Conference to focus on problems of porn

"The first thing that parents have to do is evaluate how they feel about individuals who look at pornography," said Ford. "Kids everywhere are being exposed to pornography at a high rate, if not habitually viewing it and forming an addiction. Parents need to approach the situation delicately, they need to figure out how to be more understanding."

Dr. LaNae Valentine, another presenter, is the Director of Women's Services and Resources at BYU. She agrees with Ford, but is concerned that for some people whose romantic partners are addicted to porn, there's too much acceptance. "Ten years ago if you had a problem with porn you were looked at as a sexually deviant person. We've swung from thinking that these people are creepy deviants to thinking that porn is something people use to deal with difficult emotions," said Valentine. "There's a fine line, because we don't want to shame those who look at it, but we also don't want to act like it's OK."

This type of changing attitude toward pornography is what worries Atkinson. She cited United States Attorney General Eric Holder's pattern of not prosecuting obscenity law offenders as an example of society's wearying concern over the issue. "We want to alert people about things like that at the conference," she explained. "I'm always surprised at people who brush the issue aside, or say they think it's OK. We want people to understand what a terrible scourge this is in our society."

The 10th Annual UCAP Conference on Protecting Children and Families from Pornography and Other Harmful Material will be held on Saturday, May 7, 2011 from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Little America Hotel in Salt Lake City. You can register for the conference online at www.utahcoalition.org.

All persons interested are invited to attend.

Email: khenriod@desnews.com