Florida May Declare Pornography a Public Health Risk

A new report out of Florida says that the state is moving closer to declaring pornography a public [...]

A new report out of Florida says that the state is moving closer to declaring pornography a public health risk.

On Jan. 18 the resolution got a boost from a state house committee who voted overwhelmingly to approve it.

Republican Rep. Ross Spano is sponsoring the move. He is a candidate for attorney general and has previously passed legislation for helping victims of human trafficking, per the Orlando Sentinel.

"Research has found a correlation between pornography use and mental and physical illnesses, difficulty forming and maintaining intimate relationships, unhealthy brain development and cognitive function, and deviant, problematic or dangerous sexual behavior," Ross said prior to the House Health & Human Services Committee voted 18-1 to approve the resolution.

Details inside the resolution says that "a child who views pornography is at a higher risk of developing low self-esteem, an eating disorder, and a desire to engage in dangerous sexual behavior."

It also adds that the states should "protect the citizens of [the] state' through 'education, prevention, research and policy change."

Ross added during a speech that smart phones give kids seemingly endless access to pornography, and on a personal note referenced that his own 10-year-old son had been exposed to it by a "an older kid in the neighborhood," as reported by The Daily Mail.

The measures one "no" vote came from Republican Rep. Cary Pigman, who is actually a medical doctor.

"We have problems with hypertension, with obesity, with diabetes, with Zika. We have a whole list of things that are important medically," Pigman said. "I'm not so sure that we need to spend legislative time annunciating a specific complaint when we have others that are far more pressing."

Spano initially wanted the new resolution to declare pornography a "public health crisis," but he opted to use "risk" instead so that he could potentially increase his chances for support.

"Anytime you brush up against what people perceive as a foundational constitutional right — the First Amendment, the right to free speech — you're going to have understandable pushback," Spano said. "The Supreme Court of the United States has made it clear that states have the ability to regulate obscene material. Obscenity has never been found to be a constitutional right."

0comments