Relationships Contributor: Anya Alvarez

  • Can We Stop Rape?
    Relationships Contributor: Anya Alvarez

    Can We Stop Rape?

    When I began talking about when I had been raped openly, the reaction I got varied. Most people’s first reaction was one of pity and sympathy. Some of the reactions were, “Well, you kind of put yourself in the position to get raped.”

  • Redefining Rape
    Relationships Contributor: Anya Alvarez

    Redefining Rape

    Just looking at the old definition of rape displays societal views on male rape. In fact, if a male were to come forward with his story sexual assault, he legally wouldn’t be able to state that he was raped.

  • Am I Becoming a Prude?
    Relationships Contributor: Anya Alvarez

    Am I Becoming a Prude?

    I believe what I’ve turned into is a conscious prude. Sex isn’t gross, but I don’t need it shoved down my throat every two seconds. I hope advertisers start sparing me the gigantic boobs and muscled men because people are so much more interesting than that.

  • Has Christmas Lost Its Allure?
    In Love

    Has Christmas Lost Its Allure?

    In the last couple of years, Christmas has lost its allure for me. All the joys of it have faded. It begins the day after Thanksgiving. I can’t go to the mall or turn on the radio or TV without being bombarded with commercials and ads telling me to buy stuff.

  • An Inconvenient Love
    In Love

    An Inconvenient Love

    There is an uneasiness experienced through the inconvenience of love, because often it makes us go outside of ourselves. It takes courage to seize something that is inconvenient. It takes risk.

  • Abstaining From Abstinence
    In Love

    Abstaining From Abstinence

    There rests the unwavering truth that sometimes our hormones, no matter how good our intentions, will overpower our desire to abstain. The church could play an instrumental role in helping the decline of unwanted pregnancies and STIs if they started taking an active role outside of the abstinence message.

  • Rape: A ‘Natural Male Instinct’?
    LGBTQ

    Rape: A ‘Natural Male Instinct’?

    Rape is rape no matter how one spins it. What we should be putting focus on is getting people to discuss it, to not feel ashamed, and to understand and empathize with survivors of rape.

  • Don’t Date a Hottie
    In Love

    Don’t Date a Hottie

    What if some girl was trying to seduce him and since he is so darn good looking, he left all morals aside and cheated because he couldn’t help himself? His hotness could have overtaken his judgment.

  • Playing Sports with Your Partner
    In Love

    Playing Sports with Your Partner

    I had to hide the fact that I was upset. Here I was on a beautiful day in the park, playing basketball with my boyfriend, and all I could focus on was the fact that I kept getting worse and kept falling further behind in points.

  • Relationship Talk Intervention: Get a Hobby
    In Love

    Relationship Talk Intervention: Get a Hobby

    Relationships are powerful and make up a big piece of our lives. We can’t avoid relationships, but if we focus on them too much, we can begin to lose sight of other facets of who we are.