In an already controversial industry, the recent uncovering of a porn actor’s positive HIV test has again sparked the debate over mandatory condom use in X-rated productions.

The HIV positive test comes from the August 2nd the Free Speech Coalition database, which is aimed at preventing the spread of sexually transmitted diseases among porn actors through mandatory testing. Being a part of the database gets more work, so porn actors must get tested every 30 days and present a clean bill of health to be a part of it.

Michael Weinstein, president of the AIDS Healthcare Foundation in Los Angeles comments:

“Testing is not a substitute for condom use, and it never will be. No test can detect HIV from the moment of infection. There will always be a window period. The average American male has seven female sexual partners in a lifetime. But it’s possible for a male to have seven sexual partners in a single day on porn movie set. Because this is a network that’s kind of inbred, the spread of disease could be exponential. You can’t dangle from a 30-story building from a rope; you have to wear a harness. The idea that hurting these performers is a matter of freedom of expression is simply wrong.”

The AIDS Healthcare Foundation is also calling for mandatory condom use in the making of adult films, a push that may make sense to the public, but not to many actors in the business.

Christian Mann, general manger of Evil Angel Productions and unpaid Free Speech Coalition board member explains:

“If the market would accept condom-positive movies, that’s what we would all be making. The fact is consumers don’t want that. The market will always trump regulation. If you make it so California-based productions cannot compete in the market, you’ll just drive production out of the state.”

This controversy is nothing new however. In 1998, veteran porn actor Mark Wallice tested HIV-positive after reputedly hiding his positive status for two years and infecting several co-stars.

In 2004, Darren James spread the virus to three women, shutting down film production industry wide for a month. Finally in 2009, a positive HIV test for a performer known only as “Patient Zero” sparked a legal battle between the California Department of Occupational Safety and Health and AIM Medical Associates over performers’ rights to medical privacy.

The Free Speech Coalition says it intends to “lead, protect and support the growth and well-being of the adult entertainment community” by being the legislative watchdog for the industry; lobbying in California and in Congress.

Meanwhile, the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, which is also Los Angeles based, is trying to get a measure placed on the city’s June 2012 ballot that would require adult film performers to use condoms for porn filmmakers to obtain L.A. city filming permits.

The group must submit a petition with at least 41,138 qualifying signatures by Dec. 23 to place the measure on the ballot. If they succeed, it will be the first time the issue, litigated and disputed during state regulatory meetings, would come before voters.

Written by Sy Kraft