David Jay

For other people named David Jay, see David Jay (disambiguation).

Dave Jay
Jay in 2006
Born	(1982-04-24) April 24, 1982 (age 42)
Alma mater	Wesleyan University
Occupation	Asexual activist

David Jay (born April 24, 1982) is an American asexual activist. Jay is the founder and webmaster of the Asexual Visibility and Education Network (AVEN), the most prolific and well-known of the various asexual communities established since the advent of the World Wide Web and social media.[1][2]

Activism

Frustrated with the lack of resources available regarding asexuality, Jay launched AVEN's website in 2001.[2] Since then, he has taken a leading role in the asexuality movement, appearing on multiple television shows, and being featured heavily in Arts Engine's 2011 documentary (A)sexual.[2]

AVEN, which Salon.com referred to as the "unofficial online headquarters" of the asexuality movement,[3] is widely recognised as the largest online asexual community.[4] Its two main goals are to create public acceptance and discussion about asexuality and to facilitate the growth of a large online asexual community.[5]^[better source needed] As of June 17, 2013, AVEN has nearly 70,000 registered members.[6]

In New York City, working both with the Department of Education and private organizations, he has been providing training on Ace (asexual) inclusion to health educators.[7]

Personal life

Jay is from St. Louis, Missouri, and he graduated from Crossroads College Preparatory School in 2000.[8] At the age of 15, Jay began considering himself asexual, and he came out as asexual while a student at Wesleyan University in Connecticut.[9]

Jay is part of a nonromantic, three-parent family, which he views as influenced by his asexual identity.[10]

Writing

In 2024, David Jay published a book on relationships titled Relationality: How Moving From Transactional to Transformational Relationships can Reshape Our Lonely World.[11]

References

1. Marshall Cavendish, ed. (2010). "Asexuality". Sex and Society. Vol. 2. Marshall Cavendish. pp. 82–83. ISBN 978-0-7614-7906-2. Retrieved 27 July 2013.
2. Rosie Swash (26 February 2012). "Among the asexuals". The Guardian. Retrieved 2012-02-27.
3. Lynn Harris (May 26, 2005). "Asexual and Proud!". Salon.com. Archived from the original on 2009-05-14. Retrieved 2009-03-04.
4. Asiana Ponciano (October 9, 2006). "Just Don't Do It". Xpress Magazine. Archived from the original on July 18, 2011. Retrieved 2009-03-04.
5. "About AVEN". Archived from the original on 2009-03-23. Retrieved 2009-03-04.
6. Dominique Mosbergen (June 17, 2013). "What Is Asexuality? A Community's Coming Of Age". Huffington Post. Retrieved June 20, 2013.
7. What Does It Mean to Be “Asexy”? Archived 2017-04-21 at the Wayback Machine Interview by Debra W. Soh for Playboy, March 29, 2017.
8. "Graduate David Jay to Speak at Crossroads". Crossroads College Preparatory School. April 8, 2015. Retrieved 2016-05-31.
9. Amy Sohn (February 28, 2005). "Shifting to Neutral: No interest in sex is nothing to get worked up about". New York. Retrieved 2016-05-31.
10. Chen, Angela (22 September 2020). "The Rise of the 3-Parent Family". The Atlantic. Retrieved 15 March 2023.
11. Jay, David (August 27, 2024). Relationality: How Moving from Transactional to Transformational Relationships Can Reshape Our Lonely World. North Atlantic Books. ISBN 9798889840541.

External links

• AVENguy – David Jay's online profile
• Love from the Asexual Underground - David Jay's blog and podcast about asexuality
• AVEN – Asexual Visibility and Education Network.
• Interview with Jay
• David Jay at IMDb