XXX: A Woman's Right to Pornography by Wendy McElroy Read Free Book Online Page B

was as much truth in his perspective as there was in mine. Most politicians probably were happy to let pornography exist ... as long as it paid for the privilege.
    Another Young Turk named Shawn Ricks and his protŽgŽ actress, Sydney, joined us. A tal blond woman sat down. And ... The Awards ceremony began. The incredibly square chinned Randy West hosted the event and began by singing, "It shows a lot of class to take it in the ass."
    Or, at least, that was the gist of the lyrics. Unfortunately, whoever mixed the sound must have learned his craft at rock concerts, because the instruments overwhelmed the voices. But the screens provided a perfect view. As the Awards progressed, I ignored the other people at the table and chatted with Greg. A specific event triggered this decision. The blonde and the documentarian had been trading bitchy remarks about the people onstage. Perhaps the insults ZHUHDFFXUDWHRUSHUKDSVWKHWZRZRPHQZHUHFDW \F\QLFV:KLFKHYHU«WKHLUDW LWXGHPDGHPH
    feel ridiculous for enjoying myself and for admiring the "in your face" attitude of the industry.
    The turning point: A flustered young actress burst into tears at receiving an award. When the other women at the table hooted in derision, my back literally bristled. Why shouldn't the woman cry? This was her night to be proud of her work, to be touched by the tribute of her peers. Who knows what abuse she swallowed from the world about how she paid her bills? Listening to the insults fly, I felt as though the casual cruelty of the regular world was sitting across the table from me.
    Anger had a salutary effect. If being sophisticated meant having contempt for other women, then fuck it! I had a second glass of wine and settled back to enjoy myself.
    Not knowing the videos or people up for awards was a barrier to appreciating the event. Instead, I cued in to the flow of the show and to the education I was getting from Greg.
    As to the flow: Part Two of the ceremony focused on the technical and gay awards. This section was remarkable for its brevity. In other sections, the presenter read off the nominees and the winner rushed onstage to accept. In Part Two, only the winners were announced and only the most important gay awards were handed out in person. Since gay porn constitutes a huge chunk of the industry, this short shrift was puzzling.
    I was even more baffled when Chi Chi-perhaps the most famous gay sex performer-capped off the Awards Event with a dazzling production number. On a Caesar-like reclining throne, he/she was carried onto the stage by slave boys, who proceeded to join in the musical number, "Love Doll." The audience couldn't seem to applaud or cheer loudly enough. What was this? I wondered. A schizophrenia about gays ?
    My political sensibilities perked up at two other points. The first: An elegant man stood up to receive a major award and people at table 102 began to mutter. Greg explained that the fellow had worked for only six months last year because he'd had a sex scene with a woman who'd turned out to be HIV positive.
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    Health certificates had become standard practice in the industry; I now wondered if they were as easy to forge as documents proving age.
    The second incident concerned another Young Turk. A black producer named Sean Michaels was passed by for an award. Sydney, the lady on Shawn Ricks's arm, commented wryly that it would be a long time before the AVN presented an award to a black person. The next day, people to whom I mentioned this remark took exception. But they admitted that black men were not common in porn; Asian men were unknown. And they couldn't remember a black man ever winning in any category.
    After this, the mood at table 102 changed. Everyone who'd been nominated, or connected with a nomination, had been passed over. It dawned on me how much these people had wanted to win.
    Now Shawn Ricks began to tell me about his philosophy of pornography. He wanted to be on the cutting edge, to break the rules. As I would do