It’s time to start protecting our First Amendment rights
again. The FBI has recently decided to create an anti-obscenity
squad, not meant to focus on child pornography, but rather on your
everyday Jenna Jameson type of deal.
Let’s see if we can think of a few reasons why the FBI
should not be spending money and resources on this endeavor. Oh, I
don’t know … maybe considerations like terrorists, national
security, child pornography and civil rights violations.
The list of real ailments that this bureau could be fixing is
endless. Instead, Congress has decided to fund this initiative and
has required that 10 FBI agents must be devoted to the task.
This must be winning the government, and especially U.S.
Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, some points from the Christian
right.
The idea is just ridiculous. In order to gain as many
prosecutions as possible, the FBI will be targeting
“kinkier” acts that juries are known to prosecute
harshly against, such as defecation, urination and
sado-masochism.
While some of you are probably making faces and thinking,
“Who would want to defecate (or some less technical word) on
someone anyway?” it is important to remember everyone’s
tastes are different. People develop fetishes.
Maybe they’re the result of our sexually repressed
culture, or maybe there are just some things people naturally do.
Whatever it is, as long as it isn’t forced and doesn’t
wrongfully hurt someone, it should be respected.
Furthermore, while the FBI is currently targeting the
“kinkier” stuff, who knows what is going to happen if
this gets out of hand.
There are couples and groups that enjoy videotaping themselves
and taking erotic pictures of each other. Maybe they include some
handcuffs and fake blood for some extra spice.
Nobody is hurt, nobody is forced, and it is all in good fun.
And yet suddenly these people could be at risk for being
prosecuted for obscenity? The FBI squad will probably target major
distributors of porn first, but who knows where they will stop?
The Suicide Girls Web site has already removed any pictures
containing fake blood as well as any that could be construed as
sadistic and masochistic .
They haven’t even received something formally asking them
to; they just don’t want trouble.
Mind you, the conservative Christian groups that have been
pressuring the Justice Department to crack down on porn have a
point. They claim that porn is harmful, addictive and victimizes
women.
Admittedly, some porn is sexist and the porn industry is riddled
with sexual abuse and assault. Yes, you can get addicted to porn.
Yes, porn can be damaging.
But then so can high fructose corn syrup, artificial sweeteners,
cigarettes, binge drinking and so on.
While pornography can be a healthy and sexually enhancing
experience, I haven’t heard of any positive side effects of
smoking. And yet I don’t see the FBI targeting any of these
products.
Why? My guess is it wouldn’t increase their favor with the
voting conservative Christian community. Oh, and sex is bad (except
for the heterosexual, marital, missionary-style kind).
Pornography and the porn industry have problems ““ many of
them ““ but it simply isn’t the FBI’s job to
regulate adult pornography. The FBI has more important things to
do.
Pornography is a complicated topic and we need more open
discussion on it. We need to clearly differentiate between
consensual pornography and the obvious evils of forced or child
pornography. We need to do further research about the effects of
porn and educate people about its dangers.
What we don’t need is an FBI squad that is simply looking
to prosecute.
Yes, there are laws against obscenity. There are federal
obscenity statutes. Most states have anti-obscenity legislation.
And then there’s the 1972 U.S. Supreme Court case, Miller v.
California. This set up a precedent that obscenity is not protected
under First Amendment rights, because states have the right to be
concerned and porn has no social value.
But the guidelines for what is obscene are vague, and the
government has not prosecuted this type of obscenity in over ten
years, not since the Reagan administration. I don’t see any
reason why they should start again now .
The FBI needs to concentrate its resources on homeland security
and other obvious national dangers. This pornography issue needs
debate and open discussion and is, compared to terrorism and other
forms of violent crime, simply not that big a deal.
If you believe in your right to look at naked people, e-mail
Lara at lloewenstein@media.ucla.edu. General comments can be sent
to viewpoint@media.ucla.edu