STRAIGHT society has a hard time dealing with the porn industry.On the one hand, it doesn't want to legitimize the business or theadult film actors in any way. On the other hand, it wants theindustry and workers to conform to strict - and restrictive - rulesand standards.
And, if there were another hand, on it would be the millions ofcustomers who keep adult movies in high demand and the source of oneof the San Fernando Valley's most profitable enterprises.
This societal schizophrenia is exhibited in the hopefullytemporary closure earlier this month of one of the industry's mostimportant health centers - AIM, or the Adult Industry MedicalHealthcare Foundation. The Sherman Oaks-based clinic is the mainscreener of sexually transmitted diseases for adult film workers. Italso acts as an advocate for an industry that others consideruntouchable.
Citing what sounds like extremely minor paperwork violations,state public health officials ordered AIM to close on Dec. 9, theday after an adult film star announced publicly that he was treatedpoorly at the clinic after he tested positive for HIV in October anddidn't get treatment as fast as he could.
In fact, it appears just ammunition in the long-standing feudbetween Los Angeles County Public Health officials and AIDSactivists and AIM and its co-founder Sharon Mitchell over the issueof condoms in adult films. State law requires that adult film starsuse condoms, but many performers eschew them. While AIM suppliesfree condoms, it focuses on testing performers as opposed toenforcing condom rules.
Mitchell, a former porn star herself, sees the closure as aconspiracy. But there's been nothing secret about how she and AIMhave been targeted. After AIM was shut down, for example, MichaelWeinstein, the executive director for AIDS Healthcare Foundation, aprovider of medical treatment for AIDS and HIV patients, made itclear his goal is getting the adult film industry shut down if itdoesn't use condoms.
While his concern about the spread of AIDS and HIV is admirable,he's misguided if he thinks persecuting AIM or adult film actorswill make the public safer. It's likely to have the opposite effect.
AIM provides important support for adult film stars. AIM testsabout 1,500 clients a month. And some have said that if AIM didn'tdo these screenings, they probably wouldn't happen. In fact, losingcenters like AIM will likely force adult film production undergroundor to other states, endangering workers and public health evenfurther.
If the county and other health officials truly care about publichealth, and not just punishing an organization that won't do whatthey want it to, they will find a way to work with AIM and thepeople engaged in this risky business, and not against them.
