Imagine this world...
- You panic every time you have to move – will someone rent to you?
- You work as an independent contractor in a legal industry but struggle to find a reputable, seamless payment processing service.
- When you go to the doctor -- either for a checkup or because you have a serious health concern -- you edit your medical history in fear of judgment.
- You make a solid living and have for several years, but you worry about financing a house, or even a car.
- Every time your child’s teacher contacts you, your stomach plummets – Has someone recognized you? “You” from ten years ago?
- You’re trying to keep your finances in order, but there is no established protocol for your business write-offs or deductions.
- You have money and need, yet cannot find an attorney, accountant, publicist, or Realtor that will work with you – or that understands your business.
Limitations on banking and money management options? Rental discrimination? Slut shaming in health care? What year is this? And whose world am I describing?
If we’re considering the scope of US history, the above scenarios have been experienced by everyone from people of color and members of LGBTQ communities to those operating on the fringes of capitalism – small business owners and entrepreneurs in “transitioning” industries.
And though we have certainly made advances in both calling out and/or eradicating myriad forms of discrimination and social inequalities, the fact remains that each one of the above mentioned scenarios is still experienced daily and overtly by one specific community – the adult entertainment industry.
And it’s 2016.
Today, we are in the middle of one of the most fraught, contentious elections ever. And while it seems that people around the globe are (unsurprisingly) fixated on the US Presidential election, as a pornographer – because that’s one of the many things I am – what I’m also focused on is California’s Proposition 60. Because while I care very much about the rights of others, I also care very much about the rights of my community. And you should too.
There is a lot about Proposition 60, the “mandatory condoms in porn” initiative, that’s especially problematic to people currently working in the adult entertainment industry. The initiative will weaken the proven-effective workplace safety protocols already in place and violate the privacy of porn performers, among many other issues. You can see why this would give members of the adult industry cause for concern.
But this is not just a porn problem. There’s a lot about Proposition 60 that should be problematic to California residents as well. Workers, doctors, public health experts, civil rights organizations, and dozens of local Democratic and Republican organizations throughout the state oppose the initiative. And yet, it’s moving forward. How?
The initiative is funded entirely by a global non-profit organization that touts a stated mission “to rid the world of AIDS.” So far, this one organization has spent approximately $4 million on a ballot measure that targets sex workers – money that could have gone towards programs that actually combat HIV and AIDS.
One organization, under the leadership of one man, is capable of exacting moralized values over an entire community that’s vocally and reasonably opposed – and this is precisely why we should all care about Proposition 60. Because at its essence, this initiative is about the sustained power and inequality shaping society, still, in 2016.
Rather than existing as an isolated bubble, the porn industry is actually a reflection of the wider social issues we continue to struggle with – moralizing against and passing judgment on those that aren’t just like us, labor discrimination, and racial inequalities in every form are just a few.
I am not separate from this behavior. Like everyone else in society, I both experience it and am a part of it. But whereas, when I was younger, I felt like all we had to do was love each other and society would improve, today, I’m not so naive. It’s not about loving each other (though that would be nice). True equality comes from acknowledging differences – and being confident and respectful enough to allow for those very same differences to exist. Respect is a minimum; love is a bonus.
Only by acknowledging our own role in the system of sustained inequality and engaging with others in a meaningful way can we truly evolve. Porn and wider society included.
Because as it stands, just because things may look better, doesn’t mean that they are.