Netflix is receiving public backlash for streaming a film with a scene that appears to amount to child pornography.
The film in question is an Argentinian movie called Desire, and according to PJ Media, it portrays a 9-year-old girl masturbating with a pillow and includes close-up shots of her face during orgasm as a 7-year-old girl watches.
Department of Justice guidelines on child pornography state:
Notably, the legal definition of sexually explicit conduct does not require that an image depict a child engaging in sexual activity. A picture of a naked child may constitute illegal child pornography if it is sufficiently sexually suggestive. Additionally, the age of consent for sexual activity in a given state is irrelevant; any depiction of a minor under 18 years of age engaging in sexually explicit conduct is illegal.
The clip of this film has been reported to the Department of Justice and the National Center on Missing and Exploited Children.
At the minimum, this scene clearly inappropriately sexualized a child, and unfortunately, this is a trend since Netflix seems to increasingly embrace objectifying and degrading depictions of sex and sexual assault.