Every 4th search request on google is somebody looking for porn. When taken in a vacuum, there is nothing inherently problematic about this statistic. Sex is a fact of life; one that anyone age appropriate should be entitled to learn about, experience and, most importantly, enjoy. However, between 40-80% of porn that is accessible on the internet is aggressive. 94% of this aggression is directed towards women. And 95% of the time, these women are expected to respond with pleasure or gratitude. Consent. Safety. Pleasure. These fundamental sexual values are entirely absent from the overwhelming majority of porn videos available today on the internet.

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None of this should come as a surprise to to you. Since puberty, the super responsible adults in our lives have drilled into our psyches that porn is bad; porn is exploitative; porn is wrong. Did this stop us from watching it? The stats say no: by the age of 17, 75% of boys, and 58% of girls have watched porn. However, as much as we might hate to admit it, our parents were right (ugh); most mainstream porn is exploitative of its female actors, and the vast majority of the scenes they are expected to make reinforce and reproduce abusive misogynistic discourses. But the more you tell someone not to touch the big red button, the more they’re gonna want to touch it. The red button is porn, and I know the younger version of you was itching to watch it...

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So, what does point-blank banning the younger generation from watching porn actually achieve? Sorry parents but probably nothing... aside from instilling sexual shame in your kids! And herein lies my problem. Sexual shame is a BIG no. Feminists and sexual activists have worked too. damn. hard. for us to abandon our sex-positivity and fear (or repress) our desire. We shouldn’t have to compromise our morals, values and ethics just to watch some porn and explore what makes us feel really fucking good.

This is where feminist porn comes onto the scene. Never heard of it? Cool. Let’s get into it.

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Q: What is feminist porn?

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A: According to ‘The Feminist Porn Book’ (yes, there’s a whole book), although there is no single answer to this question, feminist porn can most broadly be defined as:

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1. A genre of pornography [which] uses sexually explicit imagery to contest and complicate dominant representations of gender and other identity markers.

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2. It does not assume a single female viewer, but acknowledges multiple female (and other) viewers with many different preferences.

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3. It strives to create fair, safe, ethical, consensual work environment and often create imagery through collaboration with their subjects.

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4. It considers sexual representation as a site for resistance, intervention, and change.

Q: But what does that actually mean?

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Phew. That was a mouthful. Don’t worry babe, we’re gonna break it down.  

Ok, so lots of feminists (rightfully) have an issue with mainstream porn since it objectifies women. For the most part, porn has an explicitly male perspective; the camera embodies the male gaze, and so women are presented exclusively as passive objects of (male) desire.

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P.s. this is why men are creepily absent from most straight porn (apart from as disembodied penises, ew). Most porn is shot in such a way that the male watchers can project themselves into the scene. This (unsurprisingly) completely erases female sexual autonomy and authentic female pleasure from the whole freaking thing. So women in traditional porn are (you guessed it!!) just objects of male desire. Big woop.

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This isn’t even the worst of it. As noted, a disgusting amount of porn isn’t just objectifying, but also proudly (and often violently) misogynistic. This is deeply problematic when we consider porn to be a discourse; the widespread dissemination of violent and misogynistic messaging through watching porn reinforces and reproduces an abusive patriarchal social structure and promotes toxic masculinity, violent domination of women and even rape culture. So when the horny teens flock to PornHub for their sex ed, the outcome ain’t gonna be too pretty.

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BUT IT DOESN’T HAVE TO BE LIKE THAT!

And that’s exactly what feminist porn is trying to achieve. Porn doesn’t have to present women as degraded, subservient objects. When made mindfully, porn can present women as sexual collaborators, not conquests. Women can presented as actual human beings who deserve to be treated with respect AND who deserve to experience pleasure, stimulation and satisfaction. There is absolutely no reason that sexually explicit videos can’t promote safety, consent and respect. Don’t make her drink the cup of tea, ok PornHub?

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Porn legend, Nina Hartley, once said that porn, when made in this way, could “change men’s and women’s attitudes at their deepest neurobiological level” I totally agree. Porn that presents sex as an intimate, consensual act that two people (who don’t always look like barbie’s ken with perfect abs, or an inflatable doll) do together, has the power to promote healthy attitudes about sex, sexuality and even gender itself. Big WOO.

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Another really important facet of feminist porn is the safe, ethical and transparent work environment that it promotes. If the feminist porn is legitimate, it’s most likely that you’ve got to pay for it (sorry, not sorry) 'cos, guess what, most free porn isn’t produced ethically. Think: not adequately paying performers, not investing in sufficient safety precautions, and neglecting consent coaching and intimacy coordination. All the bad shit. Feminist porn, in contrast, seeks to make the entire process as fair-trade and above board as poss. Considering the string of abuse allegations that have recently been disclosed by a number of adult entertainers, all I can say is: it’s about. damn. time.

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Q: Im sold. How can I access feminist porn?

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A: Lucky for you there’s a f*ck ton of feminist porn out there for all your (ethical) viewing pleasure. We’ve compiled our top 5 feminist porn sites that are disrupting the misogynistic mainstream porn industry, striving for equal representation, pay and rights, and are troubling societal expectations around gender, sex and identity. You’re welcome.

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Like all feminism, feminist porn isn’t free from its criticism and stereotypes. Hardcore porn enthusiasts have struck down the movement claiming that it’s all either lesbian-oriented (blatantly false), or boring ''vanilla'' content (also blatantly false). Not that either of these things are bad, obviously. If you’re one of those sceptics, go give feminist porn a try. You might be surprised at how much you like it. It’s nice to feel nice, so why watch porn that makes you feel shitty? Let’s keep porn dirty, so long as its values are squeaky clean. Want to dive into the psychology of kinks? Read that here.