Sunday, June 29, 2014
Saturday, June 28, 2014
Tuesday, June 24, 2014
Thursday, June 19, 2014
Wednesday, June 18, 2014
Prostitution and pornography: 'same thing'
Prostitution and pornography: Scholars and anti-porn advocates say they're the 'same thing'
LAS VEGAS — The man knocks on the hotel room door and is told to come in.
The woman sits on the bed, waiting for her first glimpse of the man she's been sold to for the night.
He comes in and begins unbuckling his belt as he explains what he wants.
Twenty minutes later he gets up and dresses quickly, tossing a wadded pile of bills toward the bed where the woman is still huddled under the sheets.
A few miles down the street, another man tells his wife he needs to finish some work. She goes to bed, and he locks himself in the study, where he turns on his computer and masturbates to pornography for the next three hours.
While society has kept the two behaviors separate, there's really no difference between pornography and prostitution, feminist scholars and anti-porn advocates argue.
"You can't even pull them apart, so I coined the word … pornstitution," says Sam Berg, a feminist author and activist in Portland who started the website, JohnStompers.com. "I got tired of trying to explain that they're the same thing."
Pornography and prostitution, as well as every other sex industry activity, share the same three factors: a seller (pimp/producer/manager), a person being sold (prostitute/porn actress/stripper) and a buyer (john/porn viewer/club patron).
And each of these ventures — regardless of differences in legal status, public acceptability, or even the lack of money changing hands — thrives on the objectification of women.
"These are all ways that men buy and sell women's bodies for sexual pleasure," says Robert Jensen, a professor in the school of journalism at the University of Texas at Austin, who has written extensively on pornography.
Yet, there's still a societal disconnect between prostitution, which is viewed as harmful, and pornography, which is seen as "normal, inevitable and harmless," says Rebecca Whisnant, professor of philosophy and director of women's and gender studies at the University of Dayton in Ohio.
"Pornography producers benefit enormously from not being seen as pimps. I think we need to think about whose interest that serves."
But pimps are exactly what they are, says Donny Pauling, a former pornography producer in California who recruited more than 500 women over nine years.
He'd start his recruits at $500 for a few hours of filming, then turn around and use that clip to make more than $3,500.
Pauling said he remembers one fellow producer who set up a scene for a girl he recruited, but Pauling knew she wasn't ready for that type of sex act.
"I stopped him, so she liked us even more because of that," said Pauling. "Just a few weeks later she was doing that same scene and more for us. If this isn't human trafficking, I don't know what it is. This is the same thing that pimps do, but when we do it, it's legal."
Pauling left the industry in 2006 and now travels the country sharing his experiences.
"I just talk about what happens to the people in the business, then point out that the law of supply and demand demonstrates you don't have to be picking up a camera to be ruining lives. You just have to be looking," he said. "That's been effective."
Those who view pornography don’t consider themselves "johns," or men who buy sex, because so often they're not paying for anything and as one addict put it, "I'm walking through a museum, looking at stuff that's already there."
But even walking through that "museum" is supporting an industry that thrives on the objectification and degradation of women, says Jen Cecil, director of After Hours Ministry, a nonprofit outreach program aimed at men and women involved in prostitution in Los Angeles.
"There's not a huge difference in what (porn stars and prostitutes) experience," she said. "They're still getting paid for sex. They're still being demoralized. The abuse runs across both."
Yet in one sense, pornography may actually be worse than prostitution, says Cecil.
"The (viewer) has no interaction with her. He really sees her as just an object," she says. "There's zero concern for the fact that she's a real person, or the (factors) that have brought her there."
Cecil also believes that individuals can become addicted to pornography, and once that happens, they need more to excite them and begin acting out by visiting strip clubs or hiring prostitutes — thus making pornography the catalyst for greater promiscuous behavior.
It's impossible to say definitively that watching pornography causes prostitution use, but it's definitely "part of a cluster of variables that are connected with men's assumption that they are entitled to use women sexually whenever they want," says Melissa Farley, a research and clinical psychologist at Prostitution Research & Education, a nonprofit California-based organization dedicated to research and education surrounding trafficking and prostitution.
Farley and several co-authors studied 110 men who bought sex in Scotland and found that they were more likely than non-sex-buying men to have viewed pornography and to have committed sexual aggression against non-prostituting women.
"Pornography teaches men how to be johns," Farley says. "Pornography is cultural propaganda, which drives home the notion that women are prostitutes. Pornography is pictures of prostitution."
So if prostitution is so problematic, why do women choose it?
"If your kids are hungry and you're trying to feed them, that's not a choice," Farley says. "If a woman doesn't have a place to live because she's escaping a violent boyfriend and it's 10 degrees outside and the only people who offer her a place for the night are pimps and johns who expect sex in exchange for shelter and food. We have women who are prostituting for a tank of gas or cheeseburgers. It's not a choice in the way you and I think of choices. If you look at the data, the people with the least choices in the world are the ones in prostitution."
One man Farley interviewed was a non-sex buyer and described prostitution this way:
"On the face of it, the prostitute is agreeing to it. But deeper down, you can see that life circumstances have kind of forced her into that. It's like someone jumping from a burning building — you could say they made their choice to jump, but you could also say they had no choice."
Which is why arresting a woman for prostitution does nothing to fix the prostitution problem, says Cecil, it only creates more emotional baggage and entangles her in the legal system.
Cecil applauds a recent change to California laws, Proposition 35, that increases the penalties on convicted sex traffickers, requires that convicted sex traffickers register as sex offenders, and mandates law enforcement training on human trafficking.
Several Scandinavian countries have adopted the "Nordic Model," which criminalizes johns rather than prostitutes, conducts large public awareness campaigns about the laws and provides exit services to the men and women who need help getting out.
In Sweden, buying sex is a felony, and when Norway criminalized the purchasing of sex in 2009, reported rapes of prostitutes dropped by nearly 50 percent — a huge victory, says Berg, but one that was ignored by pro-prostitution groups because they pointed to massive increases in less serious violence like hair-pulling and biting as evidence of a failed law.
Despite success of the Nordic Model and the prevalence of anti-prostitution laws in most countries, too few laws are actually enforced, Farley says. During interviews of more than 700 sex buyers across five countries Farley and her group hear the same thing: "I know the law isn't going to be enforced against me."
However, in the Scotland study, 89 percent of sex buyers said they would be deterred by being added to a sex offender registry, 84 percent by having their picture and/or name in the local paper and 79 percent by having to spend time in jail, according to a peer-reviewed article published in 2011 in Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy.
"I think moving in that direction is the way to go," Whisnant said. "It expresses in law and in the attitudes of society what the truth of the situation is — it's not a victimless crime. It's not just two happily consenting adults doing whatever. It's some people taking brutal advantage of the extraordinary vulnerability of other people. (We need to) criminalize the people doing the harm, not the people having the harm done to them."
http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865582833/Prostitution-and-pornography-Scholars-and-anti-porn-advocates-say-theyre-the-same-thing.html?pg=all
The woman sits on the bed, waiting for her first glimpse of the man she's been sold to for the night.
He comes in and begins unbuckling his belt as he explains what he wants.
Twenty minutes later he gets up and dresses quickly, tossing a wadded pile of bills toward the bed where the woman is still huddled under the sheets.
A few miles down the street, another man tells his wife he needs to finish some work. She goes to bed, and he locks himself in the study, where he turns on his computer and masturbates to pornography for the next three hours.
While society has kept the two behaviors separate, there's really no difference between pornography and prostitution, feminist scholars and anti-porn advocates argue.
"You can't even pull them apart, so I coined the word … pornstitution," says Sam Berg, a feminist author and activist in Portland who started the website, JohnStompers.com. "I got tired of trying to explain that they're the same thing."
Pornography and prostitution, as well as every other sex industry activity, share the same three factors: a seller (pimp/producer/manager), a person being sold (prostitute/porn actress/stripper) and a buyer (john/porn viewer/club patron).
And each of these ventures — regardless of differences in legal status, public acceptability, or even the lack of money changing hands — thrives on the objectification of women.
"These are all ways that men buy and sell women's bodies for sexual pleasure," says Robert Jensen, a professor in the school of journalism at the University of Texas at Austin, who has written extensively on pornography.
Yet, there's still a societal disconnect between prostitution, which is viewed as harmful, and pornography, which is seen as "normal, inevitable and harmless," says Rebecca Whisnant, professor of philosophy and director of women's and gender studies at the University of Dayton in Ohio.
"Pornography producers benefit enormously from not being seen as pimps. I think we need to think about whose interest that serves."
But pimps are exactly what they are, says Donny Pauling, a former pornography producer in California who recruited more than 500 women over nine years.
He'd start his recruits at $500 for a few hours of filming, then turn around and use that clip to make more than $3,500.
Pauling said he remembers one fellow producer who set up a scene for a girl he recruited, but Pauling knew she wasn't ready for that type of sex act.
"I stopped him, so she liked us even more because of that," said Pauling. "Just a few weeks later she was doing that same scene and more for us. If this isn't human trafficking, I don't know what it is. This is the same thing that pimps do, but when we do it, it's legal."
Pauling left the industry in 2006 and now travels the country sharing his experiences.
"I just talk about what happens to the people in the business, then point out that the law of supply and demand demonstrates you don't have to be picking up a camera to be ruining lives. You just have to be looking," he said. "That's been effective."
Those who view pornography don’t consider themselves "johns," or men who buy sex, because so often they're not paying for anything and as one addict put it, "I'm walking through a museum, looking at stuff that's already there."
But even walking through that "museum" is supporting an industry that thrives on the objectification and degradation of women, says Jen Cecil, director of After Hours Ministry, a nonprofit outreach program aimed at men and women involved in prostitution in Los Angeles.
"There's not a huge difference in what (porn stars and prostitutes) experience," she said. "They're still getting paid for sex. They're still being demoralized. The abuse runs across both."
Yet in one sense, pornography may actually be worse than prostitution, says Cecil.
"The (viewer) has no interaction with her. He really sees her as just an object," she says. "There's zero concern for the fact that she's a real person, or the (factors) that have brought her there."
Cecil also believes that individuals can become addicted to pornography, and once that happens, they need more to excite them and begin acting out by visiting strip clubs or hiring prostitutes — thus making pornography the catalyst for greater promiscuous behavior.
It's impossible to say definitively that watching pornography causes prostitution use, but it's definitely "part of a cluster of variables that are connected with men's assumption that they are entitled to use women sexually whenever they want," says Melissa Farley, a research and clinical psychologist at Prostitution Research & Education, a nonprofit California-based organization dedicated to research and education surrounding trafficking and prostitution.
Farley and several co-authors studied 110 men who bought sex in Scotland and found that they were more likely than non-sex-buying men to have viewed pornography and to have committed sexual aggression against non-prostituting women.
"Pornography teaches men how to be johns," Farley says. "Pornography is cultural propaganda, which drives home the notion that women are prostitutes. Pornography is pictures of prostitution."
So if prostitution is so problematic, why do women choose it?
"If your kids are hungry and you're trying to feed them, that's not a choice," Farley says. "If a woman doesn't have a place to live because she's escaping a violent boyfriend and it's 10 degrees outside and the only people who offer her a place for the night are pimps and johns who expect sex in exchange for shelter and food. We have women who are prostituting for a tank of gas or cheeseburgers. It's not a choice in the way you and I think of choices. If you look at the data, the people with the least choices in the world are the ones in prostitution."
One man Farley interviewed was a non-sex buyer and described prostitution this way:
"On the face of it, the prostitute is agreeing to it. But deeper down, you can see that life circumstances have kind of forced her into that. It's like someone jumping from a burning building — you could say they made their choice to jump, but you could also say they had no choice."
Which is why arresting a woman for prostitution does nothing to fix the prostitution problem, says Cecil, it only creates more emotional baggage and entangles her in the legal system.
Cecil applauds a recent change to California laws, Proposition 35, that increases the penalties on convicted sex traffickers, requires that convicted sex traffickers register as sex offenders, and mandates law enforcement training on human trafficking.
Several Scandinavian countries have adopted the "Nordic Model," which criminalizes johns rather than prostitutes, conducts large public awareness campaigns about the laws and provides exit services to the men and women who need help getting out.
In Sweden, buying sex is a felony, and when Norway criminalized the purchasing of sex in 2009, reported rapes of prostitutes dropped by nearly 50 percent — a huge victory, says Berg, but one that was ignored by pro-prostitution groups because they pointed to massive increases in less serious violence like hair-pulling and biting as evidence of a failed law.
Despite success of the Nordic Model and the prevalence of anti-prostitution laws in most countries, too few laws are actually enforced, Farley says. During interviews of more than 700 sex buyers across five countries Farley and her group hear the same thing: "I know the law isn't going to be enforced against me."
However, in the Scotland study, 89 percent of sex buyers said they would be deterred by being added to a sex offender registry, 84 percent by having their picture and/or name in the local paper and 79 percent by having to spend time in jail, according to a peer-reviewed article published in 2011 in Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy.
"I think moving in that direction is the way to go," Whisnant said. "It expresses in law and in the attitudes of society what the truth of the situation is — it's not a victimless crime. It's not just two happily consenting adults doing whatever. It's some people taking brutal advantage of the extraordinary vulnerability of other people. (We need to) criminalize the people doing the harm, not the people having the harm done to them."
http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865582833/Prostitution-and-pornography-Scholars-and-anti-porn-advocates-say-theyre-the-same-thing.html?pg=all
Tuesday, June 17, 2014
Sunday, June 15, 2014
Pornography: the ugly truth about the performers!
This was shared by the author and a supporter of our efforts. You can find the original post here:
http://gerilewis.wordpress.com/2011/07/01/pornography-the-ugly-truth/
Pornography destroys, corrupts and is a detriment to society. There was a time in my life I never gave a thought as to the results of pornography on our children, myself, and especially the women involved in this brutal trade. Trade? Yes pornography is a trade and what is traded is morality and humanity for money. `
While on active duty in the US Army I began watching pornography on a regular basis. The debasing and objectification of woman corrupted my view of how to treat women, therefore I subconsciously viewed woman as disposable and without compassion. I wasted and ruined one marriage and many relationships as a result of this subconscious and conscious reenforcement of questionable sex acts and outright brutality. It took many years of therapy to overcome this acceptance that pornography does no harm to anyone especially myself.
Furthermore as my daughter was born 13 years ago, I asked myself would I want my daughter involved in pornography? Is it ok for her to watch pornography? of course the answer is a resounding , NO! Did you know national statistics reveal that 75% of 12 year olds have viewed pornography and 55% view pornography on a regular basis.
This could have been the end of my little rant on pornography and it s harmful effects on society but I had the uncanny chance of not only meeting but dating an infamous adult actress and entertainer. The following is a condensed synapses of my experience with her, it has left me broken in my heart as to the brutality of this ugly business and a desire to express to the world the human toll of the pornography trade.
For the past 6 months I have been caring for an increasingly disabled woman. I will refer to her as “Mary.”
She has become disabled physically as well as mentally due to her involvement in the pornographic industry as well as various abusive acts.
Having befriended Mary, I have become aware of the horrific virtual enslavement of women in sex trade. Control of these girls/women is achieved through drugs, physical and mental abuse.
Mary has been mentally abused and raped from an early age of 12 yrs old and by the time she became 18 she was involved in pornography & prostitution.
Much as a race horse is used to make profit for owners, Mary has been used to make pornographers and associated profit.
Mary has been fed a steady diet of street drugs, alcohol & prescription anti depressant to keep her working in pornography/sex industry.
Mary has suffered /survived brutal attacks, robbery rapes, despicable acts of abuse by men. Mary has been swindled out of all the money she made by a thug/pimp of an ex husband.
Now @ the end of her usefulness to pornographers, lawyers and associated predatory industry people,
Mary’s only source of income is to work as a “Web Cam” model performing sex shows to perverts on the internet and prostitution.
The constant fear of being beat or murdered on a call, the physical & mental abuse has left Mary a paranoid, depressed,alcoholic woman.
Mary has a plethora of serious disorders and maladies, among them severe gastro- intestinities that causes hemorrhage, a rare eye disorder, vertigo, nausea, intense migraine and spinal problem.
Mary’s alcohol dependency is so severe that she has a physical dependency that requires a monitored medical detoxification.
Mary uses daily a cocktail of alcohol and prescribed drugs such as Vallum & Pristique to allow her to “work”
This work mentally dehabilitates Mary more and more as the customers verbally insult & demean her which reinforces a destructive cycle of increased alcohol & prescribed drug use.
Mary is often unable to distinguish reality from fantasy. She watches conspiracy and end of the world programs virtually from the second she wakes until she sleeps with the programs running in a que sub consciously reinforcing a negative, harmful fearful attitude.
Mary is mentally and physically unable to perform daily chores such a laundry, cleaning, driving, shopping and cooking.
There are times that she is so severely depressed she will not leave the house for weeks, get out of bed or even shower.
I have been increasingly caring for Mary.
First of all I have been paying Mary’s rent and utilities, this allows Mary not to “work” at the webcamera.
Moreover my presence gives her a connection to reality and a loving, caring person. This care has a positive effect on Mary’s general well being. Her attitude improves greatly as well as mental state.
The more contact I have with Mary the more her mental state improves. My presence keeps her from “working webcam” I am able to administer positive reinforcement therapy and genuine care to Mary.
You see Mary wishes to get out of this sordid trade. She has attempted in the past to break out of the vicious cycle but has been forced by necessity or coercion of unscrupulous porn associated lawyers.
Being a certified first responder, I recognize the severe and urgent need to get not only medical help for Mary but compassionate humane interaction.
I have had to monitor Mary often as her gastro problem causes her to vomit and defecate blood indicating severe dangerous hemorrhage. She becomes incapacitated often fainting or collapsing. I have had to carry her to bed and monitor her vitals
Today Mary made a tremendous breakthrough recognizing she needs medical help and is an alcoholic. Mary realizes she needs professional mental treatment.
Mary is a very intelligent, beautiful, compassionate woman. She has a soul and a heart it has been suppressed and vitually held captive by the sex trade. She has a 12 year old daughter who she cares for with out support from an abusive negligent ex husband.
It is my opinion that Mary is in danger of an accidental overdose and death.
I am asking for your assistance in any capacity to help allow Mary happiness, health and freedom from sex business.
She desperately needs compassion, understanding, medical attention.
I have been trying to get Mary to apply for SSI and /or State Disability however she has been denied.
I saw a glimpse of the beautiful person Mary is when lucid and able to express her feelings and desires but she needs so much more help than I’m able to give her.
If you wish to help Mary and others that have suffered/suffering at the hands of this destructive, inhumane, business I have provide a few links below.
http://www.thepinkcross.org/page/help-porn-stars-and-sex-workers
http://www.covenanteyes.com/2008/10/28/ex-porn-star-tells-the-truth-about-the-porn-industry/
http://pornharms.com/personal/2011/09/26/pornography-the-ugly-truth-about-the-performers/
While on active duty in the US Army I began watching pornography on a regular basis. The debasing and objectification of woman corrupted my view of how to treat women, therefore I subconsciously viewed woman as disposable and without compassion. I wasted and ruined one marriage and many relationships as a result of this subconscious and conscious reenforcement of questionable sex acts and outright brutality. It took many years of therapy to overcome this acceptance that pornography does no harm to anyone especially myself.
Furthermore as my daughter was born 13 years ago, I asked myself would I want my daughter involved in pornography? Is it ok for her to watch pornography? of course the answer is a resounding , NO! Did you know national statistics reveal that 75% of 12 year olds have viewed pornography and 55% view pornography on a regular basis.
This could have been the end of my little rant on pornography and it s harmful effects on society but I had the uncanny chance of not only meeting but dating an infamous adult actress and entertainer. The following is a condensed synapses of my experience with her, it has left me broken in my heart as to the brutality of this ugly business and a desire to express to the world the human toll of the pornography trade.
For the past 6 months I have been caring for an increasingly disabled woman. I will refer to her as “Mary.”
She has become disabled physically as well as mentally due to her involvement in the pornographic industry as well as various abusive acts.
Having befriended Mary, I have become aware of the horrific virtual enslavement of women in sex trade. Control of these girls/women is achieved through drugs, physical and mental abuse.
Mary has been mentally abused and raped from an early age of 12 yrs old and by the time she became 18 she was involved in pornography & prostitution.
Much as a race horse is used to make profit for owners, Mary has been used to make pornographers and associated profit.
Mary has been fed a steady diet of street drugs, alcohol & prescription anti depressant to keep her working in pornography/sex industry.
Mary has suffered /survived brutal attacks, robbery rapes, despicable acts of abuse by men. Mary has been swindled out of all the money she made by a thug/pimp of an ex husband.
Now @ the end of her usefulness to pornographers, lawyers and associated predatory industry people,
Mary’s only source of income is to work as a “Web Cam” model performing sex shows to perverts on the internet and prostitution.
The constant fear of being beat or murdered on a call, the physical & mental abuse has left Mary a paranoid, depressed,alcoholic woman.
Mary has a plethora of serious disorders and maladies, among them severe gastro- intestinities that causes hemorrhage, a rare eye disorder, vertigo, nausea, intense migraine and spinal problem.
Mary’s alcohol dependency is so severe that she has a physical dependency that requires a monitored medical detoxification.
Mary uses daily a cocktail of alcohol and prescribed drugs such as Vallum & Pristique to allow her to “work”
This work mentally dehabilitates Mary more and more as the customers verbally insult & demean her which reinforces a destructive cycle of increased alcohol & prescribed drug use.
Mary is often unable to distinguish reality from fantasy. She watches conspiracy and end of the world programs virtually from the second she wakes until she sleeps with the programs running in a que sub consciously reinforcing a negative, harmful fearful attitude.
Mary is mentally and physically unable to perform daily chores such a laundry, cleaning, driving, shopping and cooking.
There are times that she is so severely depressed she will not leave the house for weeks, get out of bed or even shower.
I have been increasingly caring for Mary.
First of all I have been paying Mary’s rent and utilities, this allows Mary not to “work” at the webcamera.
Moreover my presence gives her a connection to reality and a loving, caring person. This care has a positive effect on Mary’s general well being. Her attitude improves greatly as well as mental state.
The more contact I have with Mary the more her mental state improves. My presence keeps her from “working webcam” I am able to administer positive reinforcement therapy and genuine care to Mary.
You see Mary wishes to get out of this sordid trade. She has attempted in the past to break out of the vicious cycle but has been forced by necessity or coercion of unscrupulous porn associated lawyers.
Being a certified first responder, I recognize the severe and urgent need to get not only medical help for Mary but compassionate humane interaction.
I have had to monitor Mary often as her gastro problem causes her to vomit and defecate blood indicating severe dangerous hemorrhage. She becomes incapacitated often fainting or collapsing. I have had to carry her to bed and monitor her vitals
Today Mary made a tremendous breakthrough recognizing she needs medical help and is an alcoholic. Mary realizes she needs professional mental treatment.
Mary is a very intelligent, beautiful, compassionate woman. She has a soul and a heart it has been suppressed and vitually held captive by the sex trade. She has a 12 year old daughter who she cares for with out support from an abusive negligent ex husband.
It is my opinion that Mary is in danger of an accidental overdose and death.
I am asking for your assistance in any capacity to help allow Mary happiness, health and freedom from sex business.
She desperately needs compassion, understanding, medical attention.
I have been trying to get Mary to apply for SSI and /or State Disability however she has been denied.
I saw a glimpse of the beautiful person Mary is when lucid and able to express her feelings and desires but she needs so much more help than I’m able to give her.
If you wish to help Mary and others that have suffered/suffering at the hands of this destructive, inhumane, business I have provide a few links below.
http://www.thepinkcross.org/page/help-porn-stars-and-sex-workers
http://www.covenanteyes.com/2008/10/28/ex-porn-star-tells-the-truth-about-the-porn-industry/
http://pornharms.com/personal/2011/09/26/pornography-the-ugly-truth-about-the-performers/
Saturday, June 14, 2014
Thursday, June 12, 2014
Tuesday, June 10, 2014
Sunday, June 8, 2014
Ex-Porn Star Tells the Truth
Ex-Porn Star Tells the Truth (Part 2)
One male porn star says on his blog on January 28, 2008:
“Drugs are a major, major problem in my business. Anyone who says otherwise is lying to you. I can’t tell you the number of girls who have disappeared and dropped out of the business because of their drug problems. It is unbelievably sad to think about, and seeing some of them fall into a downward spiral hurts me more than others. But I think we all can agree that a huge majority of drug users will never change unless they get professional help. I have seen all manner of drugs on set, at parties, in cars, everywhere. If I had to guess, I would put marijuana use at 90 percent of ALL people involved in the industry (performers, directors, crew, agents, drivers, owners, office workers, etc.). I have been on a set where a girl has passed out during a sex scene with me (she was abusing oxycontin). Just recently a girl overdosed on GHB (a party drug that is a clear odorless drug that doesn’t mix well with alcohol) on set. I have seen a girl win a prestigious AVN Award, not show up to accept the award, and then fall into the throes of drug use that caused her to lose at least 50 pounds and drop off the face of the earth. Why is drug use so prevalent in our business? Well, let’s figure that out. First of all, remember that the business is populated largely with girls aged 18-21. And the majority of those girls are uneducated (many haven’t graduated high school). Add to that the fact that many come into the business because they have no money and are working at menial jobs like fast food places. So you have young girls who are uneducated with very little money entering the business.
“Once they are in the business, they are now making ten thousand dollars a month and working maybe 5 hours a day 10-15 days a month. There are predators out there that can smell these girls and prey on them like sharks. Young, uneducated girls with lots of money, lots of free time, and very little supervision. This is a really bad equation (unless you are a drug dealer of course).”
Former pornographic performer Alex Devine shares her violent experience and writes:
“Donkey Punch was the most brutal, depressing, scary scene that I have ever done. I have tried to block it out of my memory due to the severe abuse I received during the filming. The guy, Steve French, has a natural hatred towards women in the sense that he has always been known to be more brutal than EVER needed. I agreed to do the scene thinking it was less beating, except the ‘punch’ in the head. If you noticed, Steve had worn his solid gold ring the entire time, and continued to punch me with it. I actually stopped the scene while it was being filmed because I was in too much pain.”
There is a very heavy emphasis on rougher, more sadistic sex, with slapping, spitting, violent hair-pulling and scenes of extremely abusive hardcore sex acts. In one film, the man forces the woman’s head into a toilet during the final scene, a technique that seems to help him achieve climax.
Employers in the California pornography industry are required to provide a safe and healthful workplace for employees, even pay the costs of a health and safety program, and yet this is not the standard in the adult industry. The accurate standard at present in the California pornography industry is that employers are completely ignoring the laws of the State of California to protect adult industry workers and are causing severe secondary negative effects on workers by subjecting them to physical and emotional abuse, major degradation and violence, illegal drugs, sexually transmitted diseases and entrapment into prostitution. This is the standard of the California pornography industry; any adult industry employer or worker who tells you differently is blatantly lying and does not value human life, but is rather destroying human life for the gluttonous love of money.
http://www.covenanteyes.com/2008/10/29/ex-porn-star-tells-the-truth-part-2/
The following is a guest post by Shelley Lubben. Shelley, an ex-porn star, is the founder and president of The Pink Cross Foundation. Through the Pink Cross, Shelley is a missionary to the sex industry, reaching out to adult industry workers offering emotional, financial and transitional support for those who want out of porn. She also helps those struggling with pornography and victims of pornography. Her heart is to share the truth about porn and expose the darkness of it.
As I said in my previous post, Chatsworth, California produces 85% of the world’s adult content. All of the top female talent agencies are located in or within the Chatsworth local radius. Female performers are flown to Chatsworth to work in the adult industry. All of the world’s top male talents live or travel to Chatsworth for work. Every major and minor adult DVD Company is located in the local Chatsworth radius.
The California pornography industry is a destructive, drug infested, abusive and sexually diseased industry which causes severe negative secondary effects on female and male adult industry workers as well as the general public.
. . . .
Drug Abuse
Another secondary negative effect of the adult industry includes exposure to drugs and drug addiction. Porn actress Erin Moore admits, “the drugs we binged on were Ecstasy, Cocaine, Marijuana, Xanax, Valium, Vicodin and alcohol.” Tanya Burleson, formerly known as Jersey Jaxin, says, “Guys are punching you in the face. You get ripped. Your insides can come out of you. It’s never ending. You’re viewed as an object—not as a human with a spirit. People do drugs because they can’t deal with the way they’re being treated.”One male porn star says on his blog on January 28, 2008:
“Drugs are a major, major problem in my business. Anyone who says otherwise is lying to you. I can’t tell you the number of girls who have disappeared and dropped out of the business because of their drug problems. It is unbelievably sad to think about, and seeing some of them fall into a downward spiral hurts me more than others. But I think we all can agree that a huge majority of drug users will never change unless they get professional help. I have seen all manner of drugs on set, at parties, in cars, everywhere. If I had to guess, I would put marijuana use at 90 percent of ALL people involved in the industry (performers, directors, crew, agents, drivers, owners, office workers, etc.). I have been on a set where a girl has passed out during a sex scene with me (she was abusing oxycontin). Just recently a girl overdosed on GHB (a party drug that is a clear odorless drug that doesn’t mix well with alcohol) on set. I have seen a girl win a prestigious AVN Award, not show up to accept the award, and then fall into the throes of drug use that caused her to lose at least 50 pounds and drop off the face of the earth. Why is drug use so prevalent in our business? Well, let’s figure that out. First of all, remember that the business is populated largely with girls aged 18-21. And the majority of those girls are uneducated (many haven’t graduated high school). Add to that the fact that many come into the business because they have no money and are working at menial jobs like fast food places. So you have young girls who are uneducated with very little money entering the business.
“Once they are in the business, they are now making ten thousand dollars a month and working maybe 5 hours a day 10-15 days a month. There are predators out there that can smell these girls and prey on them like sharks. Young, uneducated girls with lots of money, lots of free time, and very little supervision. This is a really bad equation (unless you are a drug dealer of course).”
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Physical and Verbal Abuse
In addition to prevalent drug use, degradation and abuse is rampant in the pornography industry. In one study 100% of the strippers reported some kind of physical or verbal abuse on their jobs. Verbal abuse by customers is extremely common with 91% reporting incidents. They were routinely called degrading names. Besides the verbal abuse, all endured some type of physical abuse on the job. Despite the fact that it is illegal to touch a stripper, strippers reported that customers grabbed them by the arm (88%), grabbed their breast (73%), or their buttock (91%). Customers at strip clubs often assault the women. Customers pulled their hair (27%), pinched them (58%), slapped them (24%), or bit them (36%). They are often attacked in the strip club in front of bodyguards and other audience members.Former pornographic performer Alex Devine shares her violent experience and writes:
“Donkey Punch was the most brutal, depressing, scary scene that I have ever done. I have tried to block it out of my memory due to the severe abuse I received during the filming. The guy, Steve French, has a natural hatred towards women in the sense that he has always been known to be more brutal than EVER needed. I agreed to do the scene thinking it was less beating, except the ‘punch’ in the head. If you noticed, Steve had worn his solid gold ring the entire time, and continued to punch me with it. I actually stopped the scene while it was being filmed because I was in too much pain.”
There is a very heavy emphasis on rougher, more sadistic sex, with slapping, spitting, violent hair-pulling and scenes of extremely abusive hardcore sex acts. In one film, the man forces the woman’s head into a toilet during the final scene, a technique that seems to help him achieve climax.
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Porn and State Law
In California, every employer is required to ensure that employees have a safe working environment. In 1973, the California Occupational Safety and Health Act was enacted to assure safe and healthful working conditions for all California working men and women by authorizing the enforcement of effective standards, assisting and encouraging employers to maintain safe and healthful working conditions, and by providing research, information, education, training, and enforcement in the field of occupational safety and health.Employers in the California pornography industry are required to provide a safe and healthful workplace for employees, even pay the costs of a health and safety program, and yet this is not the standard in the adult industry. The accurate standard at present in the California pornography industry is that employers are completely ignoring the laws of the State of California to protect adult industry workers and are causing severe secondary negative effects on workers by subjecting them to physical and emotional abuse, major degradation and violence, illegal drugs, sexually transmitted diseases and entrapment into prostitution. This is the standard of the California pornography industry; any adult industry employer or worker who tells you differently is blatantly lying and does not value human life, but is rather destroying human life for the gluttonous love of money.
http://www.covenanteyes.com/2008/10/29/ex-porn-star-tells-the-truth-part-2/
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