I wrote this for the Weather Vane this week because I care about it. You should read it and think about it and then do something about it.
I am a woman. And I am objectified.
This week I and several other EMU students attended a presentation at JMU about pornography and its impact on modern-day American culture, entitled “Pornography’s Perfect Storm of Inequality: Patriarchy, White Supremacy, and Capitalism.” The speaker was Dr. Robert Jensen, a visiting professor from the University of Texas at Austin. Dr. Jensen’s arguments encompassed the growth of the porn industry, the reasons for its success, and its incredible capacity to dehumanize and objectify human beings.
Dr. Jensen challenged the audience with the truth. He spoke to us about life in the “post-Playboy world,” and the need to form a life of integrity and meaning in a culture where sex is marketed and sold like any other commodity. However, sex itself is not the problem; the problem is that we regularly “buy, sell, and rent objectified women’s bodies for sexual pleasure.”
“Pornography is not just sex on film,” said Dr. Jensen. “It’s sex presented in the context of domination and subordination...and the sex in pornography is made sexy by that domination and subordination.”
This attitude of domination and subordination does not extend only to women who are directly involved in the production of porn. The prevalence of pornography is large enough that its assumptions, stereotypes, and attitudes extend throughout our entire society. Because of this, it is not just a few who are impacted. We are all influenced by the effects of pornography, whether directly or indirectly.
Pornography has normalized an appalling level of violence and disrespect against women in the context of sexuality. The voices who dare to speak out against pornography risk being written off as too uptight, judgmental, or sexually repressed. The voices of women and children suffering from the sex trade industry are drowned out by the voices of profit and sexual liberation. But in the words of Dr. Jensen, we must “recognize what we’ve done in the name of liberation.”
I am blessed with a privileged life and the freedom to make my own choices. However, I cannot feel liberated or even fully respected when other women are suffering. When I see any instance of objectification and degradation toward other women, the impact of this objectification extends to me. I am not yet so distant from my fellow human beings that I do not feel any part of their suffering. We must stand in solidarity with our sisters and mothers and daughters – even the ones we have never met.
In my mind, I have a vision of a world where everyone is equal and free. I want to see people who are not afraid to stand up against sexism in the media, against objectification of women, and against valuing us for our bodies alone. The issues of pornography and sexual violence are often still viewed as uncomfortable or forbidden topics, but I believe the longer we stay silent, the more we condone the oppression of ourselves and our fellow human beings.
I challenge you, myself, and our broader community as a whole to speak up. We must not allow fear or complacency to silence us any longer.
This week I and several other EMU students attended a presentation at JMU about pornography and its impact on modern-day American culture, entitled “Pornography’s Perfect Storm of Inequality: Patriarchy, White Supremacy, and Capitalism.” The speaker was Dr. Robert Jensen, a visiting professor from the University of Texas at Austin. Dr. Jensen’s arguments encompassed the growth of the porn industry, the reasons for its success, and its incredible capacity to dehumanize and objectify human beings.
Dr. Jensen challenged the audience with the truth. He spoke to us about life in the “post-Playboy world,” and the need to form a life of integrity and meaning in a culture where sex is marketed and sold like any other commodity. However, sex itself is not the problem; the problem is that we regularly “buy, sell, and rent objectified women’s bodies for sexual pleasure.”
“Pornography is not just sex on film,” said Dr. Jensen. “It’s sex presented in the context of domination and subordination...and the sex in pornography is made sexy by that domination and subordination.”
This attitude of domination and subordination does not extend only to women who are directly involved in the production of porn. The prevalence of pornography is large enough that its assumptions, stereotypes, and attitudes extend throughout our entire society. Because of this, it is not just a few who are impacted. We are all influenced by the effects of pornography, whether directly or indirectly.
Pornography has normalized an appalling level of violence and disrespect against women in the context of sexuality. The voices who dare to speak out against pornography risk being written off as too uptight, judgmental, or sexually repressed. The voices of women and children suffering from the sex trade industry are drowned out by the voices of profit and sexual liberation. But in the words of Dr. Jensen, we must “recognize what we’ve done in the name of liberation.”
I am blessed with a privileged life and the freedom to make my own choices. However, I cannot feel liberated or even fully respected when other women are suffering. When I see any instance of objectification and degradation toward other women, the impact of this objectification extends to me. I am not yet so distant from my fellow human beings that I do not feel any part of their suffering. We must stand in solidarity with our sisters and mothers and daughters – even the ones we have never met.
In my mind, I have a vision of a world where everyone is equal and free. I want to see people who are not afraid to stand up against sexism in the media, against objectification of women, and against valuing us for our bodies alone. The issues of pornography and sexual violence are often still viewed as uncomfortable or forbidden topics, but I believe the longer we stay silent, the more we condone the oppression of ourselves and our fellow human beings.
I challenge you, myself, and our broader community as a whole to speak up. We must not allow fear or complacency to silence us any longer.
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