Pornography & Obscenity
Pornography is destructive to families and children. That which is dismissed as innocent adult entertainment by many has caused countless families to break apart, marriages to fail, and children to be exploited. People need to be able to count on the government to establish far-reaching laws against pornography. Those laws need to then be thoroughly enforced.
Talking Points and Basic Information
Sexting Statistics: What do the surveys say?
January 12, 2010
Luke Gilkerson
“It’s a way to express your feelings. If a guy and a girl are in love, instead of saying it face to face, they can say it through technology.” (18-year-old guy from Brooklyn) Sending nude or otherwise provocative images of yourself online or through your cell phone is called “sexting.” Over the last several years this issue has received more and more press, due largely to more publicized cases involving politicians, athletes, and celebrities. Just how common is it? What should parents be concerned about?
Would you give your kid a stack of porn magazines?
Randy Alcorn
The Purity Principle
Randy hits the nail on the head with this one. What he said is worth repeating: “If you have a junior high boy who has…access to a computer in the privacy of his own room, you may as well just buy hundreds and hundreds of pornographic magazines, stack them up in his closet, and say, ‘Hey, don’t look at those, okay?’ ”
Women struggle with porn t…
January 11, 2012
Crystal Renaud
Dirty Girls Ministries
As the Founder of Dirty Girls Ministries and author of Dirty Girls Come Clean, I have been blessed to be interviewed by quite a few news media outlets. People are often fascinated that I, as a woman, would share so openly about having been addicted to pornography. But there was something very special about seeing an invitation from The 700 Club come across my email inbox.
iPorn: Are Your Kids At Risk?
Sam Black
A lot of kids blow out birthday candles wishing for an iPod touch, but should a parent deliver the goods? Should your family use an iPhone or an iPad? Answer: Not without setting restrictions.
Recently, a dad who is a Covenant Eyes member discovered just how painful an iPod can be. His 10-year-old son invited a 9-year-old friend to spend the night, and during the evening the dad discovered the boys using the 9-year-old’s iPod touch to play a video game. “They are so young, surely nothing bad can happen,” the dad said. “But when I walked by the living room door later, I saw them look up at me. It was a look that only a parent could understand. Something was up.” The dad asked the boys what they were playing. They showed the dad a game, so he took the iPod and tapped on the Safari Internet browser app to see if they had been surfing the Internet. His heart fell.
Children and Pornography Online
By Daniel L. Weiss
As more and more children access the Internet, they are being exposed to pornography and predators of the worst kind. Despite the persistent efforts of the U.S. Congress to shield children from such offensive and addictive materials, online pornography has been allowed to flourish. As more and more children access the Internet, they are being exposed to pornography and predators of the worst kind.
My Daughter was Caught By a Predator: A Word of Warning from One Parent to Another
Mary Kozakiewicz
The Alicia Project
On New Year’s Day, 2002, my 13-year-old daughter, Alicia, was lured from our Pennsylvania home and stolen to Virginia by a man whom she had been introduced to online. For eight months, this sadistic madman masqueraded as her friend, grooming my daughter, restructuring her thought patterns through coercive mind control, and bypassing those core values which her father and I had labored to deeply ingrain. A 38-year-old computer programmer, father to his own 12 year old daughter, held my little girl captive, chained to the floor by her neck in his basement dungeon as he repeatedly raped and tortured her.
The Unfiltered Truth: Children Search for Pornography From an Early Age
July 28, 2010
The search for answers in the fight against childhood exposure to pornography has grown more challenging. A 2009 study shows that the number of kids seeking it online is growing higher, while their age is lowering. According to a new study, children as young as seven and under are searching for “porn”. The Symantec-funded study found that among kids seven and under, the fourth most-sought search term (after YouTube, Google, and Facebook) was “porn.” These kids are actually more curious about porn than their older siblings: for teens, porn was sixth; for tweens, eleventh. More disturbing, is how “porn” compares with “sex” as a search term. For older boys, “sex” replaces “porn” as fourth-most popular (girls overall seem to care more about Taylor Swift than sex, at least in 2009). For younger kids, “sex” doesn’t even rank in the top 25. Does this mean that older kids become curious about sex because of previous exposure to porn?
How can I Protect my Family from Pornography?
Focus on the family
There is no silver bullet when it comes to protecting children from pornography anymore. Even if you make your own home secure, as one writer noted, your children still need to walk out your door at some point.
Resources for Fighting Pornography
July 29, 2010
Daniel Weiss
Citizen Link
Dr. James Dobson has stressed many times that the fight against pornography is a winnable war. Based on his experience with the U.S. Attorney General’s Commission on Pornography, Dr. Dobson believes our society can be free from illegal obscenity if concerned citizens take a stand. This information sheet can help you organize and target your efforts where they will be the most effective “. . . if My people, who are called by My name, will humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” —2 Chronicles 7:14, NIV
A Grassroots Guide to Protecting Your Community from Pornography
June 14, 2010
Carrie Gordon Earll
Citizen Link
It can be tempting for those who spend a considerable time immersed in public policy issues to think that all threats to the family are already known. After all, there’s nothing new under the sun, right? Yet, sometimes a new concept or connection breaks through the “thought-we-knew-this” mentality, revealing a previously unrecognized component of the threat, which in turn elevates the debate to a new level. It happened in the mid-1990s with the discovery of partial-birth abortion, invigorating a fresh wave of opposition to abortion. And, I believe the article you’re about to read — The Seamless Fabric — will reshape your view of pornography in much the same way.
Websites Lure Teens, Give Dangerous Advice on Anorexia, Bulimia
Same Black
In a Facebook age where image is everything, vulnerable teens, especially girls, can be tempted by the lure of “thinspiration.” Hundreds, maybe even more than a thousand, websites inspire people to embrace anorexia and bulimia as a lifestyle. Called pro-ana or pro-mia (short for pro-anorexia and pro-bulimia) such sites offer dieting and purging tips, inspiring quotes, and photos (called thinspiration or thinspo) of models that range from naturally slim to starvation thin. While some parents are quick to dismiss the issue, studies show the sites are very seductive. A University of Missouri study showed that girls who visited such sites even once reported lower self-esteem and were more likely to become obsessed with dieting and exercise. A Stanford Medical study showed that of those who visited pro-ana or pro-mia sites, 96% learned new weight loss or purging methods.
What I Wish I’d Known Before Watching Porn
Lauren Dubinsky
Good Women Project
Pornography is a charged subject, and it’s a word that rarely crosses the lips of most women. Yes, there are now breeds of the modern woman who watch, talk and joke about it regularly, but most of us still stay further away from speaking the word than we actually stay away from it. When I was in high school, pornography was on the long list of “bad things” that I didn’t know much about – and unfortunately also on the list of things I had participated in. Nevermind why I was watching it, the how is the same for all of us: we stumbled upon it because of someone else. And none of us knew what to expect, or how to handle it. Later in life, I caught myself remembering how I used to watch it for a few minutes here or there, and wondered strictly out of boredom if it would fill the big, empty space of loneliness in my late nights. There were no parents around to hide from anymore, and no one checking my Internet history. Pornography was easy, and I never exactly knew why it was bad, particularly since I wasn’t actually having sex. To me, it was just something dirty that you probably shouldn’t have anything to do with. But “probably shouldn’t” never stands up against loneliness and boredom.
In depth Research and Articles
What One Person Can Do About Pornography
American Family Association
The First Amendment, the courts, and the law – “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.” “Isn’t pornography protected by the First Amendment?”
When you express concern about the prevalence of pornography in our culture, it doesn’t take long for this question to be posed. And it’s an important question – the First Amendment has been one of the bastions supporting our political and religious freedom since it was passed in 1791. However, the idea that it protects any and all pornography is of relatively recent origin and just plain wrong. Some argue the words of the First Amendment – freedom of speech – include all speech. Yet, there are laws against consumer fraud, conspiracy, libel, slander or falsely shouting “fire” in a crowded theater – none of which are protected by the First Amendment. The U. S. Supreme Court interprets the First Amendment this way: “This much has been categorically settled by the Court, that obscene material is unprotected by the First Amendment” (Miller v. California, 1973).
Sexual Degradation: How Pornography Destroys the Family
Alysse M. ElHage
North Carolina Family Policy Council
An Affair of the Mind, Laurie Hall recounts how her husband’s addiction to pornography devastated their family. The son of missionaries, Jack had a secret obsession with porn that began in college with soft-core magazines and escalated to watching X-rated movies, going to strip clubs, and eventually hiring prostitutes to act out his porn-induced fantasies. Throughout their marriage, Jack was emotionally and mentally distant, frequently absent, and neglectful of his wife and kids. By the time Laurie discovered why, they were thousands of dollars in debt, and she was faced with the possibility that Jack had exposed them both to AIDS.
Child Pornography and the Law
June 14, 2010
By Daniel L. Weiss
Citizen Link
In the 1982 case New York v. Ferber, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld a New York state statute banning child pornography. This case set a legal precedent that determined, among other things, that child pornography was not required to meet the test for obscenity in order to be banned. Delivering the unanimous decision of the Court, Justice Byron White wrote: As applied to respondent and others who distribute similar material, the statute in question does not violate the First Amendment as applied to the States through the Fourteenth Amendment.
The Moral and Spiritual Dangers of Pornography
Oct 9 2004
By Bill Haynes
American Center for Law and Justice
A damaging and destructive vice that has been around since ancient times is now permeating the most advanced technological communication method of our day – the Internet. Pornography is no longer confined to specific businesses and neighborhoods. It is available now more than ever – and it is often just one mouse-click away. There are those who argue, “Isn’t pornography a victimless crime which should be protected as a right of the person who wishes to view it?” But the real question is this: “Is pornography really a victimless crime?”
Pornography on the Internet & in the Community
By American Center for Law and Justice
Studies have shown that men who use pornography are disproportionately more likely to be involved in sexual aggression and date rape, because pornography has the effect of dehumanizing women. This fact is illustrated by horrific stories like that of Tia Rigg, a twelve-year girl who was raped, tortured, and murdered by her uncle. Her uncle’s sexual perversion had started off as an addiction to pornography. Furthermore, it is a well-documented scientific fact that sexually oriented businesses lead to an increase in crime in the surrounding communities.
Pornography — The Difference Being a Parent Makes
May 24, 2010
Dr. R. Albert Mohler, Jr.
Political scientists and sociologists long ago came to the realization that one of the most significant indicators of political behavior is parenthood. Those who bear responsibility to raise children look at the world differently from those who do not. In fact, parenthood may be the most easily identifiable predictor of an individual’s position on an entire range of issues. Now, along comes Steve Jobs to prove the point. Jobs, the Maestro of Cool at Apple, recently engaged in a most interesting email exchange with Ryan Tate, who writes the “Valleywag” blog for the gossip Web site, Gawker.
The Terrorist and His Porn Stash
May 16, 2011
Dr. R. Dr. R. Albert Mohler, Jr., Jr.
The news that a huge stash of digital pornography had been discovered on the computers taken from Osama bin Laden’s compound was big news, but it should not have been a big surprise. As Scott Shane of The New York Times reports, the discovery “could fuel accusations of hypocrisy against the founder of Al Qaeda, who was 54 and lived with three wives at the time of his death.” Well, he would hardly be the first married man caught with a porn stash, but in this case, Osama bin Laden had repeatedly accused the United States of immorality, with specific reference to pornography and sexualized images.
Pornography and Media
Family Research Council
Today parents face an array of media and entertainment technologies that present difficult problems for those wishing to shield their children from media content — photographic images, music, advertisements, and motion pictures — that may be morally damaging. Consequently, Family Research Council supports the vigorous enforcement of existing laws banning the distribution of obscene materials and the enactment of new laws criminalizing the distribution of non-obscene pornographic material to children. Similarly, Family Research Council supports efforts by the Federal Communications Commission to increase the fines and penalties for the broadcast of indecent and profane materials, and FRC believes such restrictions should be applied to cable and satellite transmissions. Furthermore, Family Research Council believes that no person or family should be forced, as a condition of access to communications services, to receive or purchase media content or programming channels to which he or she objects.
The Harmful Effects on Children of Exposure to Pornography
By Peter Stock
Canadian society has become an increasingly pornographic society in recent decades with disturbing implications for the children raised in it. Numerous scientific studies have demonstrated a strong correlation between exposure to pornography and subsequent deviant sexual behavior by children. The explosive growth of the Internet over the last decade and the freely available
pornography to be found on this new medium poses an additional significant public health and safety threat to children. Legislation and regulation are needed to protect children from exposure to pornography from traditional sources (television, magazines, etc.) while new criminal code provisions are required to meet the challenges posed by pornography on the Internet.
Guide to Family Issues: The Harms of Pornography
United Families International
Lacking in socially redeeming value, pornography represents a significant and growing menace to families, individuals, employers and communities. The price tag of pornography is crime, exploitation, sexual assault, child abuse, fractured marriages and families, addiction and compulsion, distracted and uprooted lives and tremendous social costs for the communities, employers and government agencies paying the resultant costs. Governments have proven incapable of protecting the public from the consequences of pornography. Too often, courts have undermined legislative remedies and community standards because they are unwilling to distinguish between freedom of speech and obscenity. Pornography is entrenched by its profitability and wealth.
Pornography is everywhere…
Covenant Eyes
The Internet is filled with temptations to view pornography and other sexually explicit material. This can cause long-lasting damage to your thoughts, your heart, and your relationships. Here are some helpful resources for those who are struggling with this temptation and for their loved ones.
The “digital divide”
Covenant Eyes
Many parents today live in a “digital divide” — they want to protect their children from Internet dangers and pitfalls, but they are not sure what all the dangers are. Parents need to be armed with the best information and the best tools to guard the hearts and minds of their kids online.
Websites, Books and Additional Resources
The Alicia Project
“The Alicia Project,” though rooted in tragedy, has become a voice for exploited and missing children. In January of 2002, its namesake, Alicia Kozakiewicz, became the victim of an Internet luring and was abducted to another state where she was held captive. Following a miraculous rescue by the FBI, Alicia, still recovering from her ordeal, returned to school and was soon highly involved in both academic and extracurricular activities, graduating with high honors. During these years, she came to realize that other children need not suffer her traumatic experience, and so, “The Alicia Project,” Internet safety and awareness education, was born.
www.aliciaproject.org
Randy Alcorn – The Purity Principle
This is a fantastic book. I have given this book to my nieces and nephews in their pre-teen years, though it is good for any age to have this book. I have also used it for graduation presents before the young adults reach the college world. An easy to understand explanation of why God’s way of purity is the best.
Good Women Project
We exist to restore a woman’s identity as God created her to be. We want to help you re-define what a good woman is, and remind you that you were created with everything it takes. Too many of us have given up on being a good woman, and it cannot remain this way. We are adamant believers that good women have the most fun, the best sex, and most fulfilling lives. We want you to experience this.
www.goodwomenproject.com
Dirty Girls Ministries
PO Box 860344
Shawnee, KS 66286
913 667 9492
www.dirtygirlsministries.com
American Decency Association
P.O. Box 202
Fremont, MI 49412
(231) 924-4050
www.americandecency.org
Citizens for Community Values
11175 Reading Road, Suite 103
Cincinnati, Ohio 45241
Phone: (513) 733-5775
www.ccv.org
Enough Is Enough
746 Walker Road, Suite 116
Great Falls, VA 22066
(888)744-0004
www.enough.org
Morality in Media
475 Riverside Drive
New York, NY 10115
(212) 870-3222
http://www.moralityinmedia.org
ROCK
1717 Alliant Drive, Suite 21A
Louisville, Kentucky 40299
Phone: (502) 297-9892
www.reclaimourculture.org
