Girls Night In’ is a women-owned local retail store specializing in books, sex toys and safer sex materials. In addition to the merchandise, they provide educational and informational lectures and workshops to the Pittsburgh community on sexuality-related issues. Cofounders Karen Derzic and Alison Bodenheimer became friends at the University of Pittsburgh through a mutual interest in all-things-feminist. The duo decided to collaborate on a sexuality resource center/sex toy store after discussing the concept at a Roe v Wade celebration in 2003. This year, they’ve got the online store up and running and have been able to put on some home parties. By 2005, they are hoping to have a physical home.

Mid-June, Girls’ Night In put on the Pittsburgh premier film screening of "The Naked Feminist" at Modern Formations art gallery in Garfield. The documentary by Louisa Achille "challenges the mythology surrounding women in the porn industry head-on through a series of candid interviews with porn stars, academics and feminists…It seeks to strip away the ideological straightjacket surrounding the decades old ‘porn versus feminist’ debate."

The film shares eye-opening stories about the struggles women face in the industry and lays out a fascinating history of the women becoming socially conscious and organizing themselves to take action. Another concept the film delves into is the ways in which pornography can be a tool for women’s empowerment. One woman interviewed in the film points out that people have always looked at sexually explicit material. As an ancient hieroglyphic of a couple embraced in a passionate, sexual position fills the screen, she asserts that the real question is, whether we want that material to perpetuate positive images of woman that allow them to become comfortable with their sexuality or negative ones that force them to harbor shame?

Marie Skoczylas, editor of The NewPeople, speaks with Alison and Karen about some topics that tend to get peoples’ panties in a bunch.

MS: How do you explain to the anti-pornster that porn can be feminist?

GNI: Porn, for the people who make it, is a job and simply that. Women in this industry, unlike almost any other, have the power to control their working conditions and pay to an unprecedented degree. Additionally, selling one's labor is the reality of life. To say that women do not have the capacity to decide how and to whom their labor will be sold is extremely anti-feminist. It reduces women to helpless beings, unable to make decisions on their own. That's not how feminists see women.

MS: As there is a lot of porn out there that can be violent or degrading to women, what are your thoughts on the proliferation of this material and its overshadowing effect on the concept of porn (and the fight against it) in general?

GNI: We see two things happening in the porn industry right now: the creation of new, queer-friendly, women-produced companies and an increase in the amount of studios making violent, degrading films that portray women as objects of contempt. The people who are behind this second, misogynistic group of films are unfortunately given a degree of legitimacy by retailers who agree to stock that material. This issue is not one of law - the First Amendment gives those people the right to make whatever they want and we respect that - the issue is one of consumer power. A very small segment of the market buys those films and we don't believe that most people want that kind of adult entertainment. But because of the culture of shame in our society, they are too embarrassed to speak up about it. Once consumers of adult materials shed their shame on the subject and tell their retailers that they prefer films where women are not hurt or degraded, I think we will see a reduction in the amount of that kind of material produced.

MS: How can porn be a tool in women's sexual empowerment?

GNI: In "The Naked Feminist," sex educator Betty Dodson tells a very illuminating story about the first time she was with a particular lover and refused to allow him to see her naked because she thought she was deformed. After looking at pictures of other women she realized her body was normal and beautiful. Seeing yourself and your fantasies represented on screen is a very powerful thing. It is legitimizing for many people. We truly believe that people - and women in particular - who are able to enjoy themselves and know that their desires are healthy and natural are happier, more empowered people. In many ways, pornography can help people to realize that they are not the dirty perverts society told them they were.

MS: Anything you'd like to add?

GNI: Girls' Night In, in addition to being a retailer, is a creative political force geared toward exacting real change. Sex-positive people have had their issues ignored for far too long and we're done talking about how great it would be if things changed - we're going to change them. We've been overwhelmed by the wonderful positive response we've gotten from the Pittsburgh community and we hope that we can be a partner in fighting for the erotic rights of all people.

For more information, visit www.girls-night-in.com or e-mail thegirls@girls-night-in.com

Karen Derzic (left) and Alison Bodenheimer (right) cofounders of
Girls' Night In. (Photo by Marie Skoczylas)