Shelley Lubben writes me-
Attention Porn Performers:
On June 29 at the first Cal Osha advisory meeting your health and safety will be the main issue. Many of you KNOW your health is at great risk and would probably love to speak out but may prefer to remain anonymous. I understand. I am willing to risk and speak out for you.
If ANY of you want to come to me privately and share your concerns or issues please feel free to contact me at info@thepinkcross.org Your information will remain totally confidential. I think many of you know me by now. You may not agree with my religious beliefs. You may not like my views on pornography. But those are irrelevant at the Cal Osha meetings. The issue is simply safety in the workplace and YOUR HEALTH.
Many of you are not aware that mulitiple STDs may lead to cancer. I contracted HPV and Herpes in the porn industry and later battled cervical cancer. I had half of my cervix removed and could not have anymore children. I also lived many years hemorrhaging and had a two year bout with Anemia. Anemia means “without blood” and will make you extremely weak and have heart palpitations where you feel like you are going to have a heart attack.
I am no stranger to consequences for my past. This is why I am so compassionate and passionate about YOUR HEALTH.
Your agent doesn’t care about your health. Your employer doesn’t care about your health.
But I do. Even if you don’t believe in me, many of you know I have been diligent in coming to porn conventions with information to educate you on STDs, your rights as an employee, and your health. I don’t just pass out Bibles!
I am preparing to speak on June 29 on your behalf so I hope we can find common ground and you will come to me or at least speak out and let’s talk about the workplace issues before then.
Blessings,
Shelley Lubben, former porn actress and founder of Pink Cross Foundation
www.thepinkcross.org
Hey Shelley,
I just want to say I appreciate your concern for our health. I don’t agree with your blaming porn for all the problems you’ve had in your life, but at least you’re not a piece of shit like “Joe Know” who constantly insults us “whores”. You’re also not obscenely arrogant like Bill Margold, who also, like Joe, likes to insult performers while trying to raise money for himself pretending to he here to help us. I would certainly advocate you before him for any performer who needs any kind of help.
Condoms are no guarantee of “safety”, and also against the personal preference of most performers and consumers. Also if performers are going to wear condoms then that should include during oral sex, but at that point you’ve effectively shut the industry down, which is probably what you want, anyway.
The safest thing is abstinence but videos of abstinence don’t sell.
I think a lot more research needs to be done in regards to the connection of disease with drug use. There is a lot of controversy which is ignored or repressed because sickness, not health is big business, which is why western medicine is aimed at treating symptoms and not getting to root causes of disease.
As far as holding porn companies responsible for our testing and/or treatment, I have not argued either for or against that argument. I’ve only asked questions in regards to it’s viability.
I think it’s best for all of us to continue conversations leading up to the OSHA date. Joe Know can go fuck himself and I am of the opinion that there are no stupid questions because all questions lead to a better understanding, no matter how dumb or misguided.
Thanks and God Bless.
‘Condoms are no guarantee of safety”
TRUE
NO CONDOMS are a guarantee of exposure if the person youre working with in infected.(exposure, not necessarily infection.)
Jeryy logic,,,,Condoms arent 100% safe so dont use them at all.
Notice how many times Jerry has said condoms dont equal safety, but he always forgets to mention that NO CONDOMS are expotentially more dangerous. Jerry seems to have a selective memory about this kind of stuff.
Shelley, do yourself a favor and read the threads here where Jerry and I debate this issue. He has made some comments there that will be very helpful to you..(the JUSTIN LONG thread,,,,,and the Blood donation thread) Jerry talks very truthfull about perfromers going to other clinics besides AIM to take care fo their std’s and several of=ther veryhelpful statements.
These guys also talk about the “Mandatory’ testing.
“No test NO work”
I guess they dont know that pre employment HIV testing is ILLEGAL. And the waiver is ILLEGAL.
Best wishes Shelley, these guys are making it very easy for you….take advantage of it.
What’s wrong with you Joe? Stop typing my name “Jeryy”, and take your medication.
Having any kind of sex, with condom or without, is expedentially more dangerous than not having sex. So, logically “Joee”, we shouldn’t shoot porn at all.
“No test, no work” is illegal. What do you propose, that we don’t test before working?
I’m just asking and try not to insult me again, you obnoxious cunt (because that’s only going to make you less likely to appreciate meeting me in person, as you say you are hoping to) but please explain again to us dumb whores why a contract we sign is “illegal”.
I once signed something for the Playboy channel which used the word “exploitation” and “throughout the universe”. I was kind of amused about it and asked if they were planning to sell images of me to Mars or in another galaxy, and it caused them to give me a different contract to fill out.
THe contract is illegal becuase the terms of the contract require a violation of the law. YOU cannot agree to violate the law. An employer cannot make any contract that requires the employer to waive his legal rights.
DOnt tell me you dont know this. I know youre not really that stupid Jerry.
Jerry, there is a guy named Michael Fattosori, who is know as Pornlaw…..check with him regarding all these legal issues we are discussing here. I guarantee he will back up everyhting I have said here.
ANd your Jerry logic fails miserably again.
As far as testing goes, the state of NEvada solved this problem decades ago to make their sex industry safer. As the law stands now, porn companies are in violation of the law. What needs to happen is for the law to be changed. I would fully support changing the law to ‘require’ testing.
But I bet the industry would fight any law to make testing mandatory, because the employers would have to pay for it. You still dont get it Jerry,,,,follow the money. Health related companies are required to pay for Hepatitis vaccinations, and some jobs require tuberulosis screenigs and drug tests,,all paid for by t the EMPLOYER…….THe producers will fight ANYTHING that requires them to pay for any of this.
Dont you get it Jerry. THey count on people like you to parrot their silly, illlegal arguments against making THEM resposible for their own workplaces.
Do you think producers would be ok with having to pay for testing if it were mandatory? Of course they wouldnt. That is why they developed this phony ‘mandatory’ testing. Sharon Mitchell testified before a state committee that the system is ,,,”Completely voluntary” Read the AIM website, it says it right there.
Do you think the companies keep these medical record in compliance with HIPPA regulations.
If you had been at the last hearing you would have heard this issue discussed for about 45 minutes of the meeting. This issue has been settled.. You will also notice that nobody, not AVN, or XBIZ reported anything about this part of the meeting. Why dont you ask Mark Kernes about this. He was there, but he didnt write anything about this. The ‘contactor’,’employer’ issue was settled too. How do you feel about your own industry news organizations neglecting to report this…..But thats the plan, keep them as uninformed as possible. ANd by debating this with you for the last few days it sure looks like they are doing one hell of a job.
And NOBODY ever said condoms guarantee safety. They mitigate the risk. Your continued use of the same argument that they dont ‘guarentee’ safety, and should therefore be excluded is ridiculous.
Jerry, virually every single one of your petty little attempts at justifying the lack of helth and sagety in the pron idustry was already discussed at OSHA, and industry meetings….And they have ALL been dismissed. Do yourself a favor and talk to “Pornlaw” and if he’s not available go talk to Sharon Mitchell or Brooke at AIM(there door is always open)…..Stop making yourself and the industry look stupid. SHow Brooke the crap you say here about who should be responsible. ANd let her know that your statement s have been forwarded to Deborah Gold….THen run,,,very fast,,,becuase I have a feeling she will want to kick your ass.
Tell yuwhat Jerry, I’ll sent this to Sharon Mitchell and Brooke for you.
condoms mitigate? that’s great, but no one wants to see a mitigated cock going inside a warm and willing vagina. mitigate my middle finger
Jeremy, i forgot what thread it was, but you mentioned that you have to move. what part of l.a. do you live in. give cross roads if you can. thanks
why do you need to know where i’m living now pornfan? i’m in hollywood near sunset/gower studios
jeremy, i’m just kinda interested thats all. i’ve to been to l.a., just wanted to know the area. don’t worry i’m not gonna come and getcha!
That’s alright come on by. I’m having a “getting rid of all my shit” sale. (well a lot of it, at least)
Joe, there might be something to your condom argument but you have to sell it if you really have the performers’ best interests at heart. Despite your belief that a pornographer has the protection of the 1st Amendment–I sense you are ethically at odds with the sex industry and your antagonism makes your argument look like a Trojan horse. If you believe that porn does have a legal place in the US, its only through pragmatic negotation that a truly equitable solution could be achieved. So my first question to you, Joe, is do you believe in negotiating with portions of the adult industry?
I know what you are going to say “you got to be kidding me, there are already statutes and codes on the books that the adult industry violates! I’m simply arguing for their enforcement!” Well, joe, there is more to public policy than statutes and regulations. A policy of enforcement is also an integral part and in it porn has always been in a gray area especially it comes to issues of employment and obscenity. I know you would put up case law to prove that all adult companies have a certain work classification–but you are not an attorney and a judge Joe and putting up a bunch of case rulings is not enough to make a universal legal distinction.
You DO make a good point–the status quo means that performers pay a high price with their bodies for little pay. Without any system of quarantine, such performers go on become public health risks. You are also right about the ineffectiveness of AIM and the callous behavior of porn producers. Altogher, you are right about the need for a truly independment regulatory regime.
I believe that the porn industry can still exist on a condom-only basis. Profits would be lower but profits are sinking currently. Maybe stablization would occur as a mandate would monolopize the industry structure (possibly resulting in economies of scale). In search of higher profits some producers may seek to go abroad to Europe or South America but demand would always be greatest for perfomers that speak English–as North America is porn’s biggest market.
I believe that a condom-only mandate makes porn producers and consumers quite nervous for it threathens to obileterate the niche and fetish market. Do you have any proposals that would mitigate such concerns?
Origen,
Well said. As I have written here numersous times befroe, YES there is a compromise. Basicaly, it is increased testing, and treatment for disease, paid for by the EMPLOYERS. As I have also stated befroe, I beleive this will be the eventual outcome of the OSHA hearings.
But the producers are going to fight ANYTHING that requires them to pay for any of the health and safety measures.
Alos, ef=nforcing the laws that require Worker Comp insurance should somone be unfortuante enough to catch HIV…As you well know, the industry(employers) have a well documented track record of doing absolutely nothing for emplyees who have cuaght deadly diseases in their workplace.
VIVID withdrew their variance application becuase in exchange for being granted their ‘no-condom’ request, they would have to pay for testing and treatment. WHen this is what OSHA told them they would have to do, the withdrew their request.
How long before Shelley uses the Tom Long murder to push her agenda. In that video showing people who have died “cause” of porn she showed many people who died of natural causes and accidents.
Well Larry, the simple truth is that there are more mentally unstable people in porn than in any other civilian industry in America.
Hey Joe,
Would increased testing alone be enough to mitigate health concerns? Wouldn’t such a regime have to include performer quotas in order to be truly effective? (i.e. Julie must only perform X scenes per month followed by a quarantine period)
Kudos to you for being pragmatic. Its a lot better than throwing talk of a condom-only mandate around (which scares people).