Who Really Owns Your Body? Decolonizing Consent with Lydia Collins

Who really owns your body—and who taught you what consent means, and who gets left out of the conversation In this episode of Sex on the Table, MoAndra sits down with writer and sexual health educator Lydia Collins to explore informed consent, self-pleasure, and the role self-love plays in reclaiming bodily autonomy. Lydia’s work focuses on HIV prevention and decolonial consent education in African, Caribbean, and Black communities. Together, we unpack how culture, history, and systemic inequities shape the way people understand consent, sexuality, and access to sexual health resources. The conversation also dives into the stigma surrounding self-pleasure, how exploring your own body can deepen self-love, and why pleasure can be a powerful part of healing—especially for survivors of trauma. From challenging myths about sex to discussing the realities of sexual health education in marginalized communities, this episode is an honest and thoughtful conversation about reclaiming agency over your body, your pleasure, and your choices.