Anti-Porn Activists Want to Decide for Everyone Else

The following letter was published today in the Hampshire Daily Gazette. The author argues against Feminist Action Mobilization and NoPornNorthampton, in favor of personal choice. The letter is reprinted in its entirely by permission from the author.

To the Editor:

The town's Puritans are at it again, protesting the proposed Capital Video location in Northampton, using tired old arguments created out of whole cloth by the Christian Right, and without irony. The outlandish claim that adult films contribute to sexual violence has been refuted time and again by mainstream clinical psychiatry. Further, they demonstrate a fundamental misunderstanding of the role of women in the adult film industry. In fact, women are often paid more than and have a far longer "shelf life" than their male counterparts.

In a world where most sexual predators are not at Amazing Video but in the nuclear family, it is misleading to assingn blame for sexual violence on the adult entertainment industry.

But ultimately this is all beside the point. Any thinking person has trouble figuring out what is best for themselves in an increasingly complex and nuanced world. Every non-thinking person has no problem deciding what's best for everyone else. It seems clear what type of people these anti-sex activists are.

Nicholas Pell
Northampton