Pornographers continue to capture impressionable minds every day. They do so because federal profanity and obscenity laws slipped into obscurity during the early ’90s. About the same time, Internet usage became so widespread that virtually every elementary school in the country began to teach young children how to “surf the ‘net.” Pornographers seized upon the opportunity worldwide to permeate the culture with their message of instant sexual gratification.
Norma Harris, a woman from Pennsylvania, became alarmed and burdened by the amount of pornography inflicted upon unsuspecting people – especially children. She thought of an easy way to draw attention to the problem and open lines of communication between informed people and the uninformed. Wearing a simple white lapel ribbon, an unusual accessory at the time, compelled people to ask what the ribbon represented. So began the White Ribbon Against Pornography campaign, or WRAP.
A non-profit group, Morality in Media quickly recognized the value in WRAP and helped take the campaign to the national level. This year, Focus on the Family and American Mothers Inc. have joined the movement that encourages people to wear the ribbon during the week of Oct. 28-Nov. 4 to raise awareness of the cancer that is pornography.
Robert Peters, Morality in Media president, stated, “I don’t know if our worthy cause can survive another eight to 10 years with no enforcement of federal obscenity laws. I say this because a disturbingly larger number of our nation’s youth and young adults are viewing pornography, and they don’t even see this as a moral problem!”
Peters issues the challenge to participate in some way in this year’s WRAP Week and consider what you and your organization can do to oppose pornography. Distributing and wearing white ribbons will draw attention to the need to restrict such free and unwelcome access to pornographic materials. The simple white ribbon may open lines of communication and remind people of the innocence of children.
Links to various resources and ideas may be found at www.citizenlink.org (search for white ribbon or pornography).