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Gay Couples In Prison Are Punished For Having Sex, Holding Hands

iloveyouphillipmorris_606After the success of the Netflix original series Orange is the New Black, we all thought that jail was going to be the hot new vacation spot for gay couples in 2013.

But, in a new study by a prison watchdog group, it was revealed that gay male couples who have consensual sex are often punished and separated, making getting locked up sound only slightly less desirable.

The Commission on Sex in Prison (what a fun commission!) has created the first ever review on the issue of consensual sex within the English prison system.

Noting the difficulties of telling the difference between consensual and non-consensual or coercive sex in such a setting, the study concluded that not only were same-sex couples at high risk for STDs, they also were often disciplined for engaging with each other at all. This seems particularly Orwellian after realizing that the Prison Service doesn’t actually have a specific rule prohibiting sexual acts between inmates, and probably discourages couples from engaging in safe-sex at all by making it difficult to obtain condoms behind bars.

In a statement released by Chris Sheffield, Chair of the Commission on Sex in Prison, it was stated that, “The need for harm reduction measures and the delivery of sexual health policies are important not just for prisoners but wider society,” considering that many of these prisoners will eventually return to their communities.

One former inmate told the commission: “Officers would push open my door very quickly, unannounced, in an attempt to catch us having sex. Of course it never worked but it put us on edge all the time. A senior officer did this once as Simon and I were sat [sic] on my bed holding hands watching a movie on TV. He ordered us to stop holding hands and move apart.”

Awwww, you gays. So they were just enjoying the tastefully done sex scenes in Behind the Candelabra when some grizzled C.O. burst in and was all like:

tumblr_mb5b9iejUE1rbhrb1o1_500Hey, prisoners need love too.

h/t: Daily Mail

 

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