Louise Perry | |
---|---|
Occupation | Journalist, Podcast host |
Language | English |
Nationality | British |
Education | SOAS |
Children | 2 |
Website | |
www |
Louise Perry is a British journalist, author and podcast host. She is a features writer for the Daily Mail and a columnist at the New Statesman . [1] [2] [3]
Perry co-runs the charity We Can't Consent To This which campaigns around problems with the rough sex murder defence. [4] She is the co-founder and research director of The Other Half, a non-partisan feminist think tank which was founded in 2022. [1] She is the host of the podcast Maiden Mother Matriarch.
Perry graduated from University of London's SOAS with a bachelors degree in anthropology, reported to have included women's studies. [5] [6] [7] At this time, she is said to have conformed with the views of her peers, that "porn is great, BDSM is fun, sex work is work." [6] However, her views changed after college, as she worked for several years in a rape crisis centre. [8] [9]
This "harrowing" experience became the starting point of her first book The Case Against the Sexual Revolution through Polity Press. [10] Published in 2022, the book became a bestseller in the UK. [11] It argues for the recognition of innate difference between men and women, rather than being socialised differences; a view that The Atlantic described as "heretical." [12] The religious journal America said it "decimates any case for the sexual revolution." [13] The Guardian reviewed the work "daring and important" as:
"In this cultural moment, The Case Against the Sexual Revolution could hardly be more radical. It is an act of insurrection, its seditiousness born not only of the pieties it is determined to explode, but of the fact that it is also diligently researched and written in plain English." [14]
In February of that year, Perry joined a debate at the Oxford Union, where she argued against the proposition "We Should Welcome the New Era of Porn." [15] She drew on evidence indicating the high suicide rates of actors in the adult entertainment industry, that the idea of consent for such young actors was problematic and implored her audience to abandon the use of online pornography as damaging. [15] [16] [17] Perry wrote an essay for the October 2023 issue of First Things on abortion and infanticide in ancient Rome. [18] [19] The article was discussed in National Review , and described Perry as making a non-Christian argument in favour of Christian ethics. It quotes Perry's saying:
When pro-life and pro-choice advocates fight about the nitty-gritty of abortion policy, what they are really fighting about is whether our society ought to remain Christian. Most people who describe themselves as pro-choice have not really thought about what truly abandoning Christianity would mean—that is, truly abandoning Christians’ historically bizarre insistence that “God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong.” [19]
On 13 September 2023, Perry and Anna Khachiyan, the co-host of the Red Scare podcast, debated Grimes and Sarah Haider in what was called "a clash of the female titans". The debate was held at The Theatre at Ace Hotel and was moderated by Bari Weiss. [20] [21] [22]
Perry was a participant at the first conference of the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship in October-November 2023. [23] In her panel, she argued that both women, and the community more generally, had been adversely affected by the widespread belief we can take traditional sexual norms "just throw them out the window.” [23]
By 2022, Perry was described as being a London-based writer, "a non-religious feminist", and a new mother. [24] The Australian Broadcasting Corporation journalist, Andrew West, described her as left-leaning. [25] while on her podcast she features interviews with guests from across the political spectrum.
In 2017, Perry married her now-husband, a police officer. [26] [6] When asked if she had forbidden him from watching porn, she replied, "Of course." [17] Perry gave birth to the couple's first son in 2021. [27]
Annie M. Sprinkle is an American certified sexologist, performance artist, former sex worker, and advocate for sex work and health care.
Marie Louise Hartman, known professionally as Nina Hartley, is an American pornographic film actress and sex educator. By 2017 she had appeared in more than one thousand adult films. She has been described by Las Vegas Weekly as an "outspoken feminist" and "advocate for sexual freedom", and by CNBC as "a legend in the adult world".
A facial is a sexual activity in which a man ejaculates semen onto the face of one or more sexual partners. A facial is a form of non-penetrative sex, though it is generally performed after some other means of sexual stimulation, such as vaginal sex, anal sex, oral sex, manual sex or masturbation. Facials are regularly portrayed in pornographic films and videos, often as a way to close a scene.
Sex-positive feminism, also known as pro-sex feminism, sex-radical feminism, or sexually liberal feminism, is a feminist movement centering on the idea that sexual freedom is an essential component of women's freedom. They oppose legal or social efforts to control sexual activities between consenting adults, whether they are initiated by the government, other feminists, opponents of feminism, or any other institution. They embrace sexual minority groups, endorsing the value of coalition-building with marginalized groups. Sex-positive feminism is connected with the sex-positive movement. Sex-positive feminism brings together anti-censorship activists, LGBT activists, feminist scholars, producers of pornography and erotica, among others. Sex-positive feminists believe that prostitution can be a positive experience if workers are treated with respect, and agree that sex work should not be criminalized.
Reasons for opposition to pornography include religious objections and feminist concerns, as well as alleged harmful effects, such as pornography addiction and erectile dysfunction. Pornography addiction is not a condition recognized by the DSM-5, the ICD-11, or the DSM-5-TR. Anti-pornography movements have allied disparate social activists in opposition to pornography, from social conservatives to harm reduction advocates. The definition of "pornography" varies between countries and movements, and many make distinctions between pornography, which they oppose, and erotica, which they consider acceptable. Sometimes opposition will deem certain forms of pornography more or less harmful, while others draw no such distinctions.
Tristan Taormino is an American feminist author, columnist, sex educator, activist, editor, speaker, radio host, and pornographic film director. She is most recently known for her book Opening Up: A Guide to Creating and Sustaining Open Relationships, which is often recommended as a starter guide to polyamory and non-monogamy.
The feminist sex wars, also known as the lesbian sex wars, sex wars or porn wars, are collective debates amongst feminists regarding a number of issues broadly relating to sexuality and sexual activity. Differences of opinion on matters of sexuality deeply polarized the feminist movement, particularly leading feminist thinkers, in the late 1970s and early 1980s and continue to influence debate amongst feminists to this day.
Pornography is sexual subject material such as a picture, video, text, or audio that is intended for sexual arousal. Made for consumption by adults, pornographic depictions have evolved from cave paintings, some forty millennia ago, to modern virtual reality presentations. A general distinction of adults-only sexual content is made-classifying it as pornography or erotica.
Feminist views on pornography range from total condemnation of the medium as an inherent form of violence against women to an embracing of some forms as a medium of feminist expression. This debate reflects larger concerns surrounding feminist views on sexuality, and is closely related to those on prostitution, BDSM, and other issues. Pornography has been one of the most divisive issues in feminism, particularly in Anglophone (English-speaking) countries. This division was exemplified in the feminist sex wars of the 1980s, which pitted anti-pornography activists against pro-pornography ones.
Gail Dines is professor emerita of sociology and women's studies at Wheelock College in Boston, Massachusetts.
Slut-shaming is the practice of criticizing people who violate expectations of behavior and appearance regarding issues related to sexuality. It may also be used in reference to gay men, who may face disapproval for promiscuous sexual behaviors. Gender-based violence primarily affecting women can be a result of slut-shaming. The term is commonly used to reclaim the word slut and empower women to have agency over their own sexuality.
Feminist pornography, also known by other terms in internet such as 'ethical porn' or 'fair-trade porn' is a genre of film developed by or for those within the sex-positive feminist movement. It was created for the purpose of promoting gender equality by portraying more bodily movements and sexual fantasies of women and members of the LGBT community.
Feminist views on sexuality widely vary. Many feminists, particularly radical feminists, are highly critical of what they see as sexual objectification and sexual exploitation in the media and society. Radical feminists are often opposed to the sex industry, including opposition to prostitution and pornography. Other feminists define themselves as sex-positive feminists and believe that a wide variety of expressions of female sexuality can be empowering to women when they are freely chosen. Some feminists support efforts to reform the sex industry to become less sexist, such as the feminist pornography movement.
Porn for women, women's porn or women's pornography is pornography aimed specifically at the female market, and often produced by women. It rejects the view that pornography is only for men, and seeks to make porn that women enjoy watching instead of what is being offered in male-centric mainstream pornography.
#MeToo was a social movement and awareness campaign against sexual abuse, sexual harassment and rape culture, in which women publicize their experiences of sexual abuse or sexual harassment. The phrase "Me Too" was initially used in this context on social media in 2006, on Myspace, by sexual assault survivor and activist Tarana Burke. The hashtag #MeToo was used starting in 2017 as a way to draw attention to the magnitude of the problem. "Me Too" is meant to empower those who have been sexually assaulted through empathy, solidarity and strength in numbers, by visibly demonstrating how many have experienced sexual assault and harassment, especially in the workplace.
Suzannah Weiss is an American writer and sexologist. She has written for publications including The New York Times, The Washington Post, and New York Magazine and edited for Teen Vogue, Complex, and Vice. She is the author of Subjectified: Becoming a Sexual Subject, which details her journey toward sexual empowerment and lays out a framework for moving beyond the objectification of women.
Debra W. Soh is a Canadian columnist, author, and former academic sex researcher.
Bellesa is a Canadian internet pornography website founded in 2017 and marketed towards women. It produces original pornographic films under the company Bellesa Films, with Jacky St. James as a director. Bellesa Boutique (BBoutique) offers sex toy products, and the website also features webcam models, pornographic fiction and other media. Under the name Bellesa Plus, they have a tiered subscription service.
The Case Against the Sexual Revolution is a book by British journalist Louise Perry, published by Polity, which comments on sex in the twenty-first century. The book has a foreword by Kathleen Stock.
The Free Press is an American Internet-based media company based in Los Angeles, California, founded by Bari Weiss and Nellie Bowles. The newsletter was first published in 2021 while its associated media company officially launched in 2022.