The Anti-Pornography Feminist Movement Essay - 3395 Words

â€Å"I don’t need statistics to tell me that there is a relationship between pornography and real violence. My body remembers.† This chilling testimony from a female rape victim to a grand jury in 1983 represents the evils that pornography represents in the United States. There are strong correlations between sex crimes and pornography that have divided feminists over whether free speech is worth the sheer magnitude of sex-crime victims. Free speech is protected by the First Amendment and most people have differing views on its meaning. One thing that cannot be ignored is the fact that 90% of sexual offenders have used pornography â€Å"frequently.† I believe that the anti-pornography movement is not only just, but essential. I†¦show more content†¦Out of these theories, writers like Andrea Dworkin, Catherine MacKinnon and Dr. Diana Russell founded and encouraged many anti-porn groups around the country. Though movements against pornography had existed prior to feminist anti-pornography groups, they were previously conservative or moral majority inspired. Then came groups such as the Anti-Porn Feminists (APFEM) and the Women Against Violence in Pornography in the Media (WAVPM). These groups had limited following because of the feminist ideology of freedom of speech and expression. Due to this lack of agreement on terms and standards, the supporters have never been centralized. Supporters may be varied and polarized but most believe that there is a real problem and there must be suitable action. The reason that this movement exists are due to findings of surveys and studies as well as testimony of women who have suffered from pornography at one time or another. The studies are varied and numerous. To provide examples of these surveys I would like to illustrate the findings of several of them. The first finding comes from a 1983 study by Edward Donnerstein. He polled male high-school and college students on 37 states and came to the following conclusion. 25% to 30% of male students who admit that there is some likelihood that they would rape a woman if the could be assured of getting away with it, increases to 57% after exposure to sexually violent images depicting women enjoyingShow MoreRelatedFeminism and Pornography: Differing Views1221 Words   |  5 PagesThe pornography debate has been an issue within the feminist movement that has been pushed to the periphery in recent times. It is not as widely seen on the main stage of the feminist agenda and this may be because of a division in feminist thought with regards to pornography. 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