A new song has been making its way around Lebanese airwaves, one that’s sparked both laughter and groans. “I can’t believe there’s even a song about her now!” commented a Facebook user. The song in question? It’s called Mia Khalifa.
In early January, Mia Khalifa became the number 1 most searched for porn star on Pornhub, one of the most popular porn sites in the world. This sort of news doesn’t usually make it onto national headlines, but this time it did; you see, Mia Khalifa is Lebanese.
The 21-year-old Lebanese American woman has sparked controversy in Lebanon due to the fact that the industry she’s currently working in is considered a taboo subject in the Middle East. Though she has been residing in the United States since the age of 11, the porn star has found herself the subject of headlines splashing across the Arab World. While a porn star from the Middle East is a novel issue, Mia Khalifa actually isn’t the first Lebanese female to invite scrutiny because of she uses her body; just last year Lebanese Olympic skier Jackie Chamoun became a household name because of topless photos she had posed in years prior to the 2014 Olympics.
Though Mia Khalifa hails from one of the most liberal countries of the Arab world, sex is a subject very rarely broached. Lebanon is still considered a patriarchal society, with women’s rights often a contentious issue; if a Lebanese woman marries a foreigner, for example, the children from the marriage will not be given Lebanese nationality – though this law does not apply for Lebanese men. In fact, the country was ranked by the World Economic Forum to be the 8th worst in terms of women’s rights.
The controversy surrounding Mia Khalifa has put liberals at odds with conservatives. While prominent bloggers and internet personalities have publicly backed her (or stated that, at most, Lebanese should be indifferent to her choice of profession), Lebanese members of Khalifa’s family felt the need to publicly condemn her actions. Meanwhile, the porn star is receiving death threats from people across the Middle East – which happens to have 5 of the top eight countries searching for online porn, according to Google.
But Mia Khalifa has gotten everyone talking about what happens in the bedroom, which just might be a good thing – sex education in schools is pretty limited, with topics merely covering reproductive health. Any talk of sex as an act, let alone of birth control, is met with shock and criticism from religious factions. And since religion is very much entwined within the governmental makeup of the country, it is difficult to have a public discussion about an issue that is considered sensitive or taboo – especially when a woman’s virginity is considered an important factor for marriage. Because of the social stigma that arises from not being ‘pure’ before marriage, many women opt for hymenoplasty, a surgery that restores the hymen.
The irony here, however, is that Lebanese women are conceivably the most ‘liberal’ in the Arab world, as the country is known to be far more accepting of free speech and sexual identity than the countries in the region. Fortunately, times are changing, with officials recognizing the need to provide better health care to cater for needs based in reality. Doctors and health officials are clamoring for better sex education and the need to break taboos surrounding the issue.
The bright side? All this talk about Mia Khalifa has sparked a debate about what a woman can do with her body; a topic that’s not very usual for the Middle East. Of course, there’s a long way to go in surmounting barriers, but at least the conversation is happening. In Lebanon, at least, there is a more relaxed outlook when it comes to sex. While porn may not be an industry that parents are proud to have their children work in, the fact remains that a Lebanese-born porn star has reminded Lebanon that it’s time to break some taboos and talk about what happens in the bedroom.
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