![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
If people honestly believe that a male adult taking pictures of naked 12-13 year old girls and exhibiting them as ‘art’ for the whole world to see is a good idea, shoot, there’s still freedom of thought in this country. But for some reason, the people defending him aren’t participating in this debate. And I can’t figure out if it’s because they have no legitimate argument in support of him so they’re trying to confuse the issue or if they’re really that willful and blind.
‘Look at the controversy raised by Young & Jackson’s Chloe…the model for Chloe was only six years older than Henson’s model. Is there really any difference?’- Darius West.
Back on topic, I ask you to consider this quote from Bill Henson himself:
‘I meet people who have had, for many years, a very intense relationship with one of my pictures hanging on their wall, over their bed…’
‘Clothes don’t protect children. Nudity isn’t immoral.’- Paul Rapoport
I’m in shock over this one. There are just…I can’t describe how wrong the first half of that statement is. What the hell does that even mean? Is he saying a picture of a clothed kid leaves them just as vulnerable as a picture of a naked kid? O.o
A poll in the newspaper:
‘Should police be concerned about Bill Henson’s photographs of naked minors?’
I have a huge problem with the phrasing of the question. It suggests that the police are *choosing* to involve themselves in this situation, they’re kinda inviting themselves to the party to weigh in on the dude’s art. Bill Henson supporters are shrieking about censorship and how our rights are being infringed and acting like the police are uncultured bullies who just want to ruin everyone’s fun. PEOPLE, it is ILLEGAL. A crime was reported, the police investigated, charges may and *should* be laid. End of story. But nooo…
‘The NSW police should be kicking themselves for being stupid on this one. They are holding the law up to scrutiny as an art critic and trying to make Australia look like a nation of retarded wowsers to international eyes’- Darius West
Btw. Still not 100% up-to-date with my comprehension of Australian slang. ‘Wowsers’? Wtf? O.o
In response to the newspaper poll mentioned above:
‘Probably not. I haven’t seen the photographs but I understand they’re not what constitutes pornography because pornography has explicit intent to arouse’- Marina Vassiliouk
‘Insidious censorship is creeping through this country and through every aspect of life. Political correctness and currying of favor is rife. Unfortunately, ‘freedom of expression’ means having to get permission to actually express yourself’- Blair Edgar
‘In a society replete with sexual images in television shows, advertising and books, and the dividing line between childhood and adulthood decidedly and increasingly blurred, are these pictures likely to be seriously shocking or potentially damaging?’- Michelle Grattan, Age writer]
‘Maybe she should turn to fashion modeling instead, where trussed up in a miniskirt and stilettos in impersonation of a 21 year old…she’d be lauded…’- Larissa Dubecki, Age writer. [May not be obvious from this snippet, but in context, she’s actually supporting Henson, and using sarcasm here to suggest that the girl would be in an analogous situation in modeling as she would posing for his art]
‘It’s not the picture of the person in her natural state that is the problem, it’s the sick mind of the deviate who cannot separate nudity from sex’- M. Rickard
