Ohio Rep. Jena Powell (R-Dist 80) filed state resolution HR180 similar to 13 other states in the U.S. declaring pornography a health crisis. Rep. Powell, the youngest member of the Ohio legislature at 26 years old, shared with the National Decency Coalition how she’s witnessed pornography as a major disruptive force in the life of her peers, destructive to relationships, and very prevalent among young boys. Powell shared her concern about how porn also fuels sex trafficking. The resolution makes many connections between pornography and sex trafficking, stating that “Ohio ranks as the fourth worst state in the nation for human sex trafficking,” and “[O]ver half of the victims of sex trafficking report having been required to learn and perform sexual acts according to depictions in pornography.”
Like many other similar resolutions passed in states, it calls for education, prevention, research, and policy changes at the community and societal level. The resolution also recognizes the need for pornography to be regulated on the Internet. This is a growing trend with the Tennessee House this year calling on Congress to “readdress the crisis of children accessing pornography,” and a Missouri Senate Committee passing the ‘Safer Internet for Children’ bill that requires Internet providers to hide porn sites behind a passcode. According to Ricky Darr of the National Decency Coalition, “The pervasiveness of porn today is a public crisis. However, there is a groundswell movement in the Western world to find and implement big solutions to a child’s instant access to pornography and technology has never been in a better place to help. We are excited about the bold stance of Rep. Powell against the pervasiveness of pornography in culture today, and we are looking forward to working with her on this and future projects.”
Citizens for Community Values (CCV) and the National Decency Coalition (NDC), with support of Enough is Enough, worked with Representative Jena Powell to draft the resolution. Prior to the introduction of the bill, the CCV, and the office of Rep. Powell, was able to garner the support of 18 other House members who signed on as co-sponsors. Aaron Behr, President of CCV said, “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.” John Schmoll, Ohio State Director of NDC, who galvanized this project early on said, “I’m proud of Rep. Powell for sponsoring this resolution, because of the dangers that pornography has caused to the citizens of the state of Ohio. Children younger and younger are finding access to pornography and we need to find ways to fight this growing crisis.”