вЂњIf you eat the sexual junk food, you may become sexually obese.вЂќ вЂњThatвЂ™s because the sex industry is giving them sexual junk food,вЂќ Layden said. вЂњThe developing brains of younger and younger children are being bombarded by graphic, dehumanizing images.вЂќДЄccording to Mary Anne Layden, director of the Sexual Trauma and Psychopathology Program Center for Cognitive Therapy at the University of Pennsylvania, pornography is molding childrenвЂ™s sexual attitudes and behaviors that carry over into adulthood.ДЄs a result, typical messages children receive include that sex is casual and not about intimacy, love or respect sex is not about marriage or having children and there is no such thing as too much sex. вЂњWe believe that this is an issue that calls out, cries out, for leadership,вЂќ Ernie Allen, former president and CEO of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and International Centre for Missing and Exploited Children. But because pornography is legal, it is more difficult to tackle, expose and take action against the offenses than those of prostitution and sex trafficking.ДЇurthermore, these violent images are reaching increased demographics and influencing cultural attitudes and behaviors. вЂњDisconnecting trafficking from prostitution and pornography normalizes most of the sex industry.вЂќДЇarley said pornography is a business enterprise - the industry documents sexual assaults of individuals and then makes a profit from those misdemeanors as a result. вЂњThe same kinds of violence against women are perpetrated in pornography, prostitution and trafficking,вЂќ Farley said. Melissa Farley, executive director at Prostitution Research and Education, compared pornography to prostitution and sex trafficking. Recipients of these violent misdemeanors were most frequently women.ДЄdditionally, multiple studies were cited indicating increased rates of behavioral violence and aggression against women and children among men who view pornography.Д«ut pornography is a more serious issue than many initially perceive. According to a 2010 study published in Violence Against Women, nearly 90 percent of 304 pornographic scenes evaluated by experts included physical aggression including spanking, gagging and slapping. The panel identified ways pornography contributes to violence against women. ItвЂ™s not the nudity thatвЂ™s the problem, itвЂ™s the novelty.вЂќ вЂњItвЂ™s not the sex thatвЂ™s the problem, itвЂ™s the violence.

вЂњThis is not only a public health issue, it is a social justice issue,вЂќ said Cordelia Anderson, founder of Sensibilities Prevention Services. Specifically, they evaluated pornographyвЂ™s influence on sex trafficking, child exploitation and sexual violence. This is what a panel of experts concluded at the National Center on Sexual ExploitationвЂ™s Capitol symposium as they discussed the harmful ramifications of pornography. Pornography is the public health crisis of the digital age.

The real war on women