Quem tem medo das sexualidades juvenis?: tensionamentos e disputas na política de educação em sexualidade de jovens brasileiros/as

Abstract

This monograph analyzes sexuality education for Brazilian youth as a field of ideological and political disputes, marked by advances, setbacks, and resistance. From a constructivist, intersectional, and decolonial perspective, the study understands sexuality as a historical, social, and cultural device, shaped by relations of power, gender, race, class, territory, and sexual orientation. The research seeks to understand how policies, programs, and institutional discourses—especially at the federal level—shape young people’s access to sexual and reproductive rights. The methodology combined literature review, documentary research, and discourse analysis. Official documents, bills, and government materials published between 2022 and 2025 were examined, along with statements and interviews from political actors directly involved in the agenda. The discourse analysis was based on the works of Michel Pêcheux and Eni Orlandi, understanding discourse as a symbolic practice permeated by ideology, and incorporated the categories of intersectionality (Collins; Bilge) and coloniality of gender (Lugones; Gomes) to deepen the critical analysis. The theoretical framework discussed youth and sexuality as historical and cultural constructs, challengingbiologizing and moralizing views. The historical trajectory of sex education in Brazil was traced from its hygienist origins in the early 20th century, through the censorship of the business-civic-military dictatorship, to the advances of redemocratization and the 2000s. It was found that, starting in 2013, conservative resurgence intensified, culminating in the government of Jair Bolsonaro (2019–2022), marked by the defense of sexual abstinence and the transfer of educational responsibility exclusively to families. The analysis of the Lula administration (2023–2026) revealed an attempt to rebuild sexual policies, with actions such as the booklet “Caminhos para a construção de uma educação sexual transformadora”. However, there was a deliberate absence of the term “sexual education” in some materials/projects, indicating caution in the face of the influence of conservative forces stillactive in the Legislature and public opinion. The study identified speeches and bills that threaten sexual and reproductive rights, such as Bill 1904/24, which equates abortion after 22 weeks to simple homicide, even in cases of rape. These attacks highlight the contentious and politicized nature of the issue, which demands continuous resistance. It is concluded that consolidating a critical, inclusive, and transformative sexual education requires overcoming biologizing and moralizing models, promoting intersectoral action between health, education, and human rights, and unwaveringly defending sexual and reproductive rights as an inseparable part of citizenship and democracy. In this sense, sexuality education is not merelya curricular subject but an instrument of emancipation and social justice, whose full implementation is urgent in the face of the conservative advance in the country.