Pornography featuring strangulation and choking will be banned in the UK within months.
The ban, which will be brought under the Crime and Policing bill, comes amidst a rising concern that such acts have become a “sexual norm.” It follows a recent government review that revealed that strangulation was "rife" in pornography, which was contributing to the act being imitated in people’s sex lives.
A survey conducted by the Institute For Addressing Strangulation (IFAS) revealed that 16 per cent of participants had been strangled during sex, the majority aged between 16 and 34.
35 per cent of respondents in this age category said that they had been choked by a partner while having consensual sex.
“Depicting strangulation during sex is not only dangerous, but also degrading, with real life consequences for women,” said Alex Davies-Jones, minister for Victims & Violence Against Women and Girls.
“Cracking down on the appalling rise of strangulation pornography will protect women and send a clear signal to men and boys that misogyny will not be tolerated.”
Why has the ban been introduced?
The ban is part of the government’s pledge to halve violence against women and girls in a decade.
In February, the Independent Porn Review, a yearly assessment of the legislation, regulation and enforcement of pornography, revealed that media sources have normalised violent acts such as strangulation and choking, which has led to a consensus that it is safe.
The review, conducted by Baroness Gabby Bertin, urged ministers to take action against violent, degrading and misogynistic porn by implementing 32 recommendations.
She said that online pornography is contributing to some of the “gravest issues in our society, from domestic violence to toxic masculinity to the mental health crisis among young people.”
The report follows an Australian survey of 4,702 people aged from 18 to 35, published in the journal the Archives of Sexual Behavior last year, revealing that pornography was the most common way that people became aware of choking during sex (34.8 per cent), followed by conversations with friends.
It also highlighted striking gender disparities. 78 per cent of transgender and non-binary people reported being strangled during sex, compared with 61 per cent of women and 43 per cent of men.
Is strangulation ever safe?
The survey of Australian 18 to 35-year-olds suggested that part of the reason why the BDSM act has become so prevalent is because many people believe that it can be done safely.
But according to WebMD, this is far from the truth: “erotic asphyxiation is one of the riskiest sexual activities a person can try.”
Strangulation is dangerous because it cuts off the blood supply to the brain, which can cause dizziness and a lightheaded feeling. It causes oxygen in the body to drop, while carbon dioxide increases. This can cause brain damage or death.
Other risks include passing out, strokes, seizures and speech disorders. It can also have a psychological effect, causing problems such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression.
“The risks associated with brain injury increase with each subsequent strangulation,” Professor Heather Douglas, from Melbourne University Law School, told The Guardian. “It’s a little bit like head injury in that injuries can accumulate.” Strangulation can also cause miscarriages.
“There is no such thing as safe strangulation,” Andrea Simon, Director of the End Violence Against Women Coalition (EVAW), said.
This is because “women cannot consent to the long-term harm it can cause, including impaired cognitive functioning and memory.”
She said that its depiction in pornography “is fuelling dangerous behaviours, particularly among young people” and that the ban is a “vital step towards recognising the role violent pornography plays in shaping attitudes to women and regulating an industry which promotes and profits from violence against women.”
Will the ban make a difference?
According to the BBC, there is no data on the number of people who died from strangulation during sex. However, the most recent femicide census shows that of the 2,000 women aged 14 or older who have been killed in the UK since 2014, strangulation was used in 550 cases (27 per cent). Around 372 women were strangled by an intimate partner.
Studies have also suggested that victims are seven times more likely to be murdered by their partner if non-fatal strangulation has taken place beforehand.
But whether the ban will be implemented adequately is another story. Bernie Ryan, CEO of IFAS said that while the strangulation ban is “encouraging,” IFAS “will be looking closely at how this is actually implemented online to ensure platforms are compelled to remove this type of content.”
