Shelley Lubben (May 18, 1968 – February 9, 2019) was an American author, singer, motivational speaker, and pornographic actress. As a performer in the adult film industry, she was known professionally as Roxy. After she left the sex industry, Lubben became a

born-again Christian To be born again, or to experience the new birth, is a phrase, particularly in evangelical Christianity, that refers to a "spiritual rebirth", or a regeneration of the human spirit. In contrast to one's physical birth, being "born again" is d ...

and

anti-pornography Reasons for opposition to pornography include religious objections, moral values, feminist concerns, as well as harmful effects, such as pornography addiction and erectile dysfunction. Pornography addiction is not a condition recognized by th ...

activist. From 2008 to 2016, she was the executive director of Pink Cross Foundation, which reached out to women and men in pornography and spoke in public forums about the hazardous working conditions that she experienced in the porn industry. In January 2016, Lubben closed Pink Cross Foundation. Lubben was also an ordained chaplain with the Order of Saint Martin with a degree in theological studies.

Early life

Lubben was born on May 18, 1968, in

Pasadena, California Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commerci ...

. In an interview with

Howard Stern Howard Allan Stern (born January 12, 1954) is an American broadcaster and media personality. He is best known for his radio show, ''The Howard Stern Show'', which gained popularity when it was nationally syndicated on terrestrial radio from 1 ...

and ''

Deseret News The ''Deseret News'' () is a multi-platform newspaper based in Salt Lake City, published by Deseret News Publishing Company, a subsidiary of Deseret Management Corporation, which is owned by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS ...

'', Lubben stated that when she was nine years old, a female classmate and her teenage brother

sexually abused Sexual abuse or sex abuse is abusive sexual behavior by one person upon another. It is often perpetrated using physical force, or by taking advantage of another. It often consists of a persistent pattern of sexual assaults. The offender is r ...

her in a swimming pool. Lubben worked as a

prostitute Prostitution is a type of sex work that involves engaging in sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, non-pe ...

from age 18 to 26. During this time, she became pregnant by one of her customers, and later gave birth to a daughter.

Career

Adult industry

Lubben entered the adult film industry, while working as a prostitute, when she was 24 years old. During her time in the sex industry, she contracted

herpes Herpes simplex, often known simply as herpes, is a viral infection caused by the herpes simplex virus. Herpes infections are categorized by the area of the body that is infected. The two major types of herpes are oral herpes and genital herp ...

and

HPV Human papillomavirus infection (HPV infection) is caused by a DNA virus from the ''Papillomaviridae'' family. Many HPV infections cause no symptoms and 90% resolve spontaneously within two years. In some cases, an HPV infection persists and ...

, which led to

cervical cancer Cervical cancer is a cancer arising from the cervix or in any layer of the wall of the cervix. It is due to the abnormal growth of cells that can invade or spread to other parts of the body. Early on, typically no symptoms are seen. Later sympt ...

, and resulted in the removal of half her

cervix The cervix (: cervices) or cervix uteri is a dynamic fibromuscular sexual organ of the female reproductive system that connects the vagina with the uterine cavity. The human female cervix has been documented anatomically since at least the time ...

. During and after her life in the sex industry, she battled alcohol and drug addictions. During her pornographic career, which lasted from 1993 to 1994, Lubben appeared in about 15 hardcore movies. Lubben stated that the sex acts that women perform on film sets are physically harmful (including

anal Anal may refer to: Related to the anus *Related to the anus of animals: ** Anal fin, in fish anatomy ** Anal vein, in insect anatomy ** Anal scale, in reptile anatomy *Related to the human anus: ** Anal sex, a type of sexual activity involving ...

and uterine hemorrhaging), and psychologically traumatizing.

Advocacy

In 2005, Lubben initiated an aggressive online marketing campaign, utilizing

social networking A social network is a social structure consisting of a set of social actors (such as individuals or organizations), networks of Dyad (sociology), dyadic ties, and other Social relation, social interactions between actors. The social network per ...

web sites in order to reach out to the sex industry. In 2008, Lubben established a

faith-based organization A faith-based organization is an organization whose values are based on faith and beliefs, which has a mission based on social values of the particular faith, and which most often draws its activists (leaders, staff, volunteers) from a particular ...

called Pink Cross Foundation. The group concentrated on outreach to and

evangelism Evangelism, or witnessing, is the act of sharing the Christian gospel, the message and teachings of Jesus Christ. It is typically done with the intention of converting others to Christianity. Evangelism can take several forms, such as persona ...

of those in the porn industry, especially performers, and offers support to those wishing to leave the industry. The organization solicited donations online and offered an online support forum for individuals that are addicted to drugs,

sex Sex is the biological trait that determines whether a sexually reproducing organism produces male or female gametes. During sexual reproduction, a male and a female gamete fuse to form a zygote, which develops into an offspring that inheri ...

, and

pornography Pornography (colloquially called porn or porno) is Sexual suggestiveness, sexually suggestive material, such as a picture, video, text, or audio, intended for sexual arousal. Made for consumption by adults, pornographic depictions have evolv ...

. When Lubben identified interested individuals, she sent care packages filled with religious literature, bibles, Christian music, local grocery and department store gift cards, and other spiritual and practical supports. A secondary focus of Pink Cross was outreach to individuals seeking recovery from pornography addiction. Pink Cross attended pornography conventions to educate fans about how porn is not glamorous and also reaching out to porn stars and reminding them that they have options. Pink Cross Foundation also lobbied against

and the

adult entertainment The sex industry (also called the sex trade) consists of businesses that either directly or indirectly provide sex-related products and services or adult entertainment. The industry includes activities involving direct provision of sex-related se ...

industry. Lubben supported

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

legislator

Charles Calderon Charles Michael Calderon (born March 12, 1950) is an American attorney and politician who served in both chambers of the California State Legislature. Early life and education Calderon was born on March 12, 1950, in Montebello, California. H ...

in his effort to tax the pornographic industry by speaking to lawmakers about her experiences. Lubben indicated that the scenes on the set of a hardcore porn film often involve a woman and several men who are doing degrading acts to the woman. Lubben described the scene of a hardcore porn film as devoid of intimacy, and described it as "all mechanical and beastly". She further wrote that "women are vomiting off the set, and most of the actors are doing drugs and alcohol." In June 2010, she spoke to U.S. House and Senate members and their staffs in Washington, D.C., about the damage that was done to her body from her time in the porn industry. Moreover Lubben was outspoken regarding the illegal and hazardous working conditions in the industry, with sexually transmitted diseases being a workplace safety issue and public health concern. , Lubben was presenting her personal experiences in the adult film industry in public forums and speaking out about her recovery process and the emotional, mental, and physical effects of pornography on performers. In February 2011, she spoke at

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

, where she presented on the harmful effects of pornography and debated the issue with advocates speaking on behalf of the pornography industry. In January 2013, Swiss recording artist and model Patrick Nuo publicly claimed that Lubben helped him deal with his pornography addiction. In January 2016, Lubben shut down Pink Cross Foundation.

Media appearances

Lubben appeared in various international media outlets, including radio, television, and film. An overview of her life has been featured in the documentaries ''Traffic Control'' and ''Out of the Darkness'', the latter of which was selected to be the opening film for the John Paul II Film Festival in 2011. Lubben was also in the 2012 documentary '' After Porn Ends'', which is about life after being in the porn industry. In February 2011, she became the subject of a documentary entitled, ''The Devil and Shelley Lubben'', created by porn industry advocate Michael Whiteacre. According to Mark Kernes of the adult industry

trade journal A trade magazine, also called a trade journal or trade paper (colloquially or disparagingly a trade rag), is a magazine or newspaper whose target audience is people who work in a particular trade or industry. The collective term for this a ...

'' AVN'', the film disputes Lubben's experiences in pornography and the trauma she says can be traced to those experiences. In June 2012, Lubben shared her life story in

Slovakia Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's m ...

to local media outlets.

Recording background

In January 2011, Lubben released a rap/hip hop album with the proceeds going to Pink Cross Foundation to help women and men recover from porn. The first single, titled "Killer Fantasy", features the message of a porn star speaking to the porn fan about the truth behind the adult industry.

Death

Lubben died on February 9, 2019, in

Springville, California Springville is a census-designated place (CDP) in Tulare County, California, United States. The population was 967 at the 2020 census, up from 934 at the 2010 census. The original name of the town was “Daunt”, after William Daunt, a settler ...

, at the age of 50. No cause was given.

Published work

* Lubben, Shelley. ''Truth Behind the Fantasy of Porn: The Greatest Illusion on Earth'', CreateSpace, 2010.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lubben, Shelley 1968 births 2019 deaths 20th-century American women 20th-century evangelicals 21st-century American non-fiction writers 21st-century American women writers 21st-century evangelicals Activists from California Actresses from Pasadena, California American Evangelical writers American religious writers American women non-fiction writers Anti–human trafficking activists Anti-pornography activists Christians from California Converts to evangelical Christianity Writers from Pasadena, California