Community Corner
DO Your Part To Keep The Dating Scene Clean
Our columnist tells you where to get tested in the neighborhood.
Fort Greene is home to a vibrant singles scene, many of whom are in their 20s — and not monogamous.
You know who you are: you’re in an “open relationship.” You’re “not ready to commit.” You’re “checking out the options.”
Meanwhile, there’s one question you need to be asking yourself: are you helping to keep Fort Greene clean?
Find out what's happening in Fort Greene-Clinton Hillwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
That doesn’t just mean abstaining from littering. The City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene’s 2009 statistics rank the Downtown Heights area, which includes Fort Greene, on the low end, compared to other neighborhoods in Brooklyn, for sexually-transmitted diseases.
For example, there were 1005 cases of Chlamydia reported in Downtown Heights in 2009, compared with 4309 in neighboring Crown Heights, and 2104 in Williamsburg.
Find out what's happening in Fort Greene-Clinton Hillwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
But that’s no reason not to practice safe sex, all the time. And it’s important if you’re sexually active to get tested every time you have a new partner.
As it turns out, getting tested in the neighborhood isn't all that bad.
For me, the best thing about the Fort Greene free testing clinic, located at Flatbush Avenue and Willoughby Street., is the entertainment. The people in the waiting room are entranced by – or giggling over – a series of short films that depict typical “Brooklyn couples” who deal with issues like unexpected pregnancy, HIV scares, and partners who dislike condoms.
In one scene, a guy is dating two women, and he’s in a shoe store with one while the other calls to tell him that she has Chlamydia. Talk about a worst case scenario.
So unless you want to find yourself getting that phone call one day while you’re innocently enjoying a coffee on DeKalb Avenue, you may want to check out your situation with the free services at Fort Greene’s clinic. And grab some free NYC condoms while you’re at it.
Fort Greene’s city health clinic offers testing for HIV/AIDS and sexually-transmitted diseases. All tests are free of charge and confidential. Walk-in visits are welcome Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Saturday, 8:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. For more information, call 311.
