SALT LAKE CITY (WSAV) – Students at Westminster College in Salt Lake City, Utah, will have the option to watch something new in class starting in May — porn.
The classes, new this year, are listed on their course catalog as FILM*300O Porn, GNDR*300O Porn and LMW*300O Porn. No requisites are necessary and each is worth two credits.
The description of all three classes states: “Hard core pornography is as American as apple pie and more popular than Sunday night football. Our approach to this billion-dollar industry is as both a cultural phenomenon that reflects and reinforces sexual inequalities (but holds the potential to challenge sexual and gender norms) and as an art form that requires serious contemplation. We will watch pornographic films together and discuss the sexualization of race, class, and gender and as an experimental, radical art form.”
Some have taken to social media about the electives, including conservative commentator Candace Owens who tweeted, “I thought this was a joke — it isn’t…”
The college operator, admissions office and student enrollment staff are directing all calls concerning the courses to their chief marketing officer, Sheila Rappazzo Yorkin.
Yorkin provided the following statement to the public:
Westminster College occasionally offers elective courses like this as an opportunity to analyze social issues. As part of this analysis, Westminster College and universities across the county often examine potentially offensive topics like pornography to further understand their pervasiveness and impact. Descriptions of these courses, while alarming to some readers, help students decide if they wish to engage in serious investigation of controversial subjects. This course will help students learn how to think critically about the influence of digital media culture. Westminster is a private liberal arts college dedicated to offering students life and career readiness education through programs that challenge, provide diverse perspectives, and develop critical thinking skills.
Westminster College is a private, accredited, and comprehensive liberal arts college. According to its website, they have been a Presbyterian Church (USA) related institution since its beginnings in 1852.
