Senator Brownback Conducts Senate Hearings To Examine Pornography's Effects On Families, Society

A buddy of mine, Richard Whidden, is Executive Director of the National Law Center for Children and Families, an advocacy organization arguing for stricter enforcement of obscenity and child exploitation laws.

Today, Richard sent me an email giving me a heads up to let me know that, yesterday, U.S. Senator Sam Brownback (a Catholic Republican from Kansas) held a hearing of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution titled "Why the Government Should Care About Pornography: The State Interest in Protecting Children and Families". Richard was called to testify at that hearing:

Richard Whidden, the Executive Director of the National Law Center for Children and Families, was called to testify before a Senate Committee on November 10, 2005. The hearing of the United States Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution was convened by Senator Sam Brownback (R-KS) to examine the effects of pornography on children and families. The hearing panel included Pamela Paul, author of the new book Pornified, which examines the effect of pornography on men and women across the nation and Jill C. Manning, a marriage and family therapist who addressed the adverse mental health effects and addictive nature of pornography.

Mr. Whidden commented on the legal framework of the government’s role in addressing pornography and the harms associated with this material. Mr. Whidden commented, “It is clear that the government has a compelling interest in protecting children from exposure to sexually oriented materials.” Citing to Supreme Court case law, Mr. Whidden elaborated by saying that, “the well-being of children is of course a subject within the State’s Constitutional power to regulate.” Mr. Whidden also pointed out that the Supreme Court has stated that Congress may regulate the Internet to prevent children from gaining access to harmful materials.

In his concluding comments, Mr. Whidden called for four actions federal and state governments should undertake:

· Encouragement of research concerning the effects of pornography on our children and families.

· Fostering the development of additional technological answers that allow families to protect their children while they use the internet.

· Legislation that allows parents to hold illegal pornography distributors responsible for the harm done to their children.

· Legislation that would keep sexual material away from sexual predators that use this material to groom their victims for abuse.

After the hearing Mr. Whidden commented, “The National Law Center for Children and Families is honored to participate in a discussion of how to address the harms associated with pornography. This is an issue that is so important to families and society. The National Law Center will continue to work with Congress, States, the private sector and parents to defend children and families across the nation.”

I have added the National Law Center for Children and Families to the public policy links on the righthand side of this blog.