Sex dolls and robots in the female form function as an endorsement of mens sexual rights, with women and girls positioned as sexual objects. The production of these products further cements womens second class status. Lifelike, replica women and girls produced for mens sexual use, sex dolls and robots represent the literal objectification of women. They are marketed as companions, the means for men to create their ideal woman, and as the perfect girlfriend that can be stored away after its use. Advocates claim the development of sex dolls and robots should be actively encouraged and will have many benefits but for who? Sex Dolls, Robots and Woman Hating exposes the inherent misogyny in the trade in sex dolls and robots modelled on the bodies of women and girls for mens unlimited sexual use. From doll owners enacting violence and torture on their dolls, men choosing their dolls over their wives, dolls made in the likeness of specific women and the production of child sex abuse dolls, sex dolls and robots pose a serious threat to the status of women and girls.
Caitlin Roper is an activist, writer and Campaigns Manager at Collective Shout: for a world free of sexploitation, a grassroots campaigning movement against the objectification of women and sexualisation of girls in media, advertising in popular culture. She has a Bachelor of Music Education from the University of Western Australia and a Graduate Diploma in Arts (Sociology and Anthropology) where she was awarded the Julie Manville Memorial Prize. An opinion writer, her work has been published in a range of mainstream media outlets including The Guardian, ABC, Huffington Post, Sydney Morning Herald and Arena Magazine. She has been featured on The Project, Lateline, Flashpoint, Channel 7 News, Channel 9 News and Triple J Hack. She contributed a commentary chapter to Prostitution Narratives: Stories of Survival in the Sex Trade (Spinifex Press 2016).