ABSTRACT
Participating in the adult industry is, in many ways, what allowed Ned Henry come out as queer, though mainstream porn has not always been supportive of that part of his identity. Appearing in porn changed his perspective on heterosexuality, although porn started with a heterosexual relationship. Porn is made to sexually arouse, and any given piece of pornography is designed to sexually arouse a certain type of person. The response from the straight porn world was even more brutal. Male performers who do both gay and straight films are considered by most of the mainstream straight porn world to be irresponsible HIV risks. Given the size of the porn industry this makes the HIV rate in porn far lower than that of the general US population. Working in the porn industry has taught Henry an immense amount about his own sexuality and gender presentation, and has forced him to face some uncomfortable truths about his culture.
