Moss—an activist, survivor of rape and one of the first participants in the project—described the project as “a way for victims to take the power back of the words that were once used against them.” Brown has taken a significant step toward giving the survivors of sexual abuse and assault a voice.

Brown does not claim that her blog is a source for advice or counseling and refers readers to the RAINN assault hotline. The project just begins the conversation about sexual abuse and assault. And it starts the healing process for the many victims who have submitted photos and responded to the project, indicating that Grace’s title, “Project Unbreakable: the beginning of healing through art” is proving to be accurate.

—Taylor McCabe, 19, Contributor

Imagine listening to people speak passionately about why they care about teen sexual health and what they are doing to have an impact on it. That’s the experience I had earlier this week at Sex::Tech, the 5^th annual conference on new media, youth and sexual health, hosted by Internet Sexuality Information Services (ISIS), in San Francisco, California. The thought of a conference about sexual health and technology may not sound so intriguing, but let me tell you, when you’re sitting there listening to the presenters talk about accepting sexuality as a natural part of life and creating a world where teens can ask questions and get information they can trust, adrenaline starts flowing and you feel like starting a revolution.

At this year’s Sex::Tech conference, Heather Corinna, founder and director of the sexual health Web site Scarleteen.com, said, “Sexual liberation is healthy sexuality.” I had never thought of healthy sexuality as an issue of openness and freedom. But I can now see how being able to freely learn about sexuality and make your own choices (whether it’s deciding to be sexual or not) is empowering. By freely and safely expressing how and when you decide to become sexual, you’re bound to have a healthier approach to sexuality. This idea was a theme that ran through most presentations at the conference. I attended sessions on the sexualization of women in the media, digital mobilization and movement building and using social media and technology to promote healthy sexuality. I also saw a presentation about how harmful adults’ fear of teens having sex can be when it keeps us from getting the information we need to be healthy.

It’s evident that everyone at the conference wanted to make learning about sexuality something positive that we don’t have to be afraid of. And what better way to get the word out about sex ed than through …technology. Groups, like SisterSong, Community Healthcare Network, SPARK, TORCH, CHATpdx and Sex, Etc. just to name a few, are using Web sites, blogs, Facebook fan pages, mobile sites, Twitter and text messaging to educate young people about sexuality.

As a teen who is constantly on social media sites, it’s reassuring that there are adults and health educators who are using technology to connect and work with teens to provide good information about sexuality. Because isn’t that the main goal—not to be afraid of sexuality, but to embrace it as natural and normal?

—Casandra Fetchik, 18, Staff Writer

Vote for Man in the Mirror by “liking” it on Facebook.

Scenarios USA, an organization that uses writing and film to engage young people, asked students, “What’s the real deal about masculinity?” In response to that question, teen Treviny Marie Colon wrote the script for the short film Man in the Mirror. The film was directed by Joel Schumacher and is being featured in the first-ever PBS Online Film Festival.

In the film, the main character, Jason, is a Puerto Rican high school student. He’s popular—an “All-American guy,” according to descriptions of the film. Although Jason is in the spotlight, he’s also questioning his sexual orientation and who he really is. Will his friend’s violent homophobia keep him in the closet? How far will he go to prove he’s just “one of the guys”? Treviny’s film takes a look at what it is to “be a man” and how too often being a man gets defined as being homophobic.

Visit PBS’s Online Film Festival. Watch the short films and vote today!

—Insia Zaidi, 17, Staff Writer

As a teenager, we are confronted with fears everyday—asking someone out, trying out for a sports team or even getting tested for HIV. Face Your Fears examines these fears and empowers teens to take charge, specifically when it comes to fears about getting tested for HIV. Young people account for about 13 percent of people who get a new diagnosis of HIV or AIDS each year.

Top Three Reasons to Get Tested for HIV:

1. Early treatment means a healthier, longer life.
2. Knowing your status protects you AND your partner(s).
3. Knowing your status (positive or negative) allows you to make good decisions about sex, about your health and about your lifestyle.

Are you a teen in New York City? Visit Community Healthcare Network’s Web site to get more info about getting tested at one of their clinics.

—By Anthony Murray, 17, Community Healthcare Network, Teens P.A.C.T. Peer Leader