censorship of pornography a moral issue
Imagine The New York Times headline reading "Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition Banned!!" If the pro-censorship/anti-porn sector of our society has its way, this headline may come true. Some of the pro-censorship supporters believe that women posing provacatively in bathing suits should be considered pornography and that this and all other forms of pornography should be made illegal. There is and has been a moral debate over whether or not pornography should be censored. Many individuals believe that pornography is harmfull to society and therefore morally wrong. However, on the other side there are also people who do not believe that pornography is harmful and some believe that it may even be beneficial to society. The type of pornography on which this memo will focus is that of in which the human subjects have agreed to participate in the production of the material, which is read or veiwed by choice by adults. While some people even find pornography involving consenting adults offensive, there is no morally compelling reason to censor this type of pornography. The first moral standard that must me considered when determining whether or not to censor pronography is the principle that all human beings have the right
The main argument used by the pro-anti-pornography censor groups is that people who view pornography are more likely to commit sex crimes than people who are not exposed to pornography. However, there is little empirical evidence to support this idea. In fact there is more evidence to support the opposite: that easy access to pornography is likely to reduce the rates of sexual assualt (Sileo 1995:7). Research has shown that in countries where pornography is banned, rates of sexual assualt against women are high and women's rights are virtually non-existent. Japan though, where all forms of pornography are legal, "even violent" pornography, has low rates of sexual assault (Sileo 1995:7). Based on these facts, pornography does not cause sex crimes. Another fact which must me considered when determining if banning pornography will reduse sex crimes against women it the fact that rape existed before the movie camera and printing press (Lefevere 1995:12). Therefore, no casual relationship between pornography and sex crimes can be claimed. Therefore there is no concrete evidence which supports the argument connecting pornography with sex crimes. The main problem with taking away an individual's right to choose, is once this control is placed in the government's hands where will they draw the line as far as other choices the government may take away from us. Some critics worry that restrictions on pornography will lead to widespread censorship and thus limit one's choices of reading and viewing materials. As moral agents we must allow everyone to make their own decisions regarding pornography. If one finds pornography offensive, the he/she may choose not to read or watch pornographic material. If a person enjoys pornography then, by all means he/she should have the choice to buy, possess and derive pleasure from prongraphic material. Because people's sexual interests are not "politically correct" is not a morally compelling rea
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Approximate Word count = 1314
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)
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