Two Decades After a Murder, Government Finally Acts on Strangulation Porn
The government faces an uphill struggle in its latest attempt to curb violent pornography, specifically targeting material featuring strangulation and suffocation. This comes twenty-two years after Jane Longhurst, a Brighton teacher, was murdered by a man who consumed such content before, during, and after her killing. Despite three previous laws aimed at restricting violent porn, the act that contributed to her death has become disturbingly mainstream.
A Normalised Danger: The Choking 'Kink' Epidemic
Campaigner and writer Jo Bartosch, who co-authored the book 'Pornocracy', describes how researching the pornography industry left her scarred. She now views everyday interactions with suspicion, wondering which men have watched rape simulations and recognising the dangerous implication of bruises on young women's necks. Men who are aroused by strangling their partners are significantly more likely to kill them.
The scale of the problem is staggering. A UK study of over 2,000 women revealed that 38% had been 'choked' during sex. This figure rises to more than half among women aged 18 to 24. The practice, often rebranded as a mere 'kink', is lethally dangerous. Unconsciousness can occur in as little as 10 seconds, with the risk of seizures and death following swiftly. Survivors can suffer brain injury, miscarriage, and thyroid damage, and are seven times more likely to be later murdered by that partner.
Fiona Mackenzie, founder of the We Can’t Consent to This campaign, expressed her despair, stating that efforts to remove such content from social media have ultimately failed. She believes a reluctance in government to be seen as 'prudish' has allowed a culture where men’s violence is rebranded as sexual preference.
From Niche Perversion to Pop Culture Mainstay
The normalisation of sexual strangulation is now embedded in popular culture. Rapper Jack Harlow's 2023 number-one hit 'Lovin On Me' contained the lyrics 'I'm vanilla, baby, I'll choke you, but I ain't no killer, baby'. This coincided with a TikTok 'blackout' trend where children mimed strangulation. Earlier this year, Andrew Tate's ex-girlfriend alleged in a lawsuit that the influencer choked her until she lost consciousness during sex.
As documented in 'Pornocracy', men often imitate online pornography not out of malice, but from a misguided belief that it is what women desire. Conversely, young women report feeling pressured to accept painful or humiliating acts for fear of being labelled 'vanilla'.
Alex Davies-Jones, the minister for victims and tackling violence against women and girls, recently announced the new law, stating: "This government will not stand by while women are violated online and victimised by violent pornography... We are sending a strong message that dangerous and sexist behaviour will not be tolerated."
However, with extreme pornography having already scripted the sexual expectations of a generation, the question remains whether this strong message comes too late to dismantle an industry that has proven more pervasive and profitable than the laws designed to control it.
