Another factor that is contributing to the demand for the purchase of sex in our culture is the fact that children are being exposed to comprehensive sexual content through sex education in schools. In the past, we were taught the basics about sex, but over time sex education has become more and more detailed and at younger and younger ages. In some schools in the US, children are being shown pornographic material in sex education where they are taught about such things as bondage, domination, anal sex, fisting, sexual orientation, masturbation, and sexual fantasies. (CA Education Board Approves 'Pornographic' Sex Ed - California Globe) Something else that has been introduced to sex education in the US is the normalcy of being LGBTQAI. Some of the curriculum taught in the US explains how sexual reproductive organs don’t always match a person’s gender and even explain how to have sex if you are homosexual, etc. (CA Education Board Approves 'Pornographic' Sex Ed - California Globe) This also could cause confusion for a young child who is just figuring out who they are which goes back to the identity confusion piece. 10 years ago, sex education was not introduced to children until around 7th grade. Today, some schools have been reported starting sex education as young as kindergarden! This could put ideas in their minds that they would not have otherwise ever thought about, which could cause children to start to explore sexuality at a much younger age. Sex education has even become mandatory in some schools where they will not even allow the child to opt - out of taking this course. When children are being shown such explicit, pornographic, sexual content at such a young age, without a choice, it is no wonder that the United States is the number one consumer of sex worldwide. (Quote from Geoff Rogers - co-founder of the US Institute Against Human Trafficking - Fight The New Drug) Report: The US is One of the Biggest Consumers of Sexual Exploitation in the World (fightthenewdrug.org) Not teaching children anything at all about sex could also be detrimental as well. At that point, they only have what their friends, tv, social media, etc. are telling them as a reference and they start to explore on their own. Children in the US need clear, moral, guided direction when it comes to sex education at an appropriate age where they can fully understand the information they are being given. We believe this will protect our children’s innocence, which will ultimately lead to a substantial decrease in the demand for the purchase of sex in the United States.
STATISTICS to show the problem:
Porn Stats:
- In 2019, porn sites received more traffic than Amazon, Twitter, and Netflix combined. (Childhood 2.0 Documentary)
- Over 150,000 sex ads are added online every day.
- Kids in the US are being shown pornographic material in sex education where they are taught about such things as bondage, domination, anal sex, fisting, sexual orientation, masturbation, and sexual fantasies. (I am not sure if this is too intense to say) (CA Education Board Approves 'Pornographic' Sex Ed - California Globe)
- The average age of exposure to porn is 11-12 years old. (New York Post) Some people report being exposed as young as 3 years old.
- Almost 100% of all sex trafficking buyers are porn consumers or addicts.
- In 2019 there were 42 billion visits to 1 porn site. That is 115 million visits per day.
- Analysis of the 50 most popular porn videos found that 88% contain physical violence and 49% contain verbal aggression mostly against women. (Childhood 2.0 Documentary)
- The United States is the number one consumer of sex worldwide. (Quote from Geoff Rogers - co-founder of the US Institute Against Human Trafficking - Fight The New Drug) Report: The US is One of the Biggest Consumers of Sexual Exploitation in the World (fightthenewdrug.org)
Social Media Stats:
- In 82% of cases identified in 2016, traffickers used social media to identify & research their victims. (Rocky Mountain Innocence Lost Task Force)
- In 2020, an organization called Bark did a study where they analyzed more than 2.1 billion messages across texts, email, YouTube, and 30+ apps and social media platforms. In this study, they found that 70.9% of tweens and 87.9% of teens encountered nudity or content of a sexual nature. SHORTEN
- An organization called Bark put together an experiment where they made a fake social media profile of an 11-year-old girl. The time it took for a predator to reach out was 25 seconds.
Child Exploitation Stats:
- Every 30 seconds a child is sold into slavery,
- The average lifespan of a child who is enslaved is 7 years. The average age of sex trafficked victims is 12-14 years old. (2017 Estimates of Global Slavery Report)
- The majority of victims will never reach the age of 23.
- Victims of sex trafficking are as young as 3 months old.
- $150 billion US dollars are spent worldwide on trafficking.
- That is almost as much as ALL the beer, alcohol & wine consumption in the US ($71billion) PLUS the Global APPLE Sales ($84billion, Apple.com) = $155billion.
- The United States, along with Mexico and the Philippines, was ranked one of the world's worst places for human trafficking in 2018. In the US, there is no official number of human trafficking victims, but estimates place it in the hundreds of thousands. (Fox News, Polaris Project, Human Trafficking Hotline)
- The average sex trafficking buyer is a middle-aged man who is married with children and has a good job.
- The majority of sex trafficking offenses are committed by someone the victim knows.
- Sex trafficking victims are forced to have sex with 7-15 people a day. The average number of nights they serve a week is 5 nights
Colorado Stats:
- In Arapahoe County, 101 men were charged with sex trafficking between 2012 and 2017 (PBS)
- Sexual exploitation can yield a return on investment ranging from 100% to over 1,000%. Denver pimps make on average $50,000 a week selling sex.