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 and anti-pornography activist. From 2008 to 2016, she was the executive director of the Pink Cross Foundation, which reaches out to women and men in pornography and speaks in public forums, sharing about the hazardous working conditions that she experienced in the porn industry. In January 2016, she closed the Pink Cross Foundation. She 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. In an interview with Howard Stern and Deseret News, Lubben stated that when she was nine years old, a Female classmate and her teenage brother sexually abused her in a swimming pool. Lubben worked as a prostitute 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 and HPV, which led to cervical cancer, and resulted in the removal of half her cervix. 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 and uterine hemorrhaging), and psychologically traumatizing.
Advocacy
In 2005, Lubben initiated an aggressive online marketing campaign, utilizing social networking web sites in order to reach out to the sex industry. In 2008, Lubben established a faith-based organization called the Pink Cross Foundation. The group concentrated on outreach to and evangelism 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, and pornography. 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.
The Pink Cross Foundation also lobbied against pornography and the adult entertainment industry. Lubben supported California legislator Charles Calderon 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, 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, the Pink Cross Foundation shut down.