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NYC Condoms Using Facebook to Get in Your Pants
By
John Del Signore
Published Feb 11, 2009
Modified Feb 11, 2009
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By
John Del Signore
Published Feb 11, 2009
Modified Feb 11, 2009
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This ain't your grandfather's rubber: The good old geriatric condom has gotten with the times and joined Facebook here in NYC, where it wants to be your friend (with benefits)! Yesterday the Daily News, in an article headlined "Health Department issues new NYC-branded condoms," mentioned the Facebook page, which went live today. But Celina De Leon, a spokesperson for the NYC Health Department, says the News article (now disappeared) was almost entirely wrong; there are no new condoms being released for Valentine's Day. Welcome to 2007 Daily News; as De Leon tells us, "We did that two years ago."
What the Health Department is doing now is bringing some safe sex awareness to Facebook. (They're already on Twitter, but no word yet on when they'll join the Tumblr bandwagon.) By visiting the new page, New Yorkers can help spread the word about safe sex by sending e-condoms to their slatternly friends, reminding them to "play safe." The Health Department is also hosting a "virtual event" on Facebook, where New Yorkers can say they will use a condom. Hm, okay, we'll use a condom; does that mean we get to have some sex now, too?
On second thought, maybe we'll pass, having just read these sobering (and gross) facts: Approximately 14 New Yorkers are newly infected with HIV every day, while 30 New Yorkers contract gonorrhea and 160 contract Chlamydia. So the Health Department kicked their "Get Some" condom campaign into high gear in 2007, launching the nation’s first branded city condom and distributing them for free at clinics, clubs, salons and other venues. They now give out more than 3 million condoms per month! To paraphrase Rodney Dangerfield, "Hey everybody! We're all gonna get laid with our raincoats on!"
Tagged
condom
daily news
free
health department
nyc
rubber
valentine's day
where to get
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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