Good2Go Sexual Consent App Aims To Prevent Rape, But Ends Up Promoting Abstinence
California recently became the first state to sign a bill that clearly defines sexual consent: “Yes means yes” and “no means no,” because it really is as simple as that. As reported by NPR, “the new law seeks both to improve how universities handle rape and sexual assault,” as well as clarify the standards of consent. And for anyone that needs tangible evidence of this, there’s a weird app for that.
It’s called Good2Go, and it’s a sexual consent app that aims to prevent and reduce sexual abuse among college students. Basically, when two people decide they want to have sex, they launch the app, hand their phone off to their partner, and he or she answers a series of questions that determines if they’re, ahem, good to go. The following questions inquire if the person that wants to have sex with them is sober or “pretty wasted,” has to enter a password and a code that’s sent to their phone, and are reminded, again, that yes means yes and no means no.
Slate writer Amanda Hess tested it out and determined the app takes about four minutes to assess the situation. But Hess is confused as to what the app really accomplishes since, to start, the consensual sexual activity isn't defined. Does it mean making out, vaginal, or oral sex? Yes, she conceded it raises awareness, but the app may actually "contribute a dangerous new element to those he-said she-said rape cases," as the app tracks your history and could possibly be used against another person in the future. To us, if you need an app to consent sex, you probably shouldn't be having sex.
Watch the video below and decide if you think Good2Go helps or hurts the conversation on sexual assault.