History of Feminism
In reply to the discussion: Porn & Pop Culture: A deadly Combination [View all]seabeyond
(110,159 posts)In a podcast after Not What We Do , I declared that Im not going to do BDSM community PR. We have problems. We have at least as much of a rape culture within as the mainstream, and Im not going to shut up about it. This post summarizes what I said at the Yes Means Yes Blog, in a seven part series that ran 21,000 words. The original, full posts are at these links:
Predator Theory, backed by empirical research, tells us that the bad actors, the repeat, deliberate, serial abusers, are less than 10% of the general population. Theres no shortage of stories that start I was abused and end when I tried to say something the community closed ranks around the abuser and I was frozen out. Here is a classic example left in comments to Charlie Glickmans blog post. This one appeared on Tracy-Clark Florys Tumblr, after she posted a story on BDSM and abuse in January. One woman had this to say (Sorry, folks, Fetlife login reqd and she prefers that I not cut down the excerpt and lose the nuance). In the full posts of the series, I go on and on with individual stories: some people at the fringes of or outside formal communities luring people on the internet, but too many others well entrenched and defended within social networks and organizations in kink communities. Theres a theme here: that silence and secrecy are the paramount values, and open discussion is to be avoided. Its a basic function of institutions, but often of informal social networks as well, to protect the body from reputational damage. Thats what colleges do with rape.
http://www.feministe.us/blog/archives/2012/06/20/20993/
when i hear you seriously address the issues in your community you play in, i will take you a little more seriously