I ended my last post surrounding the effects of pornography on society with a statement about the world around me being shaped into a place where women and children are simply objects; void of emotion, dignity and personhood. I wanted to elaborate on that. (Also, here’s an article you can read about research surrounding men’s brains around sexualized women: Princeton Research)
I have three daughters. They’re lovely humans, and even as tiny children, they already exhibit wonderful qualities and abilities that are certain to produce good in the world around them.
Daughter #1 is very independent; she has a strong point of view and the desire for her voice to be heard. She spends hours drawing and using her imagination to create worlds to share with the people in her life she loves. She is generous and helpful and thoughtful; she loves to give gifts and seems to always notice things people like so she can get them something they legitimately would appreciate (a rarity for a 3-year-old). She is intense and compassionate; her name means “merciful friend,” there is no doubt this is a fitting name for this beautiful child; with her tender heart and creativity, she will bring the mercy of Christ into relationships.
Daughter #2 is a spitfire of incredible and intense proportions; even in the womb I felt her strength. She is fiercely emotional and strong-willed. She examines the world around her with a wonderful, busy curiosity; in her mind there is no height too high to climb to. And yet, she shakes when she is afraid, interrupts her playing to come give her mama snuggles and sweetly guards her baby sister. Her name means “of noble strength and prayer,” she is certain to be a warrior for good in this world, her strength submitted to the Lord and bridled in prayer.
Daughter #3 is a vibrant ray of sunshine; she beams with happiness and her demeanor is one of extreme gentleness. Her joy radiates through her entire body, causing her smile to beam and her limbs to wiggle. She contentedly plays, yet stops everything to soak in every ounce of attention you give her. Her name means “joyful light,” she will shine in this world of darkness for the One who fills her with Light.
What incredible humans these 3 are! What a privilege it is to watch them grow and observe who their Creator made them to be. They are wonderful image bearers, persons by design.
And do you want to know something? They are going to have to fight for their personhood.
They are going to have to FIGHT for their PERSONhood!
WHY?! Why, when by very definition a human is a person, must they fight to claim what they simply are? Why?!
The world around them shouts at them, with increasing loudness, “You are an object. You are to be used and abused and discarded as we see fit. Your value will come from how satisfied I am with the use of you. You are no more dignified than this shirt I have chosen to wear; your thoughts have no purpose; your emotions are worthless, unless I can exploit them for my gain; you are only as valuable as the money I could get for you on the open market.”
My heart is broken.
It is also angry.
My daughters should not have to fight for their personhood, and neither should yours and, for that matter, neither should you! I don’t care who you are, if you are a person, you are NOT a thing. Get mad, get heart-broken...whatever it takes to get you moving to do something! Take back the dignity stolen from the female gender.
Oh, beautiful baby girls, may NOTHING succeed in snuffing out your light or squelching the good you will do in this world. Do justice, love mercy and walk humbly with your God (Micah 6:8)...HIS voice is all that counts in matters of your worth.
Wednesday, August 27, 2014
The hammer.
At the 2014 Exodus Cry Abolition Summit, Benjamin Nolot shared with us the benefits of using media to fight slavery. He brought us through history, describing how creative media was used in the abolition of slavery time and time again. He talked about how evoking the public’s empathy and favor always turned the tide. As a graphic designer and appreciator of the power of art, it made me really excited. At the end of his update, he gave the following quote by Bertolt Brecht:
“Art is not a mirror held up to reality but a hammer with which to shape it.”
What a wonderful quote, my head said! I wrote it down...but the moment my pen punctuated the sentence, I had another thought that turned the warmth that it had left in my heart to icy cold: Pornography is legal because it is considered to be art (freedom of speech).
Pornography is legal because it is considered to be art.
So take this beautiful, thought-provoking quote and put the “art” form in place:
“Pornography is not a mirror held up to reality but a hammer with which to shape it.”
Let that sink into your mind for a moments. It turns this lovely quote into a terrifying caution to us, explanation of the effects of our actions, and the disgusting reality of what is happening in our world.
There are 68 million searches a day for porn online. The top producers of porn (the US and Germany) each produce over 400 porn films for DVDs per WEEK. 88.2% of top-rated porn scenes contain aggressive acts; 94% of these times the aggression is directed at women. [1]
Most children encounter porn by age 10-11; many children look to pornography thinking it will give them the information they need to know about sex and relationship; and those engulfed in this destructive habit are reordering their minds to believe what they see is normal and desirable. [2, 5]
This is not a slow moving hammer, it is a jackhammer, reshaping the brains of its users and turning them into distorted men. Studies show that after viewing porn, men are less likely to show empathy to rape victims, believe women deserve to be raped based on how they’re dressed, are angry if women won’t sleep with them, are unable to sustain real relationships with real women, and are ok with coercing partners into unwanted sex acts. [3, 4]
“The Pornification of our culture at large has turned women into ‘things’; has given men (and women) the belief that women are to be bought, sold, used, abused, beaten, raped, tortured... and they like it (or are supposed to).” - L Mickelwait M.P.D.
Through the “hammer” of pornography, society is being shaped into a world where women and children are simply objects; void of emotion, dignity and personhood.
Let that sink in for a moment. Is this what you desire for the women and girls in your life (your mother, your sister, your wife, your daughter, your friend)? Is this what you desire for the men and boys in your life (your father, your brother, your husband, your son, your friend)? Both females AND males should be infuriated by this.
Sources:
1) Bridges, A. J., Wosnitzer, R., Scharrer, E., Sun, C., & Liberman, R. (2010). Aggression and sexual behavior in best-selling pornography videos: A content analysis update. Violence Against Women, 16(10), 1065-1085.
2) http://www.fightthenewdrug.org/get-the-facts#porn-changes-the-brain
3) Bridges, A., & Wosnitzer, R. (2007). Aggression and sexual behavior in best-selling pornography: A content analysis update. International Communication Association.
4) Gahyun, Y., & Yang, D. (2012). Effects of exposure to pornography on male aggressive behavioral tendencies. The Open Psychology Journal, (5), 1-10.
5) Burton et al., 2010; Cowan & Campbell, 1995; Cowell & Smith, 2009
“Art is not a mirror held up to reality but a hammer with which to shape it.”
What a wonderful quote, my head said! I wrote it down...but the moment my pen punctuated the sentence, I had another thought that turned the warmth that it had left in my heart to icy cold: Pornography is legal because it is considered to be art (freedom of speech).
Pornography is legal because it is considered to be art.
So take this beautiful, thought-provoking quote and put the “art” form in place:
“Pornography is not a mirror held up to reality but a hammer with which to shape it.”
Let that sink into your mind for a moments. It turns this lovely quote into a terrifying caution to us, explanation of the effects of our actions, and the disgusting reality of what is happening in our world.
There are 68 million searches a day for porn online. The top producers of porn (the US and Germany) each produce over 400 porn films for DVDs per WEEK. 88.2% of top-rated porn scenes contain aggressive acts; 94% of these times the aggression is directed at women. [1]
Most children encounter porn by age 10-11; many children look to pornography thinking it will give them the information they need to know about sex and relationship; and those engulfed in this destructive habit are reordering their minds to believe what they see is normal and desirable. [2, 5]
This is not a slow moving hammer, it is a jackhammer, reshaping the brains of its users and turning them into distorted men. Studies show that after viewing porn, men are less likely to show empathy to rape victims, believe women deserve to be raped based on how they’re dressed, are angry if women won’t sleep with them, are unable to sustain real relationships with real women, and are ok with coercing partners into unwanted sex acts. [3, 4]
“The Pornification of our culture at large has turned women into ‘things’; has given men (and women) the belief that women are to be bought, sold, used, abused, beaten, raped, tortured... and they like it (or are supposed to).” - L Mickelwait M.P.D.
Through the “hammer” of pornography, society is being shaped into a world where women and children are simply objects; void of emotion, dignity and personhood.
Let that sink in for a moment. Is this what you desire for the women and girls in your life (your mother, your sister, your wife, your daughter, your friend)? Is this what you desire for the men and boys in your life (your father, your brother, your husband, your son, your friend)? Both females AND males should be infuriated by this.
Sources:
1) Bridges, A. J., Wosnitzer, R., Scharrer, E., Sun, C., & Liberman, R. (2010). Aggression and sexual behavior in best-selling pornography videos: A content analysis update. Violence Against Women, 16(10), 1065-1085.
2) http://www.fightthenewdrug.org/get-the-facts#porn-changes-the-brain
3) Bridges, A., & Wosnitzer, R. (2007). Aggression and sexual behavior in best-selling pornography: A content analysis update. International Communication Association.
4) Gahyun, Y., & Yang, D. (2012). Effects of exposure to pornography on male aggressive behavioral tendencies. The Open Psychology Journal, (5), 1-10.
5) Burton et al., 2010; Cowan & Campbell, 1995; Cowell & Smith, 2009
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