Check Out This Giant Pink Condom in Sydney, Australia

Go Big or Go Home

The annual Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras week in Sydney, Australia is about to get underway, and to help promote safe sex, ACON threw a giant pink condom over the Hyde Park obelisk. You know what they say: Go big or go home.  

The CEO of ACON (which is one of the leading HIV prevention and LGBT health organizations) Nicolas Parkhill wanted to make sure that people knew the benefits to using condoms.  

“Every year around 80 percent of HIV transmissions in NSW are among men who have sex with men, so it’s vital that we use opportunities like Mardi Gras to remind gay men about the health benefits of using condoms. During Mardi Gras, we’re pulling out all the stops to get our ‘stay safe’ message to gay men. The Giant Condom was a massive hit here and overseas when we put it up for World AIDS Day in 2014, so we thought we’d roll it out again for this year’s Mardi Gras to act as a highly visible safe sex reminder, not just for locals but also for the thousands of international visitors who come to Sydney for Mardi Gras.”  

Of course, not everyone was fond of the giant pink condom. Here’s a shocker: A Christian group known as the Australian Christian Lobby called the display distasteful. The group went on to say:  

“We recognise the need to combat HIV in our community, but this is not the appropriate way to deal with the issue,” the ACL’s Wendy Francis said. “My position on this is always that the government and the community have a responsibility to our children.”  

Yep, that’s right, it’s all about the children. And then, the head of the ACL apparently took to Twitter to say a giant pink condom would cause kids to sexually abuse each other.  

Really, I can’t think of some kind of response to that statement. It’s just fucking stupid and makes my heart sad. So, Lyle Shelton, you can go fuck yourself. To all those who enjoy the giant pink condom and the message behind it, be safe and have fun during Sydney’s Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras week.

Via Buzzfeed