New HIV case in the industry

Yesterday morning, a porn performer in the valley tested positive for HIV. As a result, two of the major studios, Vivid and Wicked, have shut down temporarily.

This is going to be a quick and dirty update-- I wanted to post something about this but don't have the time to subject myself to the usual three day agonizing I do before I share anything I ever write. There are some really interesting conversations happening on Twitter right now between people in the industry, and I want to highlight a few of them before they are overtaken by the ever-churning Twittercourse. (Like discourse... but on Twitter. Get it?) Okay, I did say this would be quick and dirty!

Within 24 hours of news of an HIV case in the industry, the homophobia and transphobia comes right out. Luke Ford encourages performers to put "any male OR female who has had sexual relations with a gay (or bisexual) male performer, and any male or female talent who has had sexual relations with a tranny" on their 'No' list (a list of performers they will not work with).

A few recent tweets that reflect the same idea:

@MiaAdultTalent @DukeSkywalker I agree tho I wouldn't shoot a gay guy for straight sex statistically gay males are more prone

@misskyleereese @ARosanoXXX its true pick a fucking side. If u Fuck dudes Fuck dudes stay out of pussys


Across several tweets, @Nica_Noelle had this to say:

I see nothing wrong with the porn community posting/tweeting our concern, panic and outrage over the latest HIV scare/situation. The fact that our group is so relatively small means that when an active performer becomes infected, we should all be worried. Spreading rumors is different than showing a reaction or concern. Mainstream media likes to depict us as oblivious fools who pay no notice. I think the fact that we all react with such alarm and spring into action proves most of us are a responsible, caring group of people. I hope nobody chooses to lash out at gay or bisexual performers as a way to animate their fear. I won't support anyone who goes that route.

More generally, a conversation about porn performers having sex with "civilians" (those outside the industry, who therefore are outside the scope of monthly AIM testing):

@VivalaDommyB @KatieSummersXXX @MiaAdultTalent you don't know what performers are fucking civilians off camera. That is the problem right there #justsaying

@KatieSummersXXX @VivalaDommyB @miaadulttalent I rarely fuck civilians but if I do I make sure there are condoms fuck that im not putting myself or co worker in that position!!

@MissBrittanyXXX @MiaAdultTalent I Produce mainstream films and the most imp thing is safety of actors. Its sad in porn the exploitation of womens health.

@MiaAdultTalent@MissBrittanyXXX I also produce for our new sites and I agree but at the end of the day condoms do and can hurt sales.

@MiaAdultTalent @MissBrittanyXXX BUT I agree I think it should totally be up to performers as it is on our sets

@MissBrittanyXXX @MiaAdultTalent and its sad to here another woman use money as a justification to put other womens lives in danger. SAD!!!

@MiaAdultTalent @MissBrittanyXXX I agree it is sad


Dylan Ryan is a fellow grad student in the industry who I had the fortune to meet on set last year. She had this to say, and then got into a short dialogue with Sinnamon Love:

@thedylanryan Folks! Before we immediately engage in Twitter hysteria about the positive test result, let's consider the person who got it, shall we? #calm

@thedylanryan Is the language of quarantine really necessary? It's HIV, not the bubonic plague. Geez.

@thedylanryan Exactly. RT @pariskennedy: @thedylanryan I know, I hate that word. It's not a fucking zombie apocalypse!

@thedylanryan You know what's awesome? Reinforcing HIV stigma and perpetuating stereotypes about our own/our industry through how we talk about this.

@SinnamonLove @thedylanryan I think it is... because that's what it is. Its a "quarantined" list of people that are unable to work.

@thedylanryan @SinnamonLove Instead: reserved, held, kept. They need not be isolated/secluded. It's not contagious or infectious necessitating quarantine.

@SinnamonLove @thedylanryan But in the context of unprotected sexual intercourse, it is contagious. And since most of the business is non-condom...


Clearly there's a lot more to say about this. I posted some of my thoughts quite a while ago about condoms in porn, but I still have quite a few reservations about this idea of mandating condom use in straight porn. Right now I just want to put this out there and leave you with a question; not whether or not condoms should be used in straight porn, but- who should get to decide?