Duke Porn Star Belle Knox Wishes the GOP Would Get More Libertarian
So a Duke University freshman recently came out as a part-time porn actress, and the combination of sex, a prestigious university and a barely legal co-ed has made the story an instant Internet hit. But as New York magazine's Kat Stoeffel points out, "what makes the Duke Freshman Porn Star unique, as far as collegiate women turned sex memes go, is that she hasn't gone away." Lauren (not her real name) didn't plan to be a poster-girl for college porn stars. But she went on the media offensive about her extracurricular activities after a friend leaked the info to his fraternity bros and rumors began to circulate on a college message board.
I'm glad she did because damn: This girl seems wise beyond her years. Every article I read about or by Lauren only makes me like her even more. In an interview with New York, Lauren clarifies her association with the campus Republican group thusly:
"I'm a libertarian who is forced to play within party lines because, at this point, our party isn't strong enough to get anything done without the backing of the Republican Party. It's really frustrating that when I tell people I'm in College Republicans they immediately assume I'm a bigot and a homophobe. Duke Republicans is completely pro-gay rights. Calling somebody a Republican is almost an insult and, personally, I hope the party moves toward a more libertarian style wherein they give rights to gays and more respect to women, and it's not so driven by religion or by theology."
And in an essay at women's website XOJane, Lauren rails against the idea that sex workers are all victims:
"A woman who transgresses the norm and takes ownership of her body—because that's exactly what porn is, no matter how rough the sex is—ostensibly poses a threat to the deeply ingrained gender norms that polarize our society… That a woman could be intelligent, educated and CHOOSE to be a sex worker is almost unfathomable."
Lauren told the Duke campus paper that she got started in porn to pay for her education—with Duke University tuition and fees adding up to about $60,000 per year, it's really a wonder more students aren't doing this—and she isn't ashamed. She also scoffs at the idea that porn demeans her:
"I worked as a waitress…in high school and not only did it interfere with my school where I was barely sleeping and wasn't doing my work, but also I was making $400 a month after taxes. I felt like I was being degraded and treated like s–t. My boss was horrible to me. For people to tell me that doing porn and having sex, which I love, is more degrading than being a waitress … that literally makes no sense. To be perfectly honest, I felt more degraded in a minimum wage, blue-collar, low paying, service job than I ever did doing porn."
For more sex worker positivity, check out Reason TV's interview with Nevada "brothel king" Dennis Hof.
