‘Eggplants’ vs. syphilis
O R O W
AN AUTISTIC ex-City Council staffer suing a Brooklyn pol for discrimination charges a former co-worker running for the Council seat participated in the abuse.
Michael Bistreich (photo left), who slapped Councilman Vincent Gentile with the suit last year, blasted Justin Brannan — a former Gentile aide running in next month’s Democratic primary for the Bay Ridge seat. Bistreich, who has Asperger’s syndrome, said Brannan (photo SEXUALLY TRANSMITTED diseases are on the rise, so the city Health Department is trying to reach young, sexually active New Yorkers in the places they hook up, using language they’re used to — emojis.
In 2016, the city saw rates of syphilis increase by 27%, and gonorrhea climb by 13%, with many new infections among men, particularly those who have sex with other men. Chlamydia jumped by 6%, according to the Health Department, with the highest rates among women.
As part of its response, the city is launching risqué ads — featuring booty-text classic emojis like the eggplant, water droplets and peach — to encourage people: “Whether it’s a fling or a serious thing . . . Get tested!”
The ads will appear in bus shelters and on subways, but they’ll also run online — on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, the Gay Ad Network and the hookup app Grindr.
“It’s the talk that causes the uncomfortable giggle, but the more right) cruelly compared him to Avonte Oquendo — an autistic Queens teen who died after going missing from his school — and used a robot voice to mock him.
“He thought it was a joke,” Bistreich told the Daily News. “He clearly doesn’t care. He isn’t compassionate.” Bistreich hit Gentile with the $10 million suit in December, charging he was demeaned while we do it, the better people will feel about having discussions that are really important to their health,” Assistant Health Commissioner Susan Blank told the Daily News.
Part of the jump in sexually transmitted diseases is likely due to better testing that finds existing STDs, she said — and more candor from patients about their sex lives, which helps doctors know where to look. But there’s also been a jump in condomless sex in the city, even as it’s easier than ever to find a partner online.
“The digital age has brought with it technology, like hookup apps, that make it easier to engage in high-risk behavior,” she said.
So some of the new ads will target people in those digital spaces, using their lingo — or “cheeky language,” as Blank put it. One ad features a text message asking whether the recipient is up for the eggplant and taco emojis that night, and it does not appear to be a dinner suggestion.
“I think that helps New Yorkers feel more sex positive, that’s the idea of our ad,” Blank said. “And by using emojis, it’s using common currency of communication.”
It’s one of several efforts to encourage healthy choices around sex — the department handed out 38 million condoms last year.
“The rates are going up nationwide,” Blank said of STDs. “The funding is not going up nationwide. But in New York, the mayor has really put his money where his mouth is.”
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