Honoring the life of Cecilia Gentili | De facto book banning in West Virginia
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Bi-Weekly Sexual Freedom Newsletter Wednesday, February 28, 2024
Top Stories This Week
What’s happening at Woodhull;
Changes to the Kids Online Safety Act;
De facto book banning in West Virginia;
Queering family;
A federal plan to ban abortions;
Honoring the life of Cecilia Gentili; and
Woodhull’s take on the right to abortion in Pennsylvania.
Watch The Latest Censorship Series Program!
Did you miss the live February installment of our virtual series, The Censorship of Sexual Freedom? Well, don’t worry - you can watch this program and all Censorship programs on Woodhull’s YouTube page.
Woodhull Testifies to Protect Human Rights in Four States!
Since our last newsletter, Woodhull has submitted testimony or sent letters of support to lawmakers in FOUR different states!
Our love note to Florida on Valentine's Day was testimony opposing their proposed age verification law. Lawrence Walters, Woodhull’s General Counsel and First Amendment Expert, submitted testimony opposing FL’s HB 3, the law that would force certain websites to age-gate their content. The bill passed FL’s senate on 2/15/24 and was amended. It must pass through both FL state houses before moving forward. We stand opposed to any bill that violates our privacy on the Internet!
On February 15, 2024, we submitted testimony in support of two bills in Rhode Island that would make the lives of sex workers exponentially safer. H7165, Relating to Criminal Offenses - Commercial Sexual Activity is commonly called an “immunity bill.” It creates an important tool for law enforcement in their efforts to identify and prosecute perpetrators of violence and trafficking. H7452, Relating to State Affairs and Government - Corrections Department, repeals provisions that assess additional fees to those convicted of prostitution-related offenses and repeals the crime of loitering for prostitution. The Committee recommended that the bills be “held for further study.” We’ll continue to monitor their progress. Woodhull wholeheartedly supports the human rights of sex workers and urges Rhode Island’s elected officials to pass this crucial legislation!
On Thursday, February 22, we sent a letter of support to the Berkely City Council in California, urging them to pass an ordinance that would grant non-discrimination protections for those in diverse families and relationships. Protections like these go a long way in affirming the human right to family, and we wholeheartedly support them!
We sent a letter of support to the members of New York State’s legislature with our friends from Decriminalize Sex Work regarding NYS Bill A.7471/S.1966, legislation to enable victims and witnesses to a crime to be able to seek help without fear of being prosecuted for prostitution. This law is similar to Rhode Island’s proposal and would improve the lives of New Yorkers while continuing to protect their human rights!
Woodhull President & CEO Ricci Levy to Keynote After Dark Artist Retreat!
The 2024 After Dark Artist Retreat (Boston, April 18-21) is an event that focuses on elevating the genre of kink, fetish, BDSM, and erotica photography in many ways, including beyond artistry. The Dark Artist Retreat features some of the most incredible Educators and Industry Experts, as well as a vast array of models. This allows participants to capture and create an entire library of instantly useable content in a safe and gently guided environment, where boundaries and consent are paramount.
This event is open to Photography professionals who demonstrate at least some intimate or boudoir photography expertise. Sponsorship opportunities are available. One-day and overnight passes were just released. Something very exciting for Woodhull is that supporters will have the opportunity to hear Ricci Levy, our fearless leader, speak about the unique challenges for photographers in this space. Don’t miss out!
The 19th Explains: Why some states are requiring ID to watch porn online (The 19th)
Increasingly, an unfounded moral panic about sex and sexuality is codified into age verification laws, which restrict our ability to view adult content online. Jasmine Mithani writes: “Proponents of these laws often rely on narratives and shaky evidence that exposure to pornography has devastating results on individuals. The Louisiana law cites resolutions passed in 2017 and 2019 that declare pornography a public health crisis, including an extensive list of alleged harms. These laws often focus on the dangers of porn addiction and sex addiction, which are not listed in America’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders or World Health Organization’s International Classification of Diseases (ICD).” Read more.
(Jacky Joy Photography/Moment/Getty Images)
LGBTQ Advocates Condemn Passage of De Facto “Book Ban” in West Virginia (Truthout)
In West Virginia, “obscenity” is a vague, ill-defined catchphrase that politicians are employing to ban sexual content. Zane McNeill writes: “The West Virginia House of Delegates passed a bill on [February 16] allowing for the criminal prosecution of librarians, teachers, and museums for displaying ‘obscene’ material to minors. Democratic Delegate Evan Hansen has said that the bill, HB 4654, is ‘a de facto book ban.’ [...] Under state code, ‘obscene matter’ is defined as material that ‘an average person, applying community standards, would find depicts or describes, in a patently offensive way, sexually explicit conduct’ and material that ‘a reasonable person would find, taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value.’” Read more.
(Kelly Jacob; Elham Numan/Xtra)
Queer and trans families are intentional. They take the shape of what you and your loved ones need most (Xtra Magazine)
Sexual freedom and reproductive justice – including the right to decide if and how to create a family – are deeply intertwined. Stéphanie Verge writes: “What makes a family? It’s a question I’ve asked myself repeatedly over the years, as my own needs and wants have shifted and morphed. As a child, family meant parents and siblings, aunts and uncles and grandparents. As a younger adult, it was about friends and partners. Now that I’m in my 40s, it encompasses all of those people—plus a child of my own. In short, family isn’t static: if you’re lucky, family takes the shape of what you and your loved ones need most at any given moment in time.” Read more.
(Allison Joyce/AFP via Getty Images)
The Federal Abortion Ban Plan Team Trump Doesn't Want You to Know About (Common Dreams)
Conservatives are cooking up a plan to interfere with our human right to abortion away on a federal level. Jessica Corbett writes: “The architect of a Texas law that entices anti-choice vigilantes with $10,000 bounties supposedly wants former President Donald Trump and his allies to shut up about abortion until after the November presidential election—when right-wingers hope to implement ‘legally sophisticated’ and unpopular forced-pregnancy policies. After reporting on [February 16] that Trump ‘likes the idea of a 16-week national abortion ban with exceptions for rape, incest, or to save the life of the pregnant person', The New York Timesrevealed on Saturday that lawyers and strategists in his ‘orbit’ are crafting more complex plans.” Read more.
(Barry Williams for New York Daily News)
Cecilia Gentili: Mother of Intersections (New Moon Network)
Sex worker, migrant, and trans liberation movements all affect our rights to sexual freedom, to family, to safety, and to autonomy. Cecilia Gentili was the “mother of all intersections” in these movements. New Moon Network writes: “Over the years, Cecilia Gentili was a constant figure and trailblazing leader in the sex worker, migrant, and transgender rights movements.
Cecilia demonstrated constantly through her life and advocacy that we don’t live single issue lives, and that our struggles for human rights are interconnected. Despite a wildly successful advocacy career, she was a groundbreaking and award-winning writer and actress to boot. Although she passed away within a week of her 52nd birthday, the sheer amount of accomplishments feel like the life’s work of a handful of centenarians, not the passions of one single woman at half that age.” Read more.
Woodhull’s Take: The Right to Abortion in Pennsylvania (Woodhull’s Sex & Politics Blog)
The right to abortion is essential to our right to sexual freedom. We at the Woodhull Freedom Foundation share our take on the promising future of the right to abortion in Pennsylvania: “In the realm of reproductive justice, good news is scarce. Today, I write with some hope: Pennsylvania is considering removing a barrier to abortion access. To many, this signals a move toward finding the right to abortion in Pennsylvania’s constitution.
Currently, Pennsylvania provides Medicaid coverage of abortion in limited circumstances, but a recent ruling from the Pennsylvania Supreme Court opens the door to expand coverage. Abortion providers brought a challenge, asking the court to consider ‘whether the state Medicaid law unconstitutionally singled out a procedure sought only by women and differentiated between women who carry to term and women who get an abortion.’” Read more.
Woodhull Freedom Foundation is the only national human rights organization working full time to protect the fundamental human right to sexual freedom. Our work includes fighting censorship, eliminating discrimination based on gender or sexual identity, or family form, and protecting the right to engage in consensual sexual activity and expression. We do this through advocacy, education, and coalition building.
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