Manifesto of Sexual Freedom
by Hugh Loebner
BELIEVING that LIBERTY was to have been the sweetest fruit of INDEPENDENCE;
DESPONDENT because adults are daily being arrested, fined, and jailed by reason of engaging in commercial sex with other consenting adults, or facilitating such behavior;
ASSERTING that commercial sex is demeaning only when an intolerant and puritanical society defines it to be so, and makes it a crime;
REJOICING that homosexuality, which was once considered a perversion and a crime, today is generally viewed with tolerance and respect; and that those who, in the past, oppressed homosexuals are now remembered with scorn; and those who today oppress them are considered malevolent;
UNDERSTANDING that there is a legitimate state interest in reducing the prevalence of sexually transmitted diseases, and that this can be better accomplished by the regulation of commercial sex than by its proscription;
EMBOLDENED by the belief that the toleration of prostitution is the cause of LIBERTY, that it is the cause of HAPPINESS, and that it is a cause with SEX APPEAL;
BE IT RESOLVED therefore that June 9, 1996, and every June 9th thereafter, is declared to be, and henceforth shall be observed as, END SEXUAL OPPRESSION DAY; and that
CONSEQUENTLY, those who understand this to be so, and are in accord with this sentiment, shall petition their local government by promenading at their City Hall at lunch time on 6/9/96, and on every June 9th thereafter, carrying a sign with the demand:
"END SEXUAL OPPRESSION"
written thereon, until sex between consenting adults is nowhere a crime in the United States of America.
COMMENTS ON A MANIFESTO
Men and women of the Internet--would you be free from police oppression and harassment of your sexuality?
If we, sexually oppressed citizens of the United States, ever wish to be free we must seize our destiny by demonstrating political power.
We can do this with the power of the Internet, and a commitment to liberty.
Liberty, Happiness, and Sex Appeal--no politician can go far wrong who builds his platform with these planks. Such a cause is ultimately invincible.
What should you do if you agree with this cause?
FIRST. Publicize this manifesto. Forward it to friends. Don't assume they will receive it from someone else, or that they read alt.sex newsgroups.
SECOND: Lobby your local and state political leaders. SPEAK UP. Argue for the advantages of decriminalization. Decriminalization would:
End expensive and useless police efforts.
Provide safe sensual pleasure.
End an unnecessary source of human misery.
Provide protection and safety for sex workers and clients.
Provide an opportunity to reduce the incidence of STDs.
Reduce the flow of money to organized crime.
Provide a source of LEGAL employment to those who would do sex work.
THIRD: Come out of the closet. There is nothing intrinsically shameful in commercial sex. The rich and the famous patronize prostitutes. It is a normal human trait to pay for sex or to be paid (one way or another) for it.
FOURTH: Demonstrate. On Sunday, June 9, 1996, from 11:30 AM to 12:30 PM, I will promenade outside City Hall in Manhattan, NY, carrying a sign with the words "END SEXUAL OPPRESSION" written on it.
If I demonstrate alone, so be it. I will be shown to be a buffoon. That would be no great loss. However, if we march together we will be free. That would be a blessing. My course of action is clear.
This mission would be quixotic, if it were not for the fact that men and women are being arrested daily. It would be quixotic if it were not for the fact that promoting prostitution is a felony punishable by years of imprisonment in NY and other states. It would be quixotic, if it were not for the fact that Miss Heidi Fleiss has been sentenced to 3 years in prison in California for pandering (Oscar Wilde's infamous sentence was 2 years). This would be quixotic, were it not for the fact that people are losing their reputations, their cars, their jobs, their tranquillity, and their freedom.
This would be quixotic, were it not tragic.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Who am I?--It really doesn't matter, for if this succeeds it will be because of us not me. However, for the curious:
Hugh Gene Loebner
BA '63 The Johns Hopkins University, Liberal Arts
MA '65 New York University, Sociology
Ph.D '72 University of Massachusetts, Demography
President, Crown Industries, East Orange NJ- Mfg of Restaurant Equip.
Donor, The Loebner Prize for Artificial Intelligence
(see)
WIRED "What's it Like to be Human?" April 1995 Vol 3, No 4 pp 132-137
NY Times "So Who's Talking: Human or Machine?" Tues. Nov 5, 1991 p C1
NY Times "Can Machines Think? Humans Match Wits" Sat. Nov 9, 1991 p A1
Note: The Loebner Prize is the Turing Test for Computer Artificial Intelligence. (Rules and info are available on comp.ai or e-mail requests to me at loebner@acm.org)
Alan Turing was a British Mathematician whose work in code breaking during WW II helped the Allies defeat the Axis powers. Turing did basic work in the theory of computers.
Alan Turing was arrested for the crime of homosexuality and in 1954 committed suicide. It is the knowledge of his martyrdom that drives me in this endeavor.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Unrepentant john
(see)
NY Newsday "A Regular John-And Proud Of It," Thurs., Aug. 25, 1994 P. A6
ADAM "Talk of the $troll - New York Johns Take a Stand," Tracy Quan, July 95, V.39, N.7 p. 34
<< Sex FAQs