31. Show_Me_The_Monet_CarPoolXXX

CarPoolXXX is a special series of podcasts and vodcasts (hosted by Paul Maginn) that explores the issue of Porn Performers as a Migrant Community. Los Angeles has been the epicentre of global porn production since the 1980s and as such thousands of people from across the US and internationally - especially Europe - have migrated to California in order to be in the porn industry. Academic studies of migrant communities tend to focus on people who come from certain countries, nationalities, or religious/cultural backgrounds. Whilst economic migrants have been a feature of migration studies, again the focus often tends to be on particular types of migrants - i.e. the 'illegal' or 'undocumented' who come from particular countries. Porn performers, I argue, constitute a minority migrant community on the basis that a relatively small proportion of people are engaged in this form of labour, and many, if not most, of the people who work in porn both in front of and behind the camera have migrated to LA from elsewhere in the US or from overseas. Despite our mass consumption of pornography plus the contribution of the porn industry to the economy, technology, entertainment, the arts and our culture in general, porn performers continue to endure stigma and discrimination in relation to things like housing, banking and employment opportunities outside of porn. As such, all of this begs the question: In what ways are the migration and resettlement experiences of porn performers similar/different to other minority migrant communities who seek to make a life in a new city/country? The CarpoolXXX series seeks to lift the lid on this question by exploring the experiences of a mix of porn performers who are based in Los Angeles and/or Las Vegas. Episode 1 of the CarpoolXXX series –͞Show Me the Monet͟ - features Melissa Monet, a native New Yorker, who entered the porn industry in the early 1990s. Melissa has starred in, written, directed and produced adult films. Recently retired from the industry, Melissa devotes much of her time to helping and rescuing lost dogs and making custom jewellery. This episode was recorded in late January 2018 whilst Melissa and I drove around Venice, Santa Monica and the Pacific Pallisades.