My thoughts on the“Tea consent“ video
The actual video: good in theory, but has issues.
The good: It starts out with one person asking, and acknowledges that the other party must give enthusiastic consent for things to proceed.
The not so good: Their cup of tea is unspecified, and doesn’t address all the different types of tea (caffeinated, herbal, what flavor...) that serve as metaphors for what forms of sex someone may be consenting to.
The good: It clearly acknowledges that if someone doesn’t want tea, or is unsure, or change their minds, or passes out, the tea (even if already made) is irrelevant and no longer a factor.
The not so good: It basically puts people in two roles, actors (the one who makes tea) and the receivers (the one who drinks tea) which tends to fall into gender lines in society along Actors (often male) and receivers (often female) and furthers the social pressure to either offer tea (initiate sex) or wait for an offer (be passive/ not request sex until the other person suggests it).
1. A video where the person codifies the tea they want to drink, as in: Sure, I’d love tea, but not with caffeine thanks. (They could need to go to sleep early, or simply not want a kick). As a metaphor for sex, tea shouldn’t be all encompassing. Someone could want one specific type of sex, or fingering, but not actual intercourse. Someone could be down for oral, but not more.
2. Once we get past the type of tea, the video could talk about how they want their tea served: With or without milk, sugar, honey... etc as a metaphor for the need to be clear and upfront about modifiers in sex. Someone could want sex, but also want condoms used, a conversation about STI status, etc...
3. The person receiving the tea could be depicted coming into the kitchen, watching it be poured, choosing a mug, an active dialogue could be shown between the two as a metaphor for the necessity of enthusiastic consent the whole time, not just at the start, as well as creating a social narrative that allows for both parties to explicitly want/ ask for sex.
Anyone who actually reads this, (I know its long) feel free to comment or tell me what you think.
