It is hard to imagine, but the shy, petite man who was visibly blushing as he timidly sauntered to the center of the auditorium Thursday evening is one of the biggest names in the adult film industry.
James Deen, the youngest male to win performer of the year for three of the industry’s top award shows, spoke before a crowd of more than 500 students in Sterling Hall to advocate for safe sex and emphasize the unrealistic depictions of the porn industry perpetuates.
“People do not walk around with hard 10-inch penises all day,” Deen joked. “I feel like it’s pretty obvious porn is not real. The adult film industry should take a little more responsibility in saying this is a fantasy. This is something to arouse, not to educate.”
Deen highlighted Sex Out Loud’s Night of Pornography and Sex Education event where he humored audience members with his bashful, but candid accounts of his life as a self-proclaimed “slut.”
On a more serious side, Deen advised students not to use pornography as a method of sexual education, as it is simply entertainment.
“To try to have adult films be your first encounter to the world of sex, it could potentially leave somebody with unrealistic expectation of partners, of themselves, of what sex can be,” said Dean, who lost his virginity before his Bar Mitzvah at age 12. “I’ve done a lot of pornos – like 4,000 of them – and sometimes it’s not real.”
Lines of hundreds of students wrapped around the hallways leading up to the event to hear the insights and anecdotes of Deen, who said he had wanted to go into pornography for as long as he can remember and began shooting scenes at age 18. Deen also began producing and directing adult films at age 19.
A Sex Out Loud project coordinator in charge of finances said bringing Deen to campus cost approximately $4,000 or 10 cents per student in segregated fees.
Deen said being sex-positive boils down to ensuring partners are comfortable and valuing their desires.
“Healthy sexuality really just comes down to respect – respecting everyone and their boundaries, respecting people’s opinion and ideas and understanding one another,” he said. “Nobody is obligated to like anything or be into anything. Just because you like something, or don’t like something, it doesn’t mean it’s a bad thing.”
Deen said he opposes the Measure B condom mandate in Los Angeles that forces all porn actors in within the city limits to use condoms while performing because the initiative restricts freedom of speech rights.
For example, if there were to be a film about a woman attempting to get pregnant, Deen said it would defeat the purpose for men to wear condoms in such scenes.
However, Deen said he highly encourages condom use to promote safe sex.
“Condoms are the most amazing sexual invention that I can think of off the top of my head, other than the Hitachi Magic Wand,” Deen said.
Promoting Awareness, Victim Empowerment Chair Aly Jarocki said she could understand Deen’s rational regarding condom use in pornography, but added showing actors having a consensual conversation before sex and then choosing to wear condoms would still be beneficial.
Jarocki said out of context, porn can be misconstrued as objectifying of women and endorsing rape culture because the pirated videos most people watch often lack leaving out the discussion of sexual boundaries beforehand.
To honor Sex Out Loud’s monthly theme of sexual health, the organization’s program facilitator Mikaela Wallin said they chose Deen as the event’s speaker to fulfill her group’s goal of promoting sex positivity.
“We’ve had big speakers, but I would say this is one of our biggest events that we’ve had,” Wallin said. “We’re really happy with the turnout.”
