Finding porn that’s both ethical and queer-affirming can feel like a challenge, despite the internet’s seemingly endless cache of adult content. Mainstream porn, the kind you generally find on a free site with a million and one advertisements on the side panel, can feel like it performs a depiction of queerness that is not realistic or representative of queer sex, and is based on harmful stereotypes.
What is ethical porn?
Ethical porn is transparent about how the porn was created, and who pressed the upload button. Pirated content is unfortunately common, and the implications mean performers are not adequately compensated. Stolen content also has steeper ramifications around the potential for abuse and other mistreatments. Unfortunately, on free mainstream porn sites, it’s almost impossible to know if the performer was treated respectfully, or if equitable agreements were in place.
Ethical porn cares about respecting sex workers. Components like sexual health, consent, and personal agency are paramount. In ethical porn making, performers choose which scenes they want to be in, so they can offer enthusiastic consent about acts, and opt out of anything they might be uncomfortable with or simply dislike. They also have a say in who they work with. This component allows for ethical porn to center pleasure, instead of a performed version of it that’s all too common on mainstream sites.
The other aspect that makes porn ethical is the content itself. It’s inclusive, shows a variety of body types, gender identities, and ages, and shows more realistic depictions of sex. Mainstream porn often shows sex that is not true to life in terms of body type, ability, and pleasure. For queer porn, its depictions are usually based on stereotypes. Often in mainstream porn, queer porn can be fetishizing and seem like it’s designed for the viewpoint of anyone but queer people.
Especially for young people and those newer to sex, getting sex tips from mainstream porn and thinking this sex is the norm can lead to damaging behavior, like thinking activities such as choking are fine without consent.
How to know if porn is ethical
Ethical porn promotes transparency about who is making the porn, producing it, and the background of its creation.
Some sites will disclose their commitment to transparency around fair wages, or indicate how and where the porn was made. Ethical porn has a price tag for good reason; by purchasing a subscription, you’re directly supporting ethical porn-making.
Generally, free sites are not ethical. Although there’s no equivalent to B-Corp-certification in porn, where a specific marker indicates fair practices, a good indication is transparency around who is making the film, the portrayal of diverse bodies, and a fee attached to it. The use of the words “independent”, “inclusive”, and “feminist” can serve as green lights for ethical porn.
What is queer-affirming porn?
If you’ve ever watched mainstream “queer” porn as a queer person and asked the question “who is this for?” the porn you were watching was likely not queer affirming. Queer-affirming porn usually shows queer performers and validates the sexual experiences and pleasure of queer individuals. The viewpoint in mind when creating porn is essential. Consuming porn for queer people by queer people makes it that much more realistic and enjoyable.
Mainstream porn misrepresents queer individuals in a variety of harmful ways. Common narratives include depicting lesbian relationships as women that can be seduced by the right man, showing bisexual individuals as cheaters, or that all gay male sex is rough. Other injurious acts against the LGBTQ+ community include the erasure of nonbinary individuals and the complete degradation of trans people through common search terms.
Queer sex is sacred and deserves to be celebrated and adequately depicted, not produced by and for a cis-heteronormative gaze. Whether you’re looking for audio porn, or ethical porn sites, they exist, they just aren’t usually the sites to float to the top of a search engine when you google the word “porn”.
Queer affirming ethical porn resources
Indie Porn Revolution
According to Indie Porn Revolution’s site, it’s the oldest running queer porn site on the internet, with an accompanying tagline of “subversive smut made by ladies, artists, and queers.” The site includes both films and photos, and its mission statement describes inclusive casting, consent, use of safer sex supplies, affirming trans identities, and prioritizing pleasure. According to the site, “Our first priority is turning ourselves, and you the viewer, on. This is the purpose of porn, and we will not sacrifice arousal despite our crafty attitudes, alternative lifestyles, or political ideas.”
Trouble Films
Trouble Films was founded by Courtney Trouble, a queer, fat, nonbinary sex worker. It’s owned and run by trans and nonbinary sex workers. The site includes transparency about how much it pays performers for items like photo sets and films.
CrashPad Series
According to the site, “the crashpad is a secret apartment in San Francisco dedicated to hot, queer sex.” Though the site is lesbian-centric, it features a variety of people across the gender and sexuality spectrum. Pay for performers is included on the site, as well as a performer agency and consent policy, and a sexual health statement.
Pinklabel.tv
Pinklabel has a diverse range of films and performers. One highlight is that the site also features sex education taught by performers so that you can learn tips and educate about sexual health and pleasure while on a porn site. The site includes subcategories such as trans porn made by trans people, and BIPOC porn that centers BIPOC performers, sans the fetishizing found in mainstream unethical porn.
Dipsea
If watching porn isn’t quite your thing, listening to it might be! Dipsea provides a wide range of audio stories for listeners to choose from. It’s a women-founded site that aims to reimagine erotica and center female pleasure.
All stories are created in-house, and the site lists transparency about pay for writers and voice actors. The stories prioritize arousal, pleasure, and consent. A recent episode features voice-acting by queer heartthrob E.R. Fightmaster of Grey’s Anatomy and Shrill.
