No longer is pornography limited to magazines that tucked away behind the counter of the local convenience store. In today’s world, pornography now comes in the form of magazines that are targeted towards men. Although these magazines do not contain nudity, there is very little left to the imagination. The same goes for movies (both big screen and television) that contain a love scene or two. Both music videos and the music itself contains high levels of adult material that should not be viewed by little eyes. The Internet provides an endless “no holds barred” cache of material that can be easily accessed by anyone at any time from any computer that does not have any kind of porn blocker software.
Let’s not forget that people like the ACLU have deemed pornography a constitutionally protected vice. They fight vigorously to protect filth peddlers’ right to display nudity and graphic scenes of sex. They even defend child pornography with their “slippery slope” arguments.
Duane goes on to site work from Dr. Judith Reisman, author of several studies on the effects of pornography on children including the U.S. Department of Justice, Juvenile Justice study, Images of Children, Crime and Violence in Playboy, Penthouse and Hustler (1989). One of Dr. Reisman studies, The Psychopharmacology of Pictorial Pornography Restructuring Brain, Mind and Memory and Subverting Freedom of Speech discusses Pornography’s Effect on the Developing Brain:
If the undeveloped child brain is psychopharmacologically altered by pornographic stimuli during waking and sleeping, this would violate claims of informed consent as it structurally alters the neurochemistry of the child’s brain, the child’s sense of self and of reality. Children react with fear to the stimulus of sexual touch and sexual scenes. Fear is a necessary reaction by the normal child organism to sexual stimuli, for their immaturity leaves the child completely without the cognitive or emotional tools to respond to sexual cues or touch. Children’s exposure to sexual triggers would produce greater or lesser states of alarm, that is trauma, resulting in altered neural systems with a low probability of the child victim being aware of the trauma that has altered her or his brain, mind, emotions and memory.
Duane adds:
With all of this activity going on in the minds of our children in the response to sexual images, it is no wonder why it takes an experienced and mature adult to help our kids process this kind of information. For young men, this is especially crucial.
When a father is not present, a young man is left to his own vices to figure out what love to a woman really means. Any man who has been happily married for a long period of time will be able to tell you that love to a woman is way more than just sex. He will be quick to point out that things like commitment and patience play a much bigger role in the relationship. These are qualities that cannot be fully demonstrated in 4 min, 30 second music video yet many of our boys are left with this as the only option for them to see a “relationship” in action.
It is no wonder that God ordained the family. The more we stray from God's plan for the family the more messed up our society becomes. And the Black community seems to be suffering a disproportionate amount.
While Duane focuses on fatherlessness, I want take a step back and talk about the parents who are present and what they should do about pornography. You can ask ten different Blacks about who is “responsible” for the pornographic imagery which bombards our youths today. You will get ten different answers ranging from “the White man seeking to cash in on Black misery and promoting discord within the community” to “self-centered Black entertainers caring only about their own wealth and fame”. Honestly who is responsible is not that important. Who is responsible for changing what images bombard our children is a no brainer. We are. And it doesn’t take a massive Million Person Movement to accomplish. It takes a little vigilance, some dialogue and total control over the TV remote. Block pornographic channels from your home. Obviously you keep stations like the Playboy Channel out. As a Christian I fail to see the need for adults to watch that crap. But it also includes HBO, Cinemax and Showtime who claim to offer family programming during “family times” and then pipe adult content in at other times.
And don’t stop there. Broadcast television is not immune. Can you watch a prime time television show and not see an adult situation? I don’t even watch sitcoms anymore. You can only take so many single entendres and gay jokes. The important thing is that the young children in my household do not see porn or near porn. I don’t even let them watch MTV because of the state of rap music videos today. I control what gets into my home and I am responsible for what images shapes the minds of the little eyes that see it. I urge Black parents to take the same responsibility.
And don’t surrender that responsibility to the public school system. Know what is being taught to your kids by the teachers and faculty, by the extra-curricular activities, and by your children’s friends. “Whoa!” you say, how do I find all that out? Talk to your kids. Young elementary school aged minds learn a great deal everyday. You should ask them what they learned, what programs they participated in and who they played with ON A DAILY BASIS! If you don’t like what you are hearing then you remove your child from that environment. Don’t let money be an issue. You are talking about your child's development, their future. What is the price on that? I look forward to Duane’s next installment.
Hat Tip: EddieButler.com
