Source: Adult Industry News
By: Rebecca Bardoux
From Where I Stand: The Yes on B Press Conference, by Rebecca Bardoux
I attended the press conference to launch the campaign “Yes on B” Condoms in Porn. What a huge waste of money. If that many people vote yes in November the industry will be just fine. It was held at the Sheraton Universal Hotel. As the documentation reads. “The Starview Room offers floor-to-ceiling views of the San Fernando Valley, home to Californian’s adult entertainment industry; the room also provides a bird’s eye of Vivid Entertainment on of the largest porn producers and an outspoken opponent of condoms in films.”
This was my first time attending anything like this during my twenty years in the adult industry. I am ashamed to admit that. All the information about the ordinance I had up until today I got from Twitter and people within the industry. Well, today I learned a lot more, and not just about condoms in porn.
Let me start with the ordinance. “County of Los Angeles Safer Sex in the Adult Film Industry.” Michael Weinstein is doing this to protect the performers in the adult industry. After the conference I personally asked him why he was doing this and he said, “Because it needs to be done.” He also said that the adult film industry is sending the wrong message to the world. He told me the message was, “You can’t have hot sex with a condom.” I told Weinstein that I have been in the industry for 20 years and I never heard that message. I asked him if he could direct me to where he saw that message, he could not.
From the questions I asked Weinstein, this is the information I got: He has no knowledge of the porn industry, however is concerned about the safety of the performers. They deserve to be protected just like any other industry. During the press conference we were informed by Weinstein that there would be nine billboards going up and commercial spots. What that means, everyone is going to have to start explaining the porn industry and condoms to their young children. We know they are a curious little bunch. I guess that will be the big topic on the school playground. Poor SpongeBob Square Pants, beaten out by the adult film industry and condoms. Weinstein has concern for the performers in the adult film industry, but not six year old children. At less that is the way I see it.
Getting back to my conversation with him, I drew his attention to how much money was being spent on this campaign, when the money could be used for research, education and treatment of the disease. In the press conference he seemed to have blamed the adult industry for one of the reason so much money is spent on care and treatment. The adult film industry infests them and then AHF has to use their money to help the performer after he is cast out of the industry with nowhere to go. It’s ok to be a crack whore on the street doing illegal drugs and soliciting for sex to get treatment? Quite frankly, how does anyone even know if these infected former performers got the disease on the set? On the documentation that was given to everyone at the press conference, this is how the performers are described. “Former adult performer who became HIV-infected while working in the industry.” They were working in the adult industry yes, but is it proven they got it on a set?
Are these former performers being paid for their involvement in this campaign? There has to be some compensation. Two of the performers I spoke with told me that one of the motivators for getting in the industry was money. When I asked one of the former performers if he used condoms in his personal life he said, “No, not all the time.” In fact during my conversation with him, he made it clear he wanted to be able to make a lot of money, in a very short time. So, he had the freedom to do what he wanted whenever he wanted. If you can have sex for money on film, bet it would be pretty easy to do the same thing without the camera, too. At twenty-two years old, he felt he was entitled to that? Oh, yes the entitlement generation. That topic is for another time.
So, after not getting any clear answers from Weinstein he shook my hand and agreed to disagree, I strongly agreed [to disagree]. Now this is what is bothering me about this whole condom thing. It’s all about protecting the performers in the industry. On the ordinance it says, “The purpose of the measure is intended to minimize the spread of sexually transmitted infections by regulating the adult film industry.” It does not say within the industry or anything about performers.
I’m thinking this has nothing to do with the adult industry, and a lot to do with getting funding from condom companies. I wonder if he knows about the Pink Cross organization. Oh, one last thing is it me or does Michael Weinstein bare a resemblance to Anita Bryant.
