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Quote by Wendy McElroy

“The right to choose hinges on the right to make a "wrong" choice. Freedom of religion entails the right to be an atheist. Freedom of speech involves the right to be silent. Freedom of choice requires the right to make bad choices-that is, a decision society considers to be wrong. After all, society is not going to stop a woman from doing what it wants her to do. But radical feminists are going one step farther than simply denying that women have the right to make wrong choices; they deny that women have the ability to choose.”

Quote by Wendy McElroy

Book:XXX: A Woman's Right to Pornography
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XXX: A Woman's Right to Pornography

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Wendy McElroy
Wendy McElroy

Wendy McElroy is an active writer and activist in the fields of libertarianism and feminism. Born in 1951, she is known for her steadfast support of individual freedom and women's liberation. Her works cover a range of subjects, including political philosophy, economics, and gender studies. more

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“According to radical feminists, even if a woman in pornography signed a contract with full knowledge, she can sue on the grounds of coercion. What legal implications does this have for a woman's right to contract? What legal weight will future negotiators give to a woman's signature? Women's contracts will be legally unenforceable; their signature will become a legal triviality.”

FeminismCivil RightsWomens RightsPornographyLibertarian FeminismIndividualist FeminismSex Positive FeminismPro Porn
Book:XXX: A Woman's Right to Pornography
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“For centuries, women have struggled against tremendous odds to have their contracts taken seriously. At great personal expense, they stood up and demanded the right to own land, to control their own wages, to retain custody of their children-in other words, to become legally responsible for themselves and for their property. A woman's consent must never again become legally irrelevant.”

FeminismHuman RightsCivil RightsWomens RightsFreedom Of ChoiceLibertarian FeminismIndividualist FeminismSex Positive Feminism
Book:XXX: A Woman's Right to Pornography
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“Anti-porn feminists want us to accept their sexual preferences as gospel. Presumably, their theories are based on solid fact and deep insight. Although they have been born and raised in the same patriarchal culture that has warped other women, radical feminists have somehow escaped unscathed. Just as they have escaped being damaged by the pornography they view. Somehow these women have scaled the pinnacle, from which they now look down and make pronouncements on the lifestyle of those beneath them. Perhaps radical feminists are superwomen. Perhaps they are merely fanatics unwilling to respect any position other than their own. If women's choices are to be trashed, why should radical feminists fare better than other women? Are they the elite? If the choices of pornographic models are not to be taken seriously, radical feminists cannot claim respect for their choices either. If culture negates the free will of women, anti-porn feminists are in the same boat as the rest of us.”

FeminismWomens RightsRadical FeminismLibertarian FeminismIndividualist FeminismSex Positive FeminismInfightingAnti Radical Feminism
Book:XXX: A Woman's Right to Pornography
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“Contracts are records of voluntary exchanges. Labor contracts are voluntary exchanges of work for wages. Most people enter labor contracts-that is, get a job-because they need money. But, to radical feminists, this is "economic coercion." Because they believe the free market forces people to take jobs, they view it as a form of violence.”

FeminismWomens RightsLibertarian FeminismIndividualist FeminismSex Positive Feminism
Book:XXX: A Woman's Right to Pornography
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“Refusing to acknowledge the contracts of women in pornography places them in the same legal category as children or mental incompetents. In Indianapolis, the anti-pornography ordinance argued that women, like children, needed special protection under the law: "Children are incapable of consenting to engage in pornographic conduct.... By the same token, the physical and psychological well-being of women ought to be afforded comparable protection, for the coercive environment ... vitiates any notion that they consent or `choose' to perform in pornography." [2] This attitude of "I'm a helpless victim" could easily backfire on women who may be required to prove they are able to manage their own finances, or to handle custody of their own children. Moreover, the idea of men "emotionally or verbally coercing" women re-enforces the concept of men as intellectually and psychologically stronger than women. It is the old "Man of Steel/ Woman of Kleenex" myth.”

FeminismLibertarian FeminismIndividualist FeminismPro PornPro Pornography
Book:XXX: A Woman's Right to Pornography
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“To blame words or images for the actions of people is simplistic. It retards any real examination into what motivates violent crimes, such as rape. Radical feminists are handing a "pornography made me do it" excuse to rapists. Nothing should be allowed to mitigate the personal responsibility of every man who physically abuses a woman.”

FeminismViolence Against WomenIndividualist FeminismSex Positive FeminismPro PornPro Pornography
Book:XXX: A Woman's Right to Pornography
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“The mere fact that some women are upset by the presence of pornography tells us very little. It tells us nothing about whether porn is right or wrong, valuable or useless. After all, feminism distresses a great many people. Yet feminists would argue that the movement should not only be tolerated, it should be nurtured. They consider women's rights to have a positive, rather than a negative effect on society-even if it causes distress. Perhaps the same is true of the graphic depiction of sex.”

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