Adult film star Stoya accused her former boyfriend and fellow porn actor James Deen of rape in a series of tweets posted to her account over the weekend. On Saturday afternoon she tweeted:
That thing where you log in to the internet for a second and see people idolizing the guy who raped you as a feminist. That thing sucks.
— Stoya (@stoya) November 28, 2015
James Deen held me down and fucked me while I said no, stop, used my safeword. I just can’t nod and smile when people bring him up anymore.
— Stoya (@stoya) November 28, 2015
The Internet swiftly reacted to the very public allegations against the golden boy of smut, who has been framed as a Ryan Gosling-esque “hero of feminist porn.”
But amid the expected, tired social media vitriol against sex workers and the perpetuation of the farcical notion that they can’t be raped, social media lit up in support of Stoya. A hashtag, #SolidarityWithStoya, has emerged with people pledging their support to the adult actress, sharing their own experiences with abusers and shutting down myths about sexual assault.
No means no. No matter what job you do. No matter if he’s your partner. No matter how many times you’ve said yes. #solidaritywithstoya
— Laurie Penny (@PennyRed) November 29, 2015
because some of my twitter followers follow a guy who attacked me & i feel like i cant even say “hey don’t follow him” #solidaritywithstoya
— Lane Moore (@hellolanemoore) November 29, 2015
#solidaritywithstoya because rape isn’t always committed by some stranger in an alley, usually it’s someone you know, loved and trusted
— Cosmo (@CosN0) November 29, 2015
Good-looking guys can be rapists. Popular guys can be rapists. Guys considered to be feminists can be rapists. #solidaritywithstoya
— Gareth Watkins (@GarethLWatkins) November 29, 2015
This is the only crime we place such a profound amount of doubt on when people, overwhelmingly women, share their story #solidaritywithstoya
— Sam Escobar (@myhairisblue) November 29, 2015
Stoya hasn’t posted any further statement on social media and could not be reached for comment. Deen released a statement on Instagram and Twitter Sunday evening calling the allegations “false and defamatory.”
“I respect women and I know and respect limits both professionally and privately,” he said.
A photo posted by James Deen (@therealjamesdeen) on Nov 29, 2015 at 5:05pm PST
The support for Stoya has extended beyond social media. Amelia McDonell-Parry, the editor-in-chief of women’s website The Frisky, said she would immediately stop publishing a series of sex advice columns from Deen.
“I very much liked James Deen. I enjoyed working with him on WWJDD,” McDonell-Parry wrote. “I asked him to do an advice column because I liked his directness and his confidence, but most of all, I liked his emphasis on communication, honesty and, most of all, CONSENT.”
McDonell-Parry also addressed the difficulty survivors of rape face when trying to “prove” that an assault took place — especially when an accuser also happens to be a sex worker:
As is the case with the vast majority of rape accusations, especially between intimate partners, Stoya’s story of being raped by James Deen is very likely the only “evidence”… The court of public opinion is not a court of law, and I don’t need Stoya or any woman to “prove” that she has been raped for me to believe her. Women who come out as rape victims are far, far, far too often not believed.
Stoya herself wrote an article for Vice in 2013 about the burden sex workers face sharing their stories with a public that holds inherent biases against an industry they privately love but publicly scorn.
“Precision in reporting and firsthand accounts from sex workers are both necessary to create an authentic picture of sex work and the people who do it,” she wrote.
In 2015, rape remains one of the most underreported crimes and false reports of sexual assault are incredibly rare.
“Victims are put on trial themselves, with everything they’ve ever said/done/worn suddenly under scrutiny as possible ‘evidence’ that they are lying or that they asked for it,” McDonell-Parry wrote. “I BELIEVE WOMEN. Period.”
Assuring women they are believed is exactly the message the #SolidarityWithStoya hashtag hopes to get across. As Laurie Penny tweeted:
The tide is turning. Women are no longer prepared to be silent about powerful men in their industry who are abusers. #solidaritywithstoya
— Laurie Penny (@PennyRed) November 29, 2015
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