With our free press under threat and federal funding for public media gone, your support matters more than ever. Help keep the LAist newsroom strong, become a monthly member or increase your support today during our fall member drive.
This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.
This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.
Sasha Grey, Literacy Advocate: What Are We So Afraid Of?
Reading Is Fundamental (Koga/LAist)
()
Actress and adult entertainer Sasha Grey was on "The View" this morning to serve as a "living Hot Topic" to talk about the whole reading to school kids debacle. The hosts managed to not impersonate a henhouse and pressed Grey on her decision not only to pursue a career in porn, but to participate in a program that had her reading to youngsters at a Compton elementary school.
Grey said that had the school contacted parents prior to her visit and had any of the parents objected, she would not have done the reading appearance. However, Grey points to the failings of the Compton Unified School District for not being forthcoming before or after her appearance--they initially denied Grey had been reading at the school on November 2, 2011--as well as the press, who Grey says threw a "sanctimonious media firestorm" her way when the so-called scandal broke.
One of the school district's most frustrating attempt at denial was to say they only knew Grey from her role on the HBO series "Entourage." According to a statement issued by the CUSD (not available on the CUSD site but published by L.A. Now): "The outside talent coordinator listed the actress as a mainstream actress from the HBO show 'Entourage.' Although we have worked with this talent coordinator for several years, we will meet to review the participant selection process."
Support for LAist comes from
Who does porn star Sasha Grey play on "Entourage" by the way? Why, it's the character of porn star Sasha Grey! Weirdsies, no?
What could perhaps be more outrageous is that parents are outraged at someone for reading to their children--the horror! Parents publicly lamented that the CUSD didn't pick a fireman or a policeman. Hey, how about the fireman who got busted for buying heroin? Because, certainly, our occupations cement our suitability for sharing a storybook with a room full of 1st graders.
Said Grey in a statement last week: "Illiteracy contributes to poverty; encouraging children to pick up a book is fundamental. I believe education is a universal right."
Is it so awful that an advocate for literacy happens to have made her fortune and fame doing hard-core sex scenes? Or are we so paralyzed that our five year olds might come home asking "Mommy, who is Sasha Grey?" (Hint: Maybe you don't have to tell them more than "actress." Remember, you're also telling them a fat old man in a red suit and a giant bunny come once a year to leave them presents.) So now we don't read to our kids, and we're too scared to talk to them, too.
At LAist, we believe in journalism without censorship and the right of a free press to speak truth to those in power. Our hard-hitting watchdog reporting on local government, climate, and the ongoing housing and homelessness crisis is trustworthy, independent and freely accessible to everyone thanks to the support of readers like you.
But the game has changed: Congress voted to eliminate funding for public media across the country. Here at LAist that means a loss of $1.7 million in our budget every year. We want to assure you that despite growing threats to free press and free speech, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust. Speaking frankly, the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news in our community.
We’re asking you to stand up for independent reporting that will not be silenced. With more individuals like you supporting this public service, we can continue to provide essential coverage for Southern Californians that you can’t find anywhere else. Become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission.
Thank you for your generous support and belief in the value of independent news.
Chip in now to fund your local journalism
(
LAist
)
Trending on LAist
-
Kevin Lacy has an obsession with documenting California’s forgotten and decaying places. -
Restaurants share resources in the food hall in West Adams as Los Angeles reckons with increasing restaurant closures. -
It will be the second national day of protest against President Donald Trump. -
The university says the compact, as the Trump administration called it, could undermine free inquiry and academic excellence. -
This is the one time you can do this legally! -
Metro officials said it will be able to announce an opening date “soon.”
Best of LAist