When porn has to move beyond physical degradation.
In our society, women with mental health issues and trauma are frequently sexualized because of the perceived vulnerability and powerlessness that we associate with mental illness(in women). The reality of course is different, which is that mental health problems and trauma are experienced in a multitude of ways.
In pornographyâsimilar to youthâmental illness is sexualized and depicted as something that makes some easier to take advantage of and control. What is even more sinister is that mental illness is also used as something to further mock and degrade women. Think of the mental health issues that our society often associates with womenâeating disorders, panic attacks⌠âdaddy issuesââwhich is a disgusting term to begin with, but the way itâs sexualized is even worse.Â
Below are a couple examples of the sexualized misery seen in porn. Porn is all about encouraging people to get off on the suffering of women.
Look at the way they depict âdaddy issuesâ (stay tuned for rant about that term/concept)
Easier to take advantage of
Not worthy of empathy (duh)
Vulnerable, low self-esteem=great opportunity for men
Needs men to feel worthy (as she should, right?)
Of course there is the added layer of sexualizing incest/abuse/child rape.
Thin/skinny is always better, no matter what the cost to her health is
A lot of homemade anorexic pornâa perfect example of why even homemade porn is terrible. Can you imagine what people do to convince a young woman with anorexia that porn is a good idea?
New level of degradation: call them fat, since of course that will make them feel worse.
Encourage other girls to be anorexic âas a jokeâ
Mental breakdowns/Panic attacks
I have been naive to think that if people actually saw these women getting upset during a shoot, then porn users might have more empathy.
Porn star breakdowns have become a genre of their own
They are categorized as bloopers. Weâre supposed to look at their pain and find it funny
In a decent world, people would see someone having a breakdown, and it would cause them to feel some empathy. The porn industry has just turned it into another aspect of âentertainmentâ
When degrading someone physically isnât enough, this is what the industry turns to. There will never be anything that makes people think that these women are worthy of compassion. In fact, they make it so people will be entertained and even turned on by womenâs misery.
The whole genre is basically saying: look at how miserable these women are. Isnât that funny? Isnât that sexy?
Please tell me more about what a happy and empowering place the porn industry is.