The observer | Wednesday, November 14, 2018 | ndsmcobserver.com
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Feminism and sex work: why a porn filter defeats the point Jackie O’Brien Domer Debates
I initially chose not to respond to SCOP’s and the men of Notre Dame’s letter arguing for a porn filter on Notre Dame’s campus. Joshua de Oliveira’s letter so eloquently laid out the arguments against a porn filter, and pointed out many of the flaws in the men of Notre Dame’s reasoning. There is one additional factor to consider, however, when examining the arguments and proposition made by the “men of Notre Dame.” Their patronizing language of standing up for the “dignity of all people, especially women,” may come from be positively motivated, but it degrades women who choose to participate in sex work. While it is true that there is rampant sexual slavery throughout the world, and undoubtedly some of it filters into pornographic sources that Americans have access to, there are many other women who choose to enter sex work. These women made a choice based on free will to participate in pornography and can be empowered through their line of work. Safe, consensual sex-based work is a profession that is both stigmatized and consistently undermined by arguments like those made by the men of Notre Dame. Every single person in the world can agree that human trafficking is inherently evil and must be stopped. Every single person can agree that the distribution of child pornography is disgusting and vile. Every single person can agree that all persons deserve fundamental, basic protections no matter what line of work they are in. But not everyone agrees that sex workers are people
with dignity, self-respect and deserving of the same compassion that everyone else is. Many people, like the men of Notre Dame, who call pornography a “massive violation of human dignity,” assert themselves as the superior authority on morality. They fail to recognize the autonomy of female sex workers, and thus women in general. Pornography and sex work is a challenging issue to understand, and I do not believe that the men and women of Notre Dame have given it enough consideration. We must do all we can to protect those who have been victims of sex trafficking, but in the same light, we must do all we can to protect sex workers. The profession is not going away, and especially not because of a porn filter on our University’s WiFi. Sex workers are people too. The federal authorities shut down Backpage last year, a site which facilitates sex work. While it was shut down to protect those who are victims of human trafficking, it has unfortunately also shut down the main line that sex workers used to vet their clients for safety. “It’s forcing me to go back the streets, walking up and down trying to find clients.” — Melissa, 32, Phoenix, escort “People are panicking. Indoor workers are going out on the street. Some of them are disappearing.” — Dii, 26, Colorado, full-service provider “We’re trying to figure out how many of us are literally dying because of this law that’s supposedly trying to keep us safe.” — Colette, 36, San Francisco and Los Angeles, dominatrix These are the important nuances that must be taken into account when considering the issue of pornography and sex work. Shutting down sites like Backpage has put many consenting sex workers in danger. While
the federal government clearly did the right thing in putting an end to ads that market underage women and promote sex trafficking, we must also consider what this does for people who choose to make sex work their profession. This problem extends far beyond issues of access to pornography or sex work itself. It is also vitally important to consider people who have entered sex work because they feel they have no other options. It begs the question of why there are members of our society who see no opportunities for themselves except to participate in sex work. I understand that I have not solved, nor prevented a problem by writing this column. However, I am certain that a porn filter is not the solution to this problem. Instead, it promotes a simplistic and undignified understanding of sex workers. Rather, I think it would be beneficial for the students of this University to take part in a conversation of what human dignity truly is, and if it really does mean dignity for all people. To promote a new understanding of women who participate consensual in sex work. We must put our minds together to consider the ways in which we can protect all people: those who are trafficked and have been victims of evil, those who feel that they have no other option but to be a sex worker, as well as those who consensually take part in sex work. Sex workers’ rights are human rights. Jackie is a junior at Notre Dame majoring in political science and peace studies. Originally from the Chicago suburbs, in her free time she can be found discussing politics or the personal merits of Harrison Ford. All questions can be directed to: jobrie21@nd.edu The views expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.
New petition to ban porn on campus Andrew Rebholz Sort of Glass
I’ll never forget walking in on my roommate freshman year. For some reason, he’d plugged his computer into the TV and was watching it on the big screen, hungry eyes glued to the flashing pictures in front of him, so that I had a full view of the video as I walked into the space. Yes, there was this degraded remnant of a gentleman, fully engrossed in an episode of Guy Fieri’s “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives.” My good friend sat salivating, drool dripping briskly as with bated breath his brain devoured these salacious images of some southeastern brisket. Clearly, food pornography has become a serious issue on this campus, putting the very souls of our students in jeopardy. Gluttony, indulgence and that mind-numbing lust for macaroni pizza, Oreo cupcakes and gallon-sized milkshakes have rattled the Notre Dame psyche, and very few (if any) Catholics have taken this into proper consideration. As WRAP week wrapped up, I had the chance to talk with plenty of people involved with Campus Ministry and the Knights of Columbus here on campus, and not one of them would even entertain that this debilitating disease exists. And so the infection spreads, and festers. Late-night Taco Bell has become more than a merely tolerated
practice in men’s residence halls — at this point, such indulgences are commonplace and have the full support of most hall staff, along with after-hour orders to Jimmy John’s and Domino’s. Not to mention Insomnia Cookies, the most diabolical invention of man since South’s biweekly burger night. Is it really unknown that modern man is most vulnerable to these temptations at night, after the draining toils of a long day? Our reliance on such snacks has even permeated our spirituality in ways many students now find integral and utterly acceptable, twisting the sacred into a tooth-dissolving sweetener. Don’t believe me? Then I’ll see you at Milkshake Mass this Thursday. In our modern culture, there’s a notion that this is natural for men, that men have no choice and do this by some instinct that somehow justifies such slovenly behavior. I’m here to say no, that’s not who men were made to be and I’m not alone. Tens of hundreds of men, from Carroll to Dunne, are starting to see how destructive food porn really is, how it relegates meals to a purely aesthetic act of pleasure and how every taste starts to lose its flavor to the absurd fantasies of a perverted imagination. We’re passing around a petition to filter out food porn on the campus WiFi, doing our part to save students from their most base desires. As a Catholic institution, it is our responsibility to reject the companies who want to promote immorality. It is our belief that whether ribs, pork shoulder or a burger the size of one’s head, a meal is more than just
meat. There are levels of community built into a proper feast that are lacking if we degrade our meals in such a way, if we try and limit our dietary interactions to simple sensation. We here at Notre Dame fully believe that there is something special to our meals that makes them more than something we carelessly consume; meals have a plethora of intricacies and delicious surprises that make them more delicacy than fast-food, that deserve to be delighted in and listened to and to neglect all of these characteristics, for only the unhealthy is bad for both meal and man. Such immediate gratuity misses the actually lasting positives that meals are truly worth, and we believe that men do themselves and this world a disservice by ignoring such inherent value. Respect and decency, truly, are what separate us from the animals and love is the foundation of both. So get a meal with friends, and put some veggies on your plate. Next time you think of turning to your phone or computer for the tantalizing images of a Bailey’s ice cream cheesecake, or some massive plate of nachos drenched in spicy cheese, take a step back and remember not to preemptively ruin the real joy a meal brings to the table. Andrew is not sarcastic. Coy to a fault, he enjoys talking without being heard. He can be reached at arebholz@nd.edu The views expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.
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