it’s not an outbreak, dammit!
By Dr. Charlie Glickman • Jun 22nd, 2009 • Category: Blog
There’s been lots more buzz lately about the porn HIV case. Fortunately, there are some places where a more reasonable and informed conversation is taking place. Rather than reiterate it all, here’s a few pointers.
Ernest Greene’s blog, with lots of great comments & discussion: here, here & here. That third link has pointers to some blogs by people who are actually performers in the mainstream het porn world, which gives them much more credibility in my eyes that, say, MSNBC on the topic.
Tony Comstock’s blog, with some very thoughtful input: here & here.
I also recommend pornochromatic, with two very insightful posts here & here. The second one proposes some ways to make the industry safer that seems to take both Ernest & Tony’s valuable ideas and find the middle ground.
Having pointed you to some good places to read about this, I want to add that one case in 5 years is not, in fact, an outbreak. The media has been referring to this unfortunate situation as an outbreak for days and that’s simply not accurate or fair. An outbreak is “an occurrence of disease greater than would otherwise be expected in a particular time and place.” Given how many people there are in porn and how many sexual partners they have, both within and outside the industry, I think it’s fair to say that one HIV case in 5 years is probably significantly less than would be expected among, say, a comparable group of people who don’t get tested monthly.
Maybe I’m extra-sensitive about this since my partner is a public health nurse and I get annoyed when the panic of “outbreaks” that aren’t actually outbreaks make her job nuts. But I do believe that using terms like “outbreak” to describe one case that hasn’t (as far as we know so far) spread is irresponsible because it creates fear & panic. And that’s exactly what we don’t need.
What we need is a solution that is relevant for the health and well-being of the folks who make porn. Legislation based on panic is never effective, reasonable or fair. So please, remember that it’s not an outbreak. It’s a case. And maybe that can help us work out how to move forward.
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Dr. Charlie Glickman >> Dr. Charlie Glickman has been working at Good Vibrations since 1996, when he joined the staff at our Berkeley store. Currently, he is our Education Program Manager and (among other things) runs our in-store After Hours workshop program, our Off-Site Sex Education Program, trains our Sex Educator-Sales Associates and writes copy for our website. In 2005, Charlie received his doctorate in Adult Sexuality Education from the Union Institute and University in Cincinnati, Ohio. In addition, he offers classes on sexuality for psychotherapists and workshops on teaching for sex educators.
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Charlie, I’m not sure I understand what you mean by “middle ground”. I do not foresee any regulation, either imposed by law, or self-imposed that is going to meaningfully change things. Everything I have written has been offered so that my readers can reflect on their values and the choices they make as individuals.
To that end I’ve offered one small suggestion for “the industry”, one that I can’t imagine would be controversial in any way. Quoting from my post from earlier today:
Such an analysis would end speculation and guess-work as to how STD infection rates related to the manufacture of pornography compared to infect rates among various sexually active “civilian” populations, and I’m sure the end of such speculation would be welcomed by all concerned.