There is also significant evidence that early exposure to pornography is harming the developing sexual templates of children, contributing to damaging stereotypes, the development of sexist ideas and the normalisation of violence against women and girls. Adolescent males are now identified as the largest cohort of sexual offenders in general and sex offenders against children.
Australia is in the midst of a renewed debate on the national scourge of violence against women. This debate is to be welcomed. However what has not been adequately acknowledged is the role of pornography as a driver of this violence. Melinda will explore what the research tells us about how pornography eroticises and legitimises violence against women and share young women’s experiences of sexual assault, physical injury from porn-inspired sexual acts, unwanted sexual advances, demands for sexual ’selfies’, and other out-workings of harmful porn inspired behaviours. She will then look at what we can do personally and politically to change this.
The Federal Government acknowledges the role pornography plays in violence against women, in its National Plan to Address Violence Against Women and Children (2022-2023): “With pornography now overwhelmingly consumed online and via mobile devices, it is both prevalent and pervasive, perpetuating sexist, misogynistic and degrading views about women. This is a serious concern in addressing the drivers of violence against women and children. (p.49)
