Former adult film star turned university lecturer has HIV awareness event banned
A pornstar-turned-lecturer has been banned from holding an HIV awareness event by his university.
Dr Ruggero Freddi, a maths professor at Rome’s prestigious La Sapienza University, was declined permission to hold his World AIDS Day event last week.
Dr Freddi rose to prominence in Italy in October when a newspaper revealed his former life as an adult film actor.
The academic used to be known as Carlo Masi, a gay pornstar signed to Colt Studios in California.
He had intended to hold a discussion with his engineering class about tackling HIV and the expansion of PrEP (Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis).
There are an estimated 130,000 people living with HIV in Italy according to UNAIDS, which is around 7% of men who have sex with men.
However university bosses banned the move, overruling the faculties of Engineering and Pharmacy and Medicine.
“The event was in collaboration with ANLAIDS, PLUS Onlus and the Faculty of Medicine,” he said, “but at the last second the Dean of the Faculty didn’t wanna give permission, despite the fact that at the beginning he told me he supported the event.”
Students unraveled a banner that read “Do not believe that HIV is not your concern” in protest at the decision.
“When I told them that D’Andrea decided to cancel the event they were very upset,” Freddi told GSN of his student’s reaction.
“I just wanted to leave it and forget about the whole story but I couldn’t turn my back on a group of young and hopeful students so I decided I would have been there during the protest, where condoms where distributed inside the university.”
Dr Freddi is well-informed on sexual health, alongside his engineering knowledge, as university students were surprised to recently discover.
He previously worked in the muscle daddy adult film industry as an adult entertainer.
Speaking to Italian publication Republica, Freddi said he entered the industry after spending time looking for engineering work in Italy without success.
“I was offered to do a film in the USA,” he said. “I thought: ‘Why not?’”
Freddi said he saw it as “a job that helps me earn more and is a more entertaining career.”
After signing with Colt Studios in California, Freddi became known as ‘Carlo Masi’.
He eventually quit porn in 2013, returning to Italy.
Freddi earned a Masters degree in Maths, and set about constructing a new life.
Speaking to GSN, Freddi explained that he knew his past life would come out at some point.
However, he was unfased when a Facebook video posted by him showing him flexing his muscles led to someone contacting a reporter with the revelation.
“I knew sooner or later something was going to happen, but I didn’t expect something so big to happen,” he said.
“I thought someone would publish something and my students would talk about it for a while, but I wasn’t expecting the entire country to actually speak about it.”
Freddi went on to emphasise that he had no regrets in acting in the porn industry.
“I am happy and proud of both my careers,” he said.
