“Porn: Exposed!” discussed several prevalent issues concerning porn and sex, including sexual wellness. The event held last Friday at Dina’s Place considered problems in the porn industry, sexual violence, and the importance of destigmatizing these issues.
Sexual wellness was a major focus of the event. STDs and STIs are heavily prevalent among college students and in the state of South Carolina. South Carolina ranks number four for cases of chlamydia and gonorrhea. There are also 19,000 cases of HIV and AIDS throughout the state.
There are many resources in the community to help with these issues. Aside from Health and Counseling Services, located on campus in the Crawford Building, there are several free clinics available in Rock Hill for rapid sexually transmitted diseases and infections, as well as pregnancy testing.
“With any STD or STI, you can treat it, and the most important thing is to talk with your partner about what’s going on if it’s safe to do so and give them a heads up,” said Lee Bradford, an employee at Affinity Community Health in Rock Hill.
Quest Morris, organizer and moderator of the event, said it is important to remember that “when it comes to STDs and STIs, they don’t make you a dirty or bad person. It is not a stigma and you should be open with it.”
The event also focused on problems in the porn industry, such as negative racial stereotypes and objectification of women among others.
The porn industry often perpetuates stereotypes such as African-American men being aggressive and Asian women being feminine and small. It also ignores aspects of sexual health such as frequent testing for transmitted diseases.
The industry is also known to objectify women. Many plotlines in porn focus on the women in a submissive role who are forced to mold themselves to fit the image that the man wants to see them as.
During the presentation, research was presented that showed consumption of porn and exposure to filmed sexual violence encourages sexist attitudes and makes people, as a whole, less empathetic for victims of sexual assault and rape.
Part of the presentation focused on resources at Winthrop that are available to victims of sexual and domestic violence. The Office of Victims Assistance offers health services and counseling. They can also provide students with support at court hearings and in their academics.
Victims Assistance can also help students report an incident.
“Students have the power to report the incident without having to file a proper police report,” Victims Assistance Coordinator Itali Jackson said. “We just want students to have the resources that they need and to be able to get help.”
Students can file a Title IX report with the student affairs office.
“If a student files a Title IX report, they can let the university know what happened,” said Miranda Knight, assistant dean of students.
“Maybe they just want resources. The student can then decide which route they want be it resources, police report, or Title IX proceedings if the offender is another student at the university.”
Winthrop students agree that it is important to talk about prevalent sexual issues like the ones mentioned above to reduce the stigma around them.
“This is important because so many people come to college feeling inadequate with their experiences and knowing that you are not wrong for what you have experienced is a big part of growing up,” said freshman English education major, Emmalynne Eshelman.
“Porn: Exposed!” aimed to break the stigma and be open about sex and the issues that come with it and highlight the resources students need without judgment.
