'Real Men' Urged to Stand Between Children and Sex Industry
by Bill Fancher and Jody Brown
June 26, 2006
(AgapePress) - - American men are being challenged through a new campaign to help fight child pornography and its harmful impact, and to come to the defense of the nation's youth against an industry that seeks to exploit them. Pornography is a multi-billion-dollar industry that exploits both women and children, from infants to teens, and preys on people's prurient interests, typically those of men. Statistics indicate that every month, 32 million individuals visit an Internet porn site -- and among all porn sites, one out of every five pornographic images is of a child. Add to that the fact that, according to the Center for Crimes Research, 20 percent of youth who use the Internet regularly have been sexually solicited or approached. Simply put, the business of commercial sexual exploitation is an aspect of a modern, technology-driven society that leaves no one untouched.
That is why an organization calling itself "The Defenders" is targeting men, urging them to lead the way and commit to defending women and children from the lucrative porn and sex trafficking industries. Chaplain Henry Rogers, who is involved in the effort, explains that the group is taking a two-pronged approach, attacking both the "sex-slave trade" and the pornography industry, an aspect with which he says "a lot of guys and teenage boys wrestle."
Rogers says The Defenders recently kicked off an advertising campaign -- consisting of both radio and TV spots -- aimed at its target audience: men.
"The Defenders campaign was kicked off on Father's Day .... It was introduced to bring this program to men in this country and to help them recognize that pornography is an issue in this country that we've got to make a decision about and to make a commitment to refuse to be involved in this industry," the group spokesman says.
According to The Defenders' website, the technology base available to children today -- such Internet chat rooms and social networking websites -- permit creation of "treasure mines" of youth profiles for sexual predators. Other factors aiding the explosion of commercial sexual exploitation of children include toleration of sex-oriented businesses in advertising and the breakup of the nuclear family.
The campaign asks men, through a series of announcements, to commit to refuse to use porn, to speak out against it, and to educate and protect women and children from the harmful effects of the commercial sexual exploitation industry. The NBC television network refused to run the spots, claiming pornography is legal in the U.S. The Defenders offered to alter the announcements to focus specifically on child pornography, but NBC did not respond.
The Defenders offers an online pledge for what it calls "real men" who vow not to tolerate the sexual exploitation of children, not to purchase pornography in any form, and not to buy sexual services.
