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COLUMBUS — Nineteen State Representatives introduced Ohio House Resolution 180 last week declaring pornography as a public health crisis.
State Rep. Jena Powell and eighteen co-sponsors including State Rep. Mark Romanchuk presented the resolution which emphasizes the connections between pornography and human trafficking. It also highlights the serious hardships pornography causes for men, women and children.
A recent study ranked Ohio as one of the worst states in the nation for human sex trafficking. As lawmakers and law enforcement work to end the exploitation of Ohio’s most vulnerable, the resolution brings to light the importance of protecting children from pornography, and enforcing existing obscenity laws.
The resolution has been assigned to the House Health Committee.
“The #MeToo movement has awakened America to the epidemic of sexual assault, human trafficking, and the objectification of women,” said Aaron Baer, President of Citizens for Community Values. “But any serious conversation about ending a toxic sexual culture must include an honest assessment of the harms of pornography. Pornography is more widely available than ever before, and until we get serious about enforcing our existing obscenity laws and ensuring children aren’t exposed to porn, we will never end the exploitation.”
“Pornography is more widely available than ever before, and until we get serious about enforcing our existing obscenity laws and ensuring children aren’t exposed to porn, we will never end the exploitation.”
Aaron Baer
Citizens for community values
If the resolution passes in the House, Ohio will join at least fifteen other states who have passed similar resolutions: Arkansas, Arizona, Florida, Idaho, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, Montana, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah and Virginia.
Citizens for Community Values and the National Decency Coalition worked with Representative Jena Powell to draft the resolution.
Eighteen House members signed as cosponsors—Rep. John Becker, Rep. Louis Blessing, Tom Brinkman, Rep. Bill Dean, Rep. Tim Ginter, Rep. Diane Grendell, Rep. Ron Hood, Rep. Candice Keller, Rep. Kyle Koehler, Rep. George Lang, Rep. Riordan McClain, Rep. Derek Merrin, Rep. Tracy Richardson, Rep. Craig Riedel, Rep. Mark Romanchuk, Rep. Todd Smith, Rep. Reggie Stoltzfus, and Rep. Nino Vitale.
Since 2011, there have been twenty-three major studies on pornography having a negative and detrimental impact on the brain. See video below.
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