Reflection from the March 8th Lecture
It was a pleasure to have Eric come speak to our class about public health and policy issues surrounding the adult film industry. I certainly gained a tremendous amount of insight into the challenges that the performers face. In addition, this lecture made me realize that the public health world, while constantly preaching safe sex, does not always consider the needs of the adult film industry.
In the beginning of class, Eric explained the Prop 60 bill in California that failed to pass last year. The bill required condom use to be visible in all videos, but the legislation also allowed for personal information on workers to be released, making the performers subject to stalking, lawsuits, and even death threats. Many adult film actors took a stand against this proposition, and there was even a huge social media campaign to “Vote No to Prop 60″ involving filters on Twitter icons.
This example and discussion brought a couple points to mind. Eric talked about the “public health savior” complex, which rings so true in regards to Prop 60. Many public health professionals learn and internalize “Condoms or DEATH” and want the skies to rain free condoms, especially where pornographic films are produced.
With the “public health savior” complex, many professionals want to shove their facts and science down communities’ throats in the name of improving health, but they sometimes need to take a step back and assess the actual needs of the community and empower them to make their own healthy choice, even if it is counter-intuitive to public health evidence. I can certainly see the savior complex being present in dealing with the porn industry since there is such a huge social stigma surrounding it. I wonder what other health challenges that communities face are met by the savior complex. Eric and Joe, have either of you seen other examples of this in your work with other public health issues?
Finally, in regards to Prop 60, I think the social media campaign with the filters on Twitter icons was very powerful. Adult film performers have a huge following and can be a very powerful influence. I am wondering how we can further tap into this channel of communication, especially when it comes to producing sex education content on PornHub. Will adult film actors be involved in the educational videos or at least promote them? What other public health issues could these performers shine a light on? Perhaps mental health surrounding the stigma of being an adult entertainer, or other public policies concerning the rights of these workers.
Thanks again for a great lecture, Eric!
