Before we begin, let's get something straight. This article is largely adult in content. It's not sexually explicit, but we are going to be talking about sexuality in a variety of expressions. If you're a minor, easily offended, or generally dislike the subject, stop reading now and leave the page. The author is in no way responsible if for some reason, you're not supposed to be here.

We revel in sexuality, quite frequently and rarely without reckless abandon. Unfortunately, it often gets out of hand and the promotion of this persistent precociousness becomes paramount in our preoccupation. This category, cross-referenced with anime, finds yaoi and yuri floating amidst the rest of the "H" genre: "hentai", which is essentially cartoon sex.

Before cutting to the heart of the matter, let's clear something up. Yaoi doesn't mean homosexual romance. Nor does yuri. Both terms mean explicit sexual encounters in homosexual situations. Yaoi is gay sex, and yuri is lesbian sex. Shounen-ai and shoujo-ai refer specifically to romance, generally sans the explicit sexual display (or at least only in a softcore sense). The two former terms are often used casually in place of the latter pair, but shouldn't be since there is a distinct difference between hardcore sex and fluffy romance.

Moving on, there's a reason I have a problem with yaoi and yuri cons. It's not because of the material itself, but rather the absurd glorification of micro-fandom. Why don't we have tentacle hentai conventions? Or conventions strictly devoted to the works of Yoshitaka Amano? Let's have a Gundam Crossdresser convention just for fun, shall we? But all of these ideas are quite silly and unnecessary, because they can all easily be found at a regular convention.

A generally established fact is that an anime convention is akin to a carnival. The regular rules of society are inverted, including how we view the way others express themselves. This is why things like cosplay, crossplay, and shrieking fangirls/boys are generally accepted as constituting the normal convention.

One can find regular hentai rooms, yaoi hentai rooms in abundance, and a con or two feature "extreme" hentai rooms which showcase the stranger side of things in cartoon porn. There are also regular panels to discuss the material, and of course the dealer's room has a wealth of media on varying sexual expressions. That said, what need is there for a convention dealing with a specific form of sexuality?

If there needs to be a sexually oriented convention, it's more sensible to run a convention on the general subject of hentai. Otherwise the segregation between group A who likes yaoi hentai and group B which dislikes it becomes more and more apparent. It's inviting further social upset, something we certainly don't want or need. The broader the field of interest at a con, the better. Otherwise, more and more barriers form between fan groups.

No more yaoi and yuri cons. No tentacle cons. No schoolgirl fetish cons. No transparent, vibrating, Doctor Octopus-inspired sex toy cons. Conventions are meant to encompass a wide range of fandom, not segregate fans into smaller and smaller chunks. If you really feel the need to get a bunch of people together to discuss your particular sexual orientation or fetish, there are clubs and slumber parties. Use and abuse them all you like, but leave conventions alone.