Trigger Warning: This post contains descriptions of sexual violence.
Yes, you read the title right.
What, you may ask, does porn have to do with bigotry? Quite a bit actually.
For all the talk of the loss of higher moral values from various commentators, modern society is incredibly moralistic. Racism, for example, is (rightfully) viewed with disgust and anger, as the protests and riots following the tragic death of George Floyd have shown us. And how could it be otherwise? We in the West are fed a steady diet of anti-discrimination media from before we are able to walk. Even those TV shows, movies, books, or advertisements that do not address discrimination directly are almost certain to have as diverse a cast of sympathetic and positively-portrayed characters as the setting allows.
Unless the medium in question is pornography.
In which case you can find such lovely, wholesome and woke titles such as:
– “Black Slave Punished by White Master”
– “White Cops F— Black Chick, Force Boyfriend to Watch”
– “Gang Banged by Blacks”
– “Skanky N—r gives a Blowjob”
– “Black Slave Girl Brutalized”
– “Muslim refugee beautiful pregnant mom f— by white guy…”
– “Afghan refugee f—ing for money…”
– “Poor Arab refugee girl picked up from the side of the road. Lured into the car for a ride. Exploited as an easy piece of f— meat…”
There are, unfortunately, many more, including titles that subject LGBTs, prison inmates, teens, and the mentally and physically handicapped. To say nothing of women in general.
Now if we take as fact that representations in media influence how a given demographic is perceived, what kind of effect will viewing this kind of content have on those who watch it? How many vocally prejudiced people watch such content? How many people who claim to fight against such bigotry literally get off on it when no one is watching?
The numbers in either camp are likely substantial. In 2019 alone, Pornhub received over 42,000,000,000 site visits, during which its users watched the equivalent of 6,650 centuries of porn. No wonder pornography is a $97 billion industry.
What is worse is that, morality aside, consuming pornography, as with any sexual act, triggers the release of a whole cocktail of chemicals in the consumer’s brain, including oxytocin, the “cuddle chemical” (so-called for its role in pair-bonding). The very mechanisms the human brain uses to form attachments between sexual partners is being used to hook and retain the porn consumer. Compared to that, preachy sit-coms and over the top after-school specials do not stand a chance.
So, our federal and state governments are, by force of law, protecting an industry whose content is not only highly addictive, but actively sabotages their stated goal of creating a just society of equality and compassion.
If we are serious about fighting bigotry, why should we stand for this? Why should we not turn our righteous mob rage on the porn industry?
Now, many of my more progressive readers will balk at such an idea. After all, sex and sexual expression are sacrosanct, one of those things you are not allowed to judge or look to closely at. But what is the alternative? What good is cleaning up a polluted river but still allowing one factory to dump toxic chemicals in it? What good is it to rearrange the deck chairs in the Titanic after it has already hit the iceberg? Likewise, what good is it to try and fight racism, sexism, and other forms of bigotry while leaving the largest source of problematic content untouched?
Loudly proclaiming your opposition to bigotry while excusing the porn industry for it is bigotry is essentially… well, since we are talking about porn, I am sure you know.
In any case, if such is your stance, do not be surprised if no one takes you seriously.
Information for the statistics in this piece were provided by Fight The New Drug, a non-religious, non-legislative organization dedicated to fighting pornography addiction. Links to the articles used in this piece are below:
Remember that my novel, Cain Son of Adam: A Gothic Tragedy is available in paperback and eBook formats on Amazon.
Comments