By Eva Lovia
Ethics to sum it up are culturally derived rules of human conduct and decency. Ethics are applied to work, to moral dilemmas, even to food nowadays. What about porn? Ethics and porn being in the same sentence to some may be the beginning of a good bar joke, but to the men and women performing in the industry it is anything but. It is time we removed the blinders and really dive into what is ethical porn, is it possible, and how we can ensure it’s survival.
As most industries, porn is male dominated on the corporate side as well as the consumer side, and they say there is power in numbers. Fortunately, for the performer pool, the women surpass the men by far. If performers could band together and no longer tolerate bad behavior, we could have a future where ethical porn was the norm not the exception as it currently is.
What is ethical porn? Porn that is produced with consent by all parties, where all the performers are happy, excited, and not pressured into doing acts they may not be comfortable with, where no doesn’t get you labeled as “difficult or “diva.”
Unfortunately in my experience, saying “No” is unheard of. Being the eldest of three and helping my single mother raise them, I said “No” a lot. I have a very strong, unapologetic personality, so I have never hesitated to voice my opinion about anything. I thought this was normal, that is until I got into porn. I would say no on set, and immediately all eyes would turn to me. The room would become silent, and the director would lose it. I would be pretty confused because how can anyone mistake that this is my body and I am allowed to have personal limits and boundaries? Well it happens, and a lot, especially to new girls. And as much as I hate to say it, we as a group allow it.
How is this? Because only what we allow or tolerate can happen on a set. If a performer is not comfortable with ANY aspect — I don’t care if it’s just a line in the script — you are allowed to say no. The moment you swallow your distaste and just do it to be seen as “Easy to work with” or “sweet” is the moment you condemn all your fellow performers to do the same.
Now some are not as bold, confident, or brave to speak up, so if you see something, say something. I have been on set with a HUGE company where a fellow performer was being talked into shooting a group sex scene for her boy-girl rate. The type of scene wasn’t the issue, if you are genuinly into an act — by all means, get it girl — but letting a company short you on your rate because you are too scared to cause trouble is not okay. I stopped the set, pulled her aside, and let her know that is not acceptable. Every performer has different rates for every unique sexual act. I did my best to try and help her out of this mess, but she was too timid and went along with it.
When cases like this happen, it essentially is rewarding bad behavior and encouraging the men at the top to continue to push the envelop because, hey, it saves them thousands of dollars. If every time they tried to pull a similar stunt the performer would not comply then guess what, eventually they would stop, or at the very least it wouldn’t happen as often as it does.
I love that social media can reach so many people instantly. I think this is the single best tool for performers to voice their opinions and to expose unethical behavior. No one can silence your voice unless you let them. One of my very good friends is, in my opinion, one of the strongest and most brave women in the business. I have seen her take on multi-million dollar companies and expose their indiscretions without hesitation. If more women were as bold and brave as her we would all be better off.
Ethical porn — where having boundaries and personal limits is respected, where everyone is happy, healthy, and excited to be a part of the scene, where we can explore our sexuality in a healthy controlled environment — this can be the norm. We can make the industry sex positive and a safe place for performers, but it has to start somewhere. I do hope we can pave the way for future performers to have an easier and more positive experience than I know most have, and it begins with demanding better treatment and respect.
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Eva Lovia started in the adult entertainment industry in 2012 as a webcam model and began shooting GG scenes in 2013. Lovia is a highly respected and sought after performer who has been nominated for numerous high profile industry awards.
Lovia is also an advocate for women’s sexual empowerment, and her activism shows in her work. “I personally want to make sure every scene I shoot, I am into and feel sexy — and more importantly, safe.”
A successful entrepreneur as well, she and her husband are investors in several bars and restaurants, as well as run a SAS (Software as a Service) platform. Lovia oversees her own official website, FallinLovia.com, and has designed and maintained websites for her fellow porn performers.
Find Eva Lovia on Twitter at @FallinLovia and on IG/SnapChat @LoviaLongTime. Visit her official site, FallinLovia.com.
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