Is Pornography Degrading To Women? ?

Sexual imagery in and of itself is not degrading in theory.
But that doesn’t come close to the reality of pornography. First, there is the question of legality and consent. Anyone remember Lovelace who confessed that none of her porn had been her choice? The only thing more sickening than rape is the people that profit from that rape and the people that jerk off to that rape. There’s no way to know if the women in the porn you watch are there because they were forced, trafficked, or taken advantage of because they are poor, drunk, or threatened. Considering how much porn is obsessed with young women and teens, there’s a very real chance that someone is jerking off to the image of a minor being raped right now and doesn’t know it.
It’s also because pornography is so narrow. It only features one thing: women doing what men want to see. Women spread eagled and called names. Women slapped and beaten and tied up. Rare is the pornography where the abuse happens to the man. If it is, it’s generally considered that he asks to be treated in such a fashion. He’s still in control. The woman is not. I’m not talking about kinky BDSM tapes, I’m talking about the fact that the majority of mainstream porn is about women being called names and being engaged in acts that look painful. The more painful, the better. Pornography is about one type of sex, one type of woman, and male pleasure. It’s very ironic that one that rejects the narrow definition of porn is deemed a prude while one that watches the same script time and time again is somehow enlightened. Please.
Oh, and it’s incredibly racist. The whole hugely popular genre of interracial porn is disgusting. Women and men are called the most vile and degrading racial epithets. Asian women are innocent and child-like, all black men have huge dongs, and black women are only there because they have big butts. Porn and the people that like it think it’s perfectly cool to throw away decades of civil rights as long as you’re jerking off to it. No thanks.
Pornography is degrading to humanity in general. As it exists, the porn industry is a blight upon the human race. It also serves as a great indication of how “enlightened” we all are: as soon as it comes down to sex, it’s cool to be aroused by degradation, rape, minors, racism, and abuse. But if you don’t have your dong in hand, such things are not okay. But somehow, the fact that you get your rocks off to human misery justifies the ruined lives of many and the negative disgusting stereotypes pornography continues to exploit.

No, it’s not degrading to me when women choose to work in the sex industry. It has no affect on me, so it is none of my business. As long as they are not forced into it, are not sex slaves, are underage, mentally ill, disabled or being trafficked I have no problems with the sex industry.
Maybe it’s not something most women would do, perhaps they’d find it degrading if they did, but people stand as individuals, not by their genders. Should men find it degrading that they are expected to die in war and combat, like their lives are more disposable than a woman’s life? Historically men have been expected to fight and die in war, historically women have been selling sex for money. This doesn’t mean that all men fight and die in war, and this doesn’t mean that all women sell sex for money. I think people have a thin skin when they get offended by things that don’t concern them.

I, personally, think pornography and ads are more degrading to men. According to porn, all men are handsome, heavily muscled, and hung like horses. With women, a few good makeup tricks and a nice hairdo can make you look at least passable. The right clothes can make it look like you dropped a few pounds, even. Men however, are left in their natural glory with nothing to hide behind.

How do you define pornography?
Is the photography of Robert Mapplethorpe’ porn or art?
In the USA it was deemed “porn” and he wasn’t permitted to exhibit his stuff publicly. I saw an exhibition of his art in Vienna – where nobody batted an eyelash. Evidently what’s “porn” in the USA is art in Austria. Go figure.

If it is, I suppose it should be degrading to men too.
Afterall, male porn stars are having sex and filming it for sexual enjoyment as well.
As long as they’re of legal and consenting age, who cares? It’s their choice.

It’s just another indicator of how permissive society has become. We WILL pay for it. Believe me, we will. As a matter of fact, we’ve already begun to…

no because the women voluntarily participate and are well paid to do so.

Yup