ASU’s various marketplaces give students access to myriad cold medicines, hair-care products, razors and other necessities. But one item is silently missing from marketplace shelves: condoms.
Kaelyn Polick-Kirkpatrick, director of public relations of Devils in the Bedroom, a sexual-awareness club, said having condoms available in marketplaces and POD shops is crucial to safe sexual practices.
“Condoms being immediately accessible to students is absolutely key to practicing safe sex,” she said. “For some students, It’s a long walk to CVS, and immediacy is an important part of safe sex.”
Polick-Kirkpatrick said there isn’t a reason to not have condoms at the markets.
“I can’t think of a reason not to have them available,” she said. “It’s not like they’re on a prominent shelf for everyone to see. If you don’t want to use them, you don’t have to buy them.”
Although, students can access condoms at ASU Health Services buildings, the service is only open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., leaving many students without access. Outside of those hours, the lack of availability of those contraceptives may pose other issues.
“It’s something that I didn’t notice until this year," nursing sophomore Meghan Hiryak said. "I was really taken aback because I thought universities would think this would be a necessity."
Hiryak said limited size options are also a problem, especially if students depend upon the free condoms provided by the University.
"A lot of people don’t know where the health clinic is and don’t know that they offer free condoms," she said. "There aren’t multiple sizes, which doesn't help availability to students."
Karen Moses, ASU’s director of Health Services, wrote in an email that while condoms may not be available in markets, ASU offers other programs.
“ASU provides a variety of programs and services designed to help students make responsible, healthy, informed choices,” she wrote. “Wellness, health and counseling services are on-campus resources for health education, health products and referral.”
Moses wrote ASU’s role in supplying condoms to students is crucial.
“ASU views its role to be that of education, support and referral," she said. "ASU offers condoms free at each of the health services offices on each campus. Other campus organizations, including student organizations, also offer free condoms during promotional programmatic events.”
Availability aside, another issue posed by the ASU-brand condoms is the lack of latex-free alternatives provided. According to the American Latex Allergy Association, around 3 million in the U.S. have latex allergies, so the latex-only condoms provided to students could pose a problem.
Moses said the health center may in the future make changes to provide both types of condoms for students.
Condom's limited availability is an issue that groups like Devils in the Bedroom are trying to fix. Polick-Kirkpatrick said that education is a big next step.
“I think we’re doing a lot in sexual violence prevention,” she said. “But if we were to raise our status, it’d be through mandatory education. Education is really important to normalizing sex. ... The main idea should be to create a culture that doesn’t feel uncomfortable with talking about sex.”
Editor's Note: Due to a reporting error, a previous version of this article gave the incorrect title of Kaeylyn Polick-Kirkpatrick. The story have been updated with the correct information.
Related Links:
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Reach the reporter at Ethan.Millman@asu.edu or follow @Millmania1 on Twitter.
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