Adult Film Stars Speak Out on How Amy Coney Barrett Could Be 'Catastrophic' for Porn Industry

Amy Coney Barrett, Trump's pick to succeed the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg in the Supreme Court, spells potential trouble for a multitude of reasons impossible to overstate.

Earlier this month, for example, Lambda Legal—the largest national legal organization with a mission focused on securing and maintaining "full recognition" of civil rights for LGBTQ people—published an open letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee highlighting Barrett's history of "red flags" and "perverse, reactionary" philosophy.

And now, by way of a new must-read Daily Beast piece by Aurora Snow, adult film stars are speaking out with a warning on how a Barrett confirmation could mark the latest attempted attack from a religion-obsessed faction on an industry that has long faced pushback from erosive voices.

As actress and After Adult podcast co-host Siri Dahl explained, Barrett's confirmation has the potential to be "catastrophic" for the industry if any First Amendment-focused cases hit the Supreme Court.

"Instead of supporting equal free speech for all Americans, she seems to support privileged free speech for religious Americans," Dahl, who's also worried about Barrett's potential impact on women's reproductive rights, said. "There's no way that will be good for the porn industry."

Mary Moody, a Penthouse Pet and Chaturbate Broadcaster of the Year recipient, echoed these concerns while pointing out that the optimistic approach of assuming Barrett simply set aside her extremist personal beliefs when making judgments is most likely a naive reading of the impending situation.

"Her history speaks for itself, and when given the option to rule on cases that will impact sex workers, it is clear she will lean on her radical conservative religious beliefs to aid her," Moody said.

In short, while so-called sexually explicit content—i.e. porn—is indeed protected by the First Amendment, those who seek to dismantle an industry that should remain protected could hide behind the ludicrous argument of obscenity. Obscenity, though not clearly defined, is not backed by the First Amendment.

The full Beast piece also includes insight from Sssh founder Angie Rowntree, adult content creator Bea York, and Judge Herb Dodell. Read it here.

And for more on Barrett's track record of awfulness, this rundown from Lambda Legal is essential.