EXODUS CRY URGES CONGRESS TO PROTECT CHILDREN FROM ONLINE PORN & SEXUAL EXPLOITATION THROUGH POLICY

Anti-Trafficking Nonprofit Takes PROTECT CHILDREN NOT PORN Movement to Capitol Hill ? Delivers 100K Signed Petitions to Nancy Pelosi; Holds National Symposium

SAN CLEMENTE, Calif., June 21, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Exodus Cry, a leading global anti-trafficking nonprofit organization, is calling for required safeguards on porn sites. It's urging Congress to protect children from a lifetime of porn addiction, harmful brain rewiring, and dangerous sexual behavior through effective policy.

Exodus Cry recently took its movement to Washington, D.C. to urge Congress to create policy to protect children from porn. It co-hosted a national symposium on Capitol Hill: <<link to the symposium recording>> and delivered a petition to Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi: <<link to full release, photos and video>>

"Millions of children are just a few clicks away from the most graphic and violent sex acts imaginable, and their early exposure to porn can produce life-altering consequences," said Benjamin Nolot, CEO, Exodus Cry. "That's why we are raising awareness about this horrific issue and urging U.S. lawmakers to take action. Big Porn and Big Tech platforms which host pornographic content have shown reckless disregard for kids, and it's time to unite in calling for effective online safeguards to protect children, not the porn industry."

Millions of websites hosting porn have made the online world a minefield for kids who, whether they intend to or not, are seeing this content in their own bedrooms. Porn companies are doing almost nothing to protect kids from accessing their content and they profit from the web traffic regardless of the age of the site users.

Exodus Cry and the National Center on Sexual Exploitation recently hosted a national symposium on Capitol Hill to help curb online child and adult sexual exploitation with policy solutions. Titled Child Sexual Abuse, Sex Trafficking, and the Pornography Industry: Toxic Online Criminality," the hybrid symposium featured 13 speakers, including industry experts, researchers, leaders, survivors, ex-porn performers, advocates, legal, and medical professionals. The speakers shared how critical it is for Congress to take action to fight for a world free of all forms of sexual abuse and exploitation to protect children and other vulnerable people.

To see speaker quotes, click here. <<link to quote page>>

Following the Symposium, Exodus Cry delivered signed PROTECT CHILDREN NOT PORN petitions to Pelosi's office. Nearly 100,000 people signed the petition calling for effective safeguards to help curb online sexual exploitation and Congress to help stop child sexual exploitation with practical policy solutions. The petition campaign continues through 2022: <<link to photos or video>>

1. Websites hosting pornographic content must require visitors to verify their age with a government-issued ID, validated by a third-party platform.
2. All internet-accessing devices sold must come with safety filters turned on (adults can disable).
3. Pass legislation requiring effective safeguards be put in place to protect children from online porn exposure.

The average age of porn exposure is now 11. In fact, the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) called 2021 the "worst year on record" for online child sexual abuse. An online survey found that kids as young as 7 were watching pornography and more than half of 11 to 13-year-olds had seen pornography. For more data click here.

In addition to the harmful brain changes mentioned above, studies have shown that, for children, the implications of porn use can include self-isolation from family and peers, as well as increased levels of anxiety, depression, and suicidal ideation.

Learn more at www.exoduscry.com/PCNP.

Exodus Cry (EC), is a leading global anti-trafficking nonprofit organization focused on ending widespread sex trafficking and commercial sexual exploitation, assisting, and empowering its victims, and educating the public about these horrific crimes. EC is focused on spotlighting the root causes of sexual exploitation and activating people to join the global movement against this injustice. Its award-winning films and social content have received tens of millions of worldwide views, been promoted by celebrities, and helped shape global legislation after being seen by audiences at the United Nations, U.S. Congress, and both the Canadian and United Kingdom Parliaments. EC is based in Southern California (USA) and was founded in 2008. Learn more at exoduscry.com, and follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter @exoduscry.   

SOURCE Exodus Cry