Pornography Victims Compensation Act
Encyclopedia
The Pornography Victims' Compensation Act of 1991 was a bill, S. 983, in the U.S. Congress
. The sponsor in the Senate was Senator Mitch McConnell
with eight cosponsors. A Senate committee held hearings on the bill. The bill was not voted on, did not pass, and did not become law.
producers, publishers, distributors, exhibitors, and sellers without needing a prior criminal charge
against the pornography itself. It was written not to prohibit any publication, but to hold liable for certain consequences, according to McConnell. For political pragmatism, the bill was limited to child pornography
and obscene material
, that being already unprotected by the U.S. Constitution's
First Amendment
.
Informally, it was known as the Bundy Bill, after serial murderer Ted Bundy
, who attributed his killings partly to porn.
decisions on the First Amendment led to wider support.
Other versions, searched for as introduced from approximately 1973 to part of 2010, included these:
and 200 National Organization for Women (NOW)
chapters, but not two in New York
and California
and not from the national level of NOW. Support simultaneously came from Christian fundamentalists.
Opponents included Nadine Strossen
, Betty Friedan
, Adrienne Rich
, Katha Pollitt
, Karen DeCrow
, Nora Ephron
, Mary Gordon
, Judy Blume
, Jamaica Kincaid
, Erica Jong
, Susan Isaacs
, and "172 other feminist women" and Mary Morello
.
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
. The sponsor in the Senate was Senator Mitch McConnell
Mitch McConnell
Addison Mitchell "Mitch" McConnell, Jr. is the senior United States Senator from Kentucky and the Republican Minority Leader.- Early life, education, and military service :...
with eight cosponsors. A Senate committee held hearings on the bill. The bill was not voted on, did not pass, and did not become law.
Legislative substance
Under the bill, a person who was attacked after the attacker was substantially spurred by pornography could have been able to sue the pornography'sPornography
Pornography or porn is the explicit portrayal of sexual subject matter for the purposes of sexual arousal and erotic satisfaction.Pornography may use any of a variety of media, ranging from books, magazines, postcards, photos, sculpture, drawing, painting, animation, sound recording, film, video,...
producers, publishers, distributors, exhibitors, and sellers without needing a prior criminal charge
Indictment
An indictment , in the common-law legal system, is a formal accusation that a person has committed a crime. In jurisdictions that maintain the concept of felonies, the serious criminal offence is a felony; jurisdictions that lack the concept of felonies often use that of an indictable offence—an...
against the pornography itself. It was written not to prohibit any publication, but to hold liable for certain consequences, according to McConnell. For political pragmatism, the bill was limited to child pornography
Child pornography
Child pornography refers to images or films and, in some cases, writings depicting sexually explicit activities involving a child...
and obscene material
Obscenity
An obscenity is any statement or act which strongly offends the prevalent morality of the time, is a profanity, or is otherwise taboo, indecent, abhorrent, or disgusting, or is especially inauspicious...
, that being already unprotected by the U.S. Constitution's
United States Constitution
The Constitution of the United States is the supreme law of the United States of America. It is the framework for the organization of the United States government and for the relationship of the federal government with the states, citizens, and all people within the United States.The first three...
First Amendment
First Amendment to the United States Constitution
The First Amendment to the United States Constitution is part of the Bill of Rights. The amendment prohibits the making of any law respecting an establishment of religion, impeding the free exercise of religion, abridging the freedom of speech, infringing on the freedom of the press, interfering...
.
Title
The formal title varied by year, as listed in the History section, below.Informally, it was known as the Bundy Bill, after serial murderer Ted Bundy
Ted Bundy
Theodore Robert "Ted" Bundy was an American serial killer, rapist, kidnapper, and necrophile who assaulted and murdered numerous young women during the 1970s, and possibly earlier...
, who attributed his killings partly to porn.
History
The bill or versions of it had been under Congressional consideration for seven years prior. Earlier versions reached a wider range of pornography but had less support; narrowing that range to what was unprotected by Supreme CourtSupreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
decisions on the First Amendment led to wider support.
Other versions, searched for as introduced from approximately 1973 to part of 2010, included these:
- Pornography Victims Protection Act of 1984, S. 3063 in the SenateUnited States SenateThe United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
, introduced by Sen. Arlen SpecterArlen SpecterArlen Specter is a former United States Senator from Pennsylvania. Specter is a Democrat, but was a Republican from 1965 until switching to the Democratic Party in 2009...
with no cosponsors. Hearings were held and, according to Sen. Specter, "[w]itnesses disagreed sharply about the general social effects of such [pornographic] materials. Some, such as Andrea Dworkin and Catherine [sic] MacKinnon, claimed that violent pornography is central to gender unequally [sic] in our society. Others, including Barry Lynn of the American Civil Liberties Union, denied that such a broad factual claim has been conclusively established. Sen. Specter considered it "premature" to introduce legislation "based on a civil rights approach", referring to an IndianapolisIndianapolisIndianapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Indiana, and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population is 839,489. It is by far Indiana's largest city and, as of the 2010 U.S...
ordinance and a proposed Minneapolis ordinance, but did introduce S. 3063 instead. - Pornography Victims Protection Act of 1985, S. 1187 in the Senate, introduced by Sen. Arlen Specter with one cosponsor. In 1987, Sen. Specter said this bill was a "companion" to H.R. 5509 (appearing in this list). This bill, S. 1187, was cited in a court case, in a judge's dissenting opinion.
- Pornography Victims Protection Act of 1986, H.R. 5509 in the House of RepresentativesUnited States House of RepresentativesThe United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
, introduced by Rep. Bill GreenS. William GreenSedgwick William "Bill" Green was a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from New York....
with 27 cosponsors.Sen. Specter, speaking in 1987, said H.R. 5509 "received strong bipartisan support." - Pornography Victims Protection Act of 1987, H.R. 1213 in the House of Representatives and S. 703 in the Senate (whether the bills were identical is not stated), introduced respectively by Rep. Bill Green with 118 cosponsors and by Sen. Arlen Specter with 15 cosponsors. For S. 703, Sen. Specter made a public statement on the day he introduced the bill, explaining its premises and listing some of the support it has received. For both bills, subcommittees of the respective judiciary committees held hearings.
- Pornography Victims Protection Act of 1989, H.R. 3472 in the House of Representatives, introduced by Rep. Bill Green with 61 cosponsors.
- Pornography Victims Compensation Act of 1989, S. 1226 in the Senate, introduced by Sen. Mitch McConnell with 11 cosponsors.
- Pornography Victims Compensation Act of 1989, H.R. 3785 in the House of Representatives, introduced by Rep. Tom TaukeTom TaukeThomas Joseph "Tom" Tauke is a former member of the U.S. House of Representatives. Tauke represented the northeast corner of the state of Iowa as a Republican from 1979 to 1991, entering Congress as one of the youngest members. Tauke left active politics in 1991 following an unsuccessful bid to...
with 25 cosponsors. - Pornography Victims Protection Act of 1991, H.R. 1768 in the House of Representatives, introduced by Rep. Bill Green with 68 cosponsors.
- Pornography Victims' Compensation Act of 1992, S. 1521 in the Senate, introduced by Sen. Mitch McConnell with 15 cosponsors.
- Pornography Victims Protection Act of 1993, H.R. 2174 in the House of Representatives, introduced by Rep. Jan Meyers with 33 cosponsors.
Supporters and opponents of 1991 bill
Support came from Feminists Fighting PornographyFeminists Fighting Pornography
Feminists Fighting Pornography was a political activist organization against pornography. It advocated for U.S. Federal legislation to allow lawsuits against the porn industry by women whose attackers were inspired by pornography. FFP was based in New York, N.Y., was founded in 1983 or 1984, and...
and 200 National Organization for Women (NOW)
National Organization for Women
The National Organization for Women is the largest feminist organization in the United States. It was founded in 1966 and has a membership of 500,000 contributing members. The organization consists of 550 chapters in all 50 U.S...
chapters, but not two in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
and California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
and not from the national level of NOW. Support simultaneously came from Christian fundamentalists.
Opponents included Nadine Strossen
Nadine Strossen
Nadine Strossen was president of the American Civil Liberties Union from February 1991 to October 2008. She was the first woman and the youngest person to ever lead the ACLU. A professor at New York Law School, Professor Strossen sits on the Council on Foreign Relations...
, Betty Friedan
Betty Friedan
Betty Friedan was an American writer, activist, and feminist.A leading figure in the Women's Movement in the United States, her 1963 book The Feminine Mystique is often credited with sparking the "second wave" of American feminism in the twentieth century...
, Adrienne Rich
Adrienne Rich
Adrienne Cecile Rich is an American poet, essayist and feminist. She has been called "one of the most widely read and influential poets of the second half of the 20th century."-Early life:...
, Katha Pollitt
Katha Pollitt
Katha Pollitt is an American feminist poet, essayist and critic. She is the author of four essay collections and two books of poetry...
, Karen DeCrow
Karen DeCrow
Karen DeCrow is an American feminist attorney, author, and activist. Beginning her career as a journalist, she joined the National Organization for Women in 1969, and in 1969 she ran for Mayor of the city of Syracuse, New York, becoming the first female mayoral candidate in the history of New York...
, Nora Ephron
Nora Ephron
Nora Ephron is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, novelist, playwright, journalist, author, and blogger.She is best known for her romantic comedies and is a triple nominee for the Academy Award for Writing Original Screenplay; for Silkwood, When Harry Met Sally... and Sleepless in...
, Mary Gordon
Mary Gordon
Mary Catherine Gordon is an American writer and is the McIntosh Professor of English at Barnard College. She is best known for her novels, memoirs and literary criticism...
, Judy Blume
Judy Blume
Judy Blume is an American author. She has written many novels for children and young adults which have exceeded sales of 80 million and been translated into 31 languages...
, Jamaica Kincaid
Jamaica Kincaid
Jamaica Kincaid is a Caribbean novelist, gardener, and gardening writer. She was born in the city of St. John's on the island of Antigua in the nation of Antigua and Barbuda...
, Erica Jong
Erica Jong
Erica Jong is an American author and teacher best known for her fiction and poetry.-Career:A 1963 graduate of Barnard College, and with an M.A...
, Susan Isaacs
Susan Isaacs
Susan Isaacs is an American novelist and screenwriter. She was born in Brooklyn, New York, educated at Queens College, and worked as a senior editor at Seventeen magazine. She married Elkan Abramowitz, a lawyer, in 1968 and in 1970 left work to stay at home with her newborn son, Andrew. Three...
, and "172 other feminist women" and Mary Morello
Mary Morello
Mary Morello founded in 1987 the anti-censorship group Parents For Rock And Rap. She is sometimes referred to as Tipper Gore's nemesis in the 1980s battle over music censorship.-Biography:...
.