TALLAHASSEE, Florida, February 21, 2018 (LifeSiteNews) — Lawmakers in the Florida House of Representatives declared pornography a public health risk on Tuesday.
The resolution, approved by legislators, “recognizes the public health risk created by pornography and acknowledges the need for education, prevention, research, and policy change to protect citizens of this state.”
Republican Rep. Ross Spano, one of the sponsors, had addressed Florida’s House Health and Human Services Committee in January about the dangers of porn, saying there is a link between porn use, mental illness and dangerous sexual behavior.
“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,” said Spano, who announced last year he would run for state Attorney General.
The full resolution cites addiction, greater risk of low self-esteem and eating disorders among the dangers while noting that porn objectifies women and fuels sex trafficking.
The media criticized the move to recognize porn as a public health risk after last week’s devastating school shooting in Florida and the resulting Second Amendment debate. But the Florida House is not alone in recognizing pornography as a public health crisis.
Numerous studies have found porn to be destructive to marriages, families, mental health, brain function, and a healthy sex life, along with promoting sexual violence.
The state of Utah has officially declared pornography a public health crisis and a number of other states have acted to similarly declare porn harmful.
