James Deen's accusers face a backlash, but porn stars can be rape victims, too

The alleged attacks took place in private homes, at a crowded party, in a bar, on the set of an adult film studio while the cameras were rolling.

As of Monday, nine days after the first rape accusation was made against James Deen - the blue-eyed “boy next door” of porn - nine women have come forward to claim that Deen assaulted them.

Going public has never been easy for sexual assault victims, who often find their private lives under scrutiny, their claims dismissed as bids for revenge, publicity or a payout. Deen's accusers, though, have also faced a backlash that highlights the particular challenges facing women who work in porn and the sex trade.

Two of his accusers say that he assaulted them during active film shoots, forcing them into sex acts that went beyond what they had agreed to. Deen has denied the accusations.

Some online commenters have scoffed that it shouldn’t be possible for a porn star to consider herself having been raped - that these kinds of violations are, essentially, part of the job.

“There is this notion that once you agree to engage in sexual activity, then you're agreeing to all sexual activity, which is incorrect,” said Jen March, vice-president of victim services at the Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network (RAINN). Sex workers in particular are subjected to moral judgment: “It's like, ‘Well, you put yourself in that situation, what did you expect?’”