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Taking on the Issue of Pornography
November 09, 2008 2:56 PM
ABC News On Campus reporter Chelsey Delaney blogs:
I have seen it; my friends' younger siblings have seen it; our grandmas have seen it. Our culture is accustomed to pornography.
Some feminists in the 1970s and 1980s, specifically Catharine MacKinnon and the late Andrea Dworkin, were the first to come forth with the idea that pornography promoted sexual aggression and degradation of and toward women and offered some evidence: countries with low pornographic distribution see the least amount of sexual violence toward women. But other feminists disagreed and vowed that some pornography (under the label "erotica") served to sexually liberate women.
Some think the anti-porn sentiment is gaining, among them University of Texas journalism professor Dr. Robert Jensen has dedicated the last decade of his life to the anti-pornography movement, and released a book that pornography's threat to male behaviors entitled, "Getting Off: Pornography and the End of Masculinity." Jensen wrote the book after attending a pornography convention with some colleagues who were filming a documentary about the industry. The book was released in fall of 2007, and the movie, called "The Price of Pleasure," was released this August with the intention to tour college campuses throughout the 2008-2009 academic year.
The importance of showing the film at college campuses, to Jensen, comes from his own experience with pornography. "I learned how to be a 'guy' in college and how to survive as one," Jensen said. "I bonded with guys by denigrating women. I was trying to fit a norm that was, first of all, not me, but second of all, isn't anyone." Jensen has toured the country on multiple occasions to give lectures to all-male audiences, preaching the danger of pornography's influence on masculinity and his perception of where it leads: sexual violence.
This is why, Jensen says, that college students need to know about the dangers of pornography first. "It's time to restart a movement that does not have a focus on porn, but uses it as a vehicle to answer other questions about sexual aggression in society." Jensen and his colleagues have also created a Web site, stoppornculture.org, to provide resources for what they claim contributes to "rape culture."
"The Price of Pleasure" will screen for free at the University of Texas Monday.
November 9, 2008 | Permalink | Share | User Comments (27)
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Whatsnext:It seems like your a Religious Nut Job mixed in with some serious sexual issues that you have not worked out yet . How do bath fully clothed I am wondering,did break alll the mirrors in your house so you don't have to look at your own nakedness , What a shame. Someone did the old Religious hatched job on you and you fell for hook,line,sinker.I feel sorry for you.
Posted by: KWOLF443 | Nov 10, 2008 12:56:06 AM
Hmm. Sounds more like violence towards women is caused by membership in a fraternity. I KNEW there was a reason I never joined one. Another area of research ?? Match violence toward women with religion. Certainly works with Islam. Anytime a religious cult says the woman should obey the man, the warning lights go on. And where do we see that again ? Religion poisons everything, to coin a phrase..
Posted by: rod-the-farmer | Nov 10, 2008 5:48:30 AM
So because this guy hung out with other guys in college and came to denigrate women like the rest of them... somehow it's all porn's fault? Sounds more like a cautionary tale in the hazards of groupthink to me, or maybe it's just another case of, "I can't be the one at fault, it must be XYZ that made me do it!" Just admit that you were a jerk for hanging out with jerks and wanting to be accepted by them and get on with your life, don't demonize a convenient social target. Sheesh.
Posted by: Bri | Nov 10, 2008 7:56:54 AM
An honest and open dialog about sexuality is the surest way to prevent violence and abuse. Shame and guilt over sexual issues only allows abuse to flourish. Well-produced erotica can serve as a catalyst for these discussions.
It should be the sole discretion of consenting adults to determine whether to indulge in erotica. Only the individual has the right to make such a choice, not the state.
Posted by: Yukon Sam | Nov 10, 2008 1:28:03 PM
It is sad to see educated people without the ability to distinguish between good and evil. There is no good in pornography. But our western civilization has lost the ability to reason. I have seen it argued that the community has no input into what is expected or allowed. Only the individual matters. Let me state that only a religious society can be civil. If we ever start operating on the principle that every individual is a moral law to themselves then, those of us that have a more evolved sense of justice will start killing those of you who offend us. Therefore you should offer thanks to whatever you worship that the religious believe in a higher rule of human conduct.
Posted by: M. A. Woodward | Nov 12, 2008 8:50:02 AM
My full sized anatomically correct Palin doll arrived in the mail today.
I read the instructions, installed the battery pack, and installed the program chip provided. It immediately started talking and would not stop. When it saw the front ajar it said it was a sign from God and plowed through it. I haven't seen it since.
Now I can't get a refund and I may be responsible for whatever this thing does before the battery runs down.
I do not recommend this model, it is unfortunately too lifelike to be practical.
Posted by: seemstome | Nov 12, 2008 8:34:03 PM
First of all I do not want to in total Religious world .Because we know what the dangers are living in a total Religious world would be like. Your whole individual self would be gone and we all would have to think and believe in the same fashion.We don't live in the mid-east were Religion rules and freethought is out so let's not think about living in a total Religious world.
Posted by: KWOLF443 | Nov 13, 2008 5:21:56 AM
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