Kerry Frizelle, Counselling Psychologist and Psychology Lecturer at the University of KwaZulu-Natal presented on “Vulnerable Sexualities” at the July 2014 MRC/info4africa KZN Community Forum. Kerry’s presentation showcased the findings of a research survey conducted by two Psychology Honours students, Olwethu Jili and Khanyisile Nene, under her supervision. By critically analysing media reports that highlighted youth sexuality, Kerry and her students uncovered a variety of assumptions and underpinning principles that negatively portrayed youth sexuality in South African newspapers that are aimed at an adult readership.

1. Vulnerable Sexualities
Kerry Frizelle
UKZN
frizellek1@ukzn.ac.za

2. Background
HSRC 2014
• In 2012 1.2% population HIV positive (6.4 million).
• 15-24 – Incidence: 139 000 (male 26, 000, female 113,000)
• HIV incidence has declined in 15-24 age group
• 2.8%: 2002-2005 – 2.3%: 2005-2008 – 1.5 2008-2012
• Significantly higher percentage (58.4%) of condom use than
other age groups.
• However, condom use across age groups reduced.
• 15-24 more likely to believe at risk, and more knowledgeable
about transmission and prevention.
• However, overall, only 26.8% had accurate knowledge.
• 62.2% HIV positive males and 45% positive males are not
aware of their status.

3. Our study
• 1980’s social research – based on taken for granted assumptions
about youth as ‘high risk’.
• South African materials – turbulent transition from adolescence
to adulthood.
• View youth as ‘innocence’ = prohibiting, banning, punishing.
• Paternalistic, patronising programmes – child hostile.
• My role as a lecturer ‘disrupt’ and ‘trouble’ these ideas.
• Examine ‘historically imagined’ assumptions.
• Make youth differently visible.
• Anyone working with youth.

4. Childhood, youth and sexuality
• Law extended childhood in Africa to age of 18 – a period of
immaturity warranting differential treatment.
• Innocent and in need of protection.
• Global standards has portrayed all youth as dependent,
immature, incapable of assuming responsibility.
• Protectionist stance.
• Sexual socialisation within the South African context – not
always as it is now.
• Psychology – ‘storm and stress’ model of youth.

5. Newspaper Articles
• How are these ideas (re)produced in newspaper articles targeted
at adults?
• Grand narrative – or a dominant story – of negative and
problematic youth sexuality.
• What ‘sub-stories’ are activated in the articles?

6. Legal/Criminal Discourse
• Either a perpetrator of a sexual crime or a victim of a sexual
crime.
• What is rendered invisible is the possibility of a consensual,
pleasurable and active sexuality.
• Research shows youth are having sex as young as 15 – not all
victims.
• Youth sexuality only acknowledged when framed as a crime.
• Protectionist stance – future sexual subjects – prepared to avoid
risk.
• Adolescent sexuality is equated with violence.
• Danger and disease.
• Female youth sexuality = a moment of victimisation.
• Do not acknowledge the complexity of sexuality – negative and
positive.

7. Developmental/Transitional
• Youth are represented as being primarily experimental,
explorative and driven by internal developmental forces.
• Sex-crazed – raging hormones – unable to control their
behaviour that is driven by biology, bodily changes and/or peer
pressure.
• Inherently chaotic, out of control, easily influenced and hyper-
sexual,

8. Gendered discourse
• Females feature more than males - teenage pregnancy is a
female problem.
• Female youth are represented as sexually immoral – male
sexuality normalised.
• It is female youth who are more often explicitly and implicitly
reported as being sexual victims.
• Pregnancy = abuse
• Woman binary – either sexually immoral or victims.
• Missing discourse of desire and agency.
• Males are the perpetrators.
• Almost exclusively heterosexual.

9. Parental discourse
• On one hand they are positioned as adults who are ultimately
responsible for guiding and monitoring.
• On other hand the are seen as failures and to blame.
• Primarily working or unemployed parents who are represented
as unavailable, permissive and irresponsible.
• Low and middle income youth more likely to be sexually active
than higher income.

10. Racial Discourse
• Although racial category ‘black’ is not used, reference to
particular geographical spaces, surveys and visual
representations suggest black children’s behaviour particularly
problematic.
• Black youth sexuality is foregrounded and seen as a problem,
while white sexuality remains hidden and normalised.
• Interventions for black youth.

11. Expert Discourse
• Full of references to experts.
• Professionals become the ultimate experts and regulators of
youth sexuality because of the ‘failings’ of women.
• Youth seen as irresponsible and incapable of contributing.

12. Scientific Discourse
• Serves to verify the problematic nature of youth sexuality as
scientific using statistical evidence.
• Using statistics means that you can claim something is a ‘truth’.
• Claims about a problematic youth sexuality become difficult to
question in the face of scientific evidence.
• Surveys are a sight of a close surveillance and control – where
lives and relationships of youth are closely monitored and
controlled.
• 1980’s research – while data to confirm high risk behaviour – the
data that showed they were making healthy decisions overlooked.
• Youth remain marginalised.

13. So…
• South African youth sexuality is constructed as problematic.
• Active (black) youth (hetero)sexuality is authoritatively rendered
problematic, inherently out of control and in need of the
intervention of experts and professionals.
• Risk focused interventions.
• Unless we challenge sexist, classist and racist notions of sexuality
we will fail to empower youth.
• Missing discourse of desire.
• We need to read our textual worlds more critically and examine
our often ‘imagined’ fears.