It is with immense gratitude that we honor Mr. Patrick A. Trueman upon his retirement as president of the National Center on Sexual Exploitation.
After a remarkable 47 year career working to protect children, families, and society from the harms of pornography, sexual abuse, and sex trafficking, Mr. Trueman officially retired on December 31, 2023. We are overjoyed that he will continue to serve as a member of NCOSE’s Board of Directors
Mr. Trueman’s leadership has left an indelible impact on NCOSE, on the anti-sexual exploitation movement, and on society at large.
Mr. Trueman’s Pioneering Work Fighting Pornography at the U.S. Department of Justice
In the 1980s, Mr. Trueman began his impactful journey fighting against sexual exploitation when he was recruited to the Department of Justice’s Criminal Division as the Chief of Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section. There, Mr. Trueman became a true pioneer in speaking out against and fighting the harms of pornography—which many were attempting to frame as a “victimless crime.”
At the DOJ, Mr. Trueman’s team developed a novel nationwide strategy to go after the major producers and distributors of pornography by teaming with the 93 United States Attorneys across the nation. Together, they successfully prosecuted child sexual abuse material, obscenity, and sex trafficking crimes using legal tools and approaches that had never been done before. The result—putting a number of major pornography cartels out of business—is a credit to Mr. Trueman’s leadership and a testament of his role as a visionary.
NCOSE’s Transformation Under Mr. Trueman’s Leadership
In 2010, Mr. Trueman was asked to take over an organization, Morality in Media, that seemed to be on life support. He accepted, because he believed very much in the organization’s mission to combat the harms of pornography. Under Mr. Trueman’s leadership, the sputtering Morality in Media transformed into the National Center on Sexual Exploitation of today—a highly respected, nonpartisan organization that is at the forefront of combatting not just pornography but all forms of sexual abuse and exploitation.
Morality in Media’s rebrand to the National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE) was not a change of name only; it represented an expansion of our mission and the elevation of a nonpartisan approach to these issues. Thanks to the vision of Mr. Trueman and current CEO Dawn Hawkins, NCOSE has led the anti-sexual exploitation movement to recognize that all forms of sexual abuse and exploitation are inextricably linked and must not be addressed in a vacuum. Further, we have fostered the growth of a politically, religiously, and culturally diverse coalition of over 500 multi-disciplined organizations, working to end sexual exploitation throughout the world.
Mr. Trueman also led NCOSE in developing some of our most powerful strategies and campaigns. For example, in 2013, Mr. Trueman and the NCOSE team developed the “Dirty Dozen List,” a campaign that holds corporations and mainstream entities accountable for facilitating and profiting from sexual exploitation. Over the years the Dirty Dozen List has resulted in major changes among some of the most powerful corporations in the world, including Google, TikTok, Snapchat, Amazon, Netflix, Visa, United Airlines, and more.
Further, Mr. Trueman’s vision led to the creation of the NCOSE Law Center, an embedded law firm which fights for justice for survivors against mainstream profiteers of their sexual exploitation. Founded in 2016, the NCOSE Law Center is now involved in numerous ground-breaking and high-profile lawsuits throughout the United States—including against Pornhub, Twitter, XVideos, the state of Nevada, and more. By leveraging the power of civil litigation, the NCOSE Law Center is acting as a crucial catalyst in bringing about the demise of the pornography industry and sex trafficking marketplace.
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Standing on the robust foundation built under Mr. Trueman’s leadership, NCOSE is ready and eager to continue advancing in the fight to end all sexual abuse and exploitation. Through Corporate Advocacy, Civil Litigation, and Public Policy, we seek out the highest impact tactics that stop sexual exploitation at its source and prevent harm for the greatest amount of people.
We are incredibly grateful for the influence Mr. Trueman has had in developing these cutting-edge strategies and making NCOSE into the organization it is today.
Onward, to a world where all can live and love, free from sexual abuse and exploitation!
