Nina Hartley Layeth The Smack (And The Damn Truth) Down On Antiporn-AntiSexWork Jabronae @ Desiree Alliance 2010 Keynote Speech

I always knew there was a reason people call Nina Hartley "The Goddess of Sex." After watching this speech, they should also call her something else: "Madam Freakin' President." (OK...without the "freakin'" part.)

Last week, Nina gave the keynote address at the annual Desiree Alliance Sex Worker Conference in Las Vegas; discussing everything from the struggle to make her voice heard as a sex worker/pro-porn advocate to a thorough analysis of the forces invieghed against her and her activist sex worker associates.

I could give an analysis of the speech...but since Nina has a way of rendering analysis moot by her own eloquence and passion, I figure that reposting the speech (and the ensuing Q & A) would be more than suitable enough.

The original speech was posted by sawbuckfilms via their YouTube channel yesterday; a sincere thanks to them for giving permesion to repost it here. I have also posted the speech over at my own SmackDog Chronicles blog, too.

Adult entertainment legend/progressive sex educator Nina Hartley giving the keynote address at last week's Sex Worker Conference sponsored by the Desiree Alliance in Las Vegas (via YouTube, h/t to sawbuckfilms)

A Primer on Sex-Positivity (from the World Congress of Sexology)

If there is a better definitive breakdown of what "sex positivity" should mean (and not just the opposite of "sex-negative" either) than this, I've yet to see it.

Excerpted from a larger post by Charlie Glickman that was posted to the Good Vibrations blog today:

Sexuality is an integral part of the personality of every human being. Its
full development depends upon the satisfaction of basic human needs such as the
desire for contact, intimacy, emotional expression, pleasure, tenderness and
love.

Sexuality is constructed through the interaction between the individual
and social structures. Full development of sexuality is essential for
individual, interpersonal, and societal well being.

Sexual rights are universal human rights based on the inherent freedom,
dignity, and equality of all human beings. Since health is a fundamental human
right, so must sexual health be a basic human right.

In order to assure that human beings and societies develop healthy
sexuality, the following sexual rights must be recognized, promoted, respected,
and defended by all societies through all means. Sexual health is the result of
an environment that recognizes, respects and exercises these sexual
rights.


1. The right to sexual freedom. Sexual freedom encompasses the possibility
for individuals to express their full sexual potential. However, this excludes
all forms of sexual coercion, exploitation and abuse at any time and situations
in life.

2. The right to sexual autonomy, sexual integrity, and safety of the sexual
body. This right involves the ability to make autonomous decisions about one’s
sexual life within a context of one’s own personal and social ethics. It also
encompasses control and enjoyment of our own bodies free from torture,
mutilation and violence of any sort.

3. The right to sexual privacy. This involves the right for individual
decisions and behaviors about intimacy as long as they do not intrude on the
sexual rights of others.

4. The right to sexual equity. This refers to freedom from all forms of
discrimination regardless of sex, gender, sexual orientation, age, race, social
class, religion, or physical and emotional disability.

5. The right to sexual pleasure. Sexual pleasure, including autoeroticism,
is a source of physical, psychological, intellectual and spiritual well
being.

6. The right to emotional sexual expression. Sexual expression is more than
erotic pleasure or sexual acts. Individuals have a right to express their
sexuality through communication, touch, emotional expression and love.

7. The right to sexually associate freely. This means the possibility to
marry or not, to divorce, and to establish other types of responsible sexual
associations.

8. The right to make free and responsible reproductive choices. This
encompasses the right to decide whether or not to have children, the number and
spacing of children, and the right to full access to the means of fertility
regulation.

9. The right to sexual information based upon scientific inquiry. This
right implies that sexual information should be generated through the process of
unencumbered and yet scientifically ethical inquiry, and disseminated in
appropriate ways at all societal levels.

10. The right to comprehensive sexuality education. This is a lifelong
process from birth throughout the life cycle and should involve all social
institutions.

11. The right to sexual health care. Sexual health care should be available
for prevention and treatment of all sexual concerns, problems and
disorders.


Sexual Rights are Fundamental and Universal Human
Rights

Adopted in Hong Kong at the 14th World Congress of Sexology, August 26, 1999

Sounds like a pretty damn good political platform, doesn't it??

Enter the SmackDog.....

Many of you here may know me from my SmackDog Chronicles blog, where I have posted profusely on the very same subjects of porn and sex work from pretty much the same position as Renegade's (albeit, more from the angle of a regular consumer and a progressive, Left-of-center defense of sexual speech and expression than from Ren's personal one as an active sex worker and part-time pornographer).

Needless to say, I am greatly honored that Ren has invited me to guest blog on her turf, since aside from some minor differences in approach, we both share common beliefs on the nature of defending consensual sexual expression and sexual media from the slanders and outright lies put forth by those who call themselves antipornographyradicalfeminists (henceforth shortened to the anagram APRF's), as well as attacks from the more traditional Religious Right.

Like Ren, I have had to cross swords numerous times with some of the APRF's luminaries and chief Swift Boaters; and like Ren, I remain quite awed and whelmed by their ability to attack the messenger rather than face the real issues of their ideology and their actions in real life. And yet, their actions have grave consequenses for not only those in the sex industry and sexual media who are fighting for their rights to perform their chosen profession with the maximum of safety, informed consent, and mutual respect; but also the basic and fundamental rights for all decent people.

I make no apologies for my defense of explicit sexual media or of consensual sex work amongst adults; nor am I of any illusions about the complaints of occasional misogyny, racism, classism, ageism, and other criticisms of explicit sex media or sex work that do have legitimate weight and deserve a fair and honest hearing. (For that matter, neither is Ren or any other "pro-sex" or "sex-positive" spokesperson worth his/her salt.) Where I absolutely draw my line in the sand is at attempts to directly or indirectly use the power of the state or other such authoritarian tactics to shame, humiliate, punish, or otherwise denigrate those who use, consume or produce sexual media without harm or malice to others. Whether they be man, woman or transgendered; gay, straight, bi, or poly; fully abled or with disability; vanilla or kinky; whether they go for implants, naturally endowed, or less endowed; whether they rather their personal sex practices alone in a dark room or at a sex club with others....as long as they treat others with the utmost respect and do no harm to others against their stated will, there should be no issue with anyone regarding their chosen profession.

I'll simply let Ren's introductory post on the circumstances that led to the founding of this blog speak for itself, since it says as much as needed to be said. Later on, I'll add a few stories of my own clashes with the lunacy known as NoPornNorthhampton, as well as several rumbles that I have had with other APRF activists. For a nice summary of that particular organization, a visit to the countersite MoPornNorthampton should be a must for any sexual liberationist or libertarian to be.

All right....enough from me for now. Since this is Ren's baby, so to speak, I'll let her take the lead back. More from me, anon.

Errrrrr....out. (It's a (Jim) Rome thang....only real Clones understand....heheh :-) )

Anthony