A Man Asked L.A. to Fund “Sexual Relief Clinics”

Los Angeles City Hall heard a proposal Aug. 11 that came with everything a serious government program needs: a pilot phase, taxpayer funding, professional oversight and masturbation.

During general public comment, a man told the City Council that homelessness often involves extreme stress, isolation and instability. He said some research suggests sexual release can reduce stress, improve people’s moods and help them cope with negative emotions.

Then came his solution.

“With that in mind, I’d like to propose that Los Angeles consider a pilot program for free, hygienic sexual relief clinics, primarily serving the homeless and unhoused,” he said.

The man said the clinics would offer private sexual relief through masturbation or, “where appropriate and consensual,” sexual activity with a partner. The program, he added, would be “funded by public tax dollars and managed with professional oversight.”

He left some logistical questions unanswered: which city department would oversee the operation, what the intake process might involve and who, exactly, would put “municipal sexual-relief supervisor” on a résumé.

He described the idea as a matter of equality, saying homeless people should have “the same comforts and privacy that we have today.”

To be clear, this was one man speaking during public comment—not an official proposal the city was considering. No motion concerning his proposal was introduced, and no vote on it occurred.

Most people use public comment to ask the city to fill potholes. This man arrived with a plan for an entirely different kind of relief.