SACRAMENTO, California -- It wasn't exactly Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. More like Suzeee does Sacramento.
Members of the Free Speech Coalition, a lobbying group that represents the adult entertainment industry, lined up Rockette-style on Tuesday to urge California state legislators to leave them alone.
The group rallied at the capitol to crow about the industry's US$5.175 billion contribution to the state's economy last year. The figure, which represents sales and rentals of adult entertainment, got a significant boost from Internet sales of $875 million.
Noting that it took porn videos to push VCRs into American homes, lobbyists said the same phenomenon is now happening on the Net.
"The popularity of Internet porn [is a strong factor] in pushing certain technologies to the edge, like streaming video," said activist Mark Kernes.
The rally was designed to attract attention for the coalition's primary goal, which is to avert potential censorship laws. Though no such legislation is pending now, the group pointed to a measure defeated in 1998 that would have targeted the adult industry for additional taxation.
"No one considers passing laws regulating the nuclear industry without consulting the nuclear industry first," said the coalition's executive director, Jeffrey Douglas.
"We are here to protect our rights," Douglas said. "There is nothing shameful about sex -- or the people who have mastered the performance art of it."
Internet porn stars Christi Lake and videostar Shayla LaVeaux both beamed high-voltage smiles and flashed pretty ankles.
"Most importantly, we are an industry with tremendous economic impact," said ex-porn star-cum-activist Gloria Leonard.
The $5.175 billion figure is a number to be reckoned with and speaks for a voting force to be reckoned with, said Douglas. "We want to get out the vote. We are even thinking of setting up a lobbyist in Washington."
The coalition already has powerful friends -- like the American Civil Liberties Union -- who help to fight the adult entertainment industry's negative image, Douglas said.
And the Free Speech Coalition is doing its part by sending young women like Lake -- best known for her Fun Fuxx video series, in which she has sex with fans who write letters to her -- into the community.
The group also presented California lawmakers with a white paper detailing the sex industry's concerns. An effort to dispel the industry's Boogie Nights reputation, the paper addresses such as HIV and substance abuse. And it demands better and safer conditions for its workers.
The coalition has authored proposed legislation, such as the "Traci Lords Act," which seeks to criminalize the act of underage performers who misrepresent themselves as adults in order to make adult videos.
"We want to make it clear to lawmakers that, as an industry, we are now sophisticated and mature and they have to deal with us, especially in this era of term limits," Douglas said.
