How To Teach Sex Ed When Even The Word Is Taboo

Mariya Karimjee is a writer based in Karachi, Pakistan. The views expressed here are her own. When Munira (not her real name) asked me how I peed with a tampon inside me, I was certain her question was a joke. Then my eyes met hers and I realized that she was entirely serious. "They're separate holes," I said, confused that she didn't already know where her urethra was. "Yes," she said. "There's one where you shit from, and another that's your vagina." She didn't say anything else. That's when I...