Your women’s studies prof: Class, do you think pornography enables male entitlement?
You: Well, according to this essay I read by someone who does porn, it doesn’t make a lot of sense to just critique it as a piece of media + not a site + product of highly stigmatized labor. So, yes, it does, but that may largely be beside the point of where and how male violence occurs in relation to pornography.
That lady at your local NOW chapter: It is WRONG for men to purchase sex, therefore we must make it illegal.
You: I agree that capitalist conditions create coercive and abusive situations for those in the sex industry, but carceral solutions don’t address that underlying issue.
Your younger sister: *points at a Maxim magazine cover* Isn’t it wrong that there are all these sexualized pictures of women everywhere?
You: It’s wrong that the male gaze is all-pervasive and our idea of the ideal woman is profoundly racist, sizeist, ableist, and cissexist. It’s also wrong that these images exist within the context of a violent patriarchal culture, but the images themselves are not wrong.
Some rando in your ask box: How do we end the abuse of people in the sex industries?
You: Let me link you to this blog by sex workers advocating for workers’ rights.
Your boyfriend: Why is there so much bad sex in porn?
You: Let me show you this essay on porn by a sex worker.
Your girlfriend: Stripping is exploitative.
You: Let me show you this academic article written by a stripper.
Your aunt: Dominatrices probably think they’re empowered but really–
You: Here’s a thing written by a sex worker.
Your grandpa: Prostitution–
You: Here’s a thing written by a sex worker.
Your cat:
You: Good point, let me read you this issue of Prose & Lore out loud.
You: *signal boosts our words + shows up at rallies + emails legislators + gives orgs like Abeni + Sex Workers Project all your damn money*