The juxtaposition of “Condom” and “Viagra” in the title of the proposed session is to indicate that there are different perceptions and values centering on the various types of sex-related products in the market. Whereas there is still a great hesitancy in Asia to discuss openly and promote condoms for safe sex, Viagra has been aggressively promoted in the media and marketed widely in the region, for objectives well-beyond its prescribed purposes, without facing any ‘moral’ or political objection. How can this difference in societal acceptance be explained, considering that both products focus on male sexuality, and could thus be considered equally ‘sensitive’ (or not ‘sensitive’)? Is protection somehow less important, in the eyes of policy makers and the public, than pleasure? And, if so, for what reason? This session aims to probe these and related issues, provoking thinking on the way gender and sexual values affect the production of sex-related technologies. Attention will be given to the way in which industry develops its products around societal and cultural definitions of pleasure, and those who are supposedly entitled to it, taking into account genderized ideas of pleasure and prevention. Concepts of masculinity, femininity, and non-heterosexuality constructed around Viagra, condoms, and other sex-related products will be dissected in an effort to discern patriarchal structures and politics in the production, marketing and use of these products. The role of other actors in setting norms in the bio-medicalization of sexualities and genders, and in the attribution to different sexes of specific responsibilities in the prevention of HIV/AIDS and unwanted pregnancies, among others, will be emphasized. How products are tested, and the ways in which women’s bodies often become a laboratory for not-always-justified experiments, will receive special attention. By doing so within the context of the Asian region, the session will broaden the ongoing discussion on medicalization of sexuality to include an analysis of the gender biases marring such processes.
