Churches mobilize against pornography
by Kara Hansen
Leaven staff
Kansas City, Mo. — It has never been attempted in a metropolitan area the size of Kansas City.
That is, until now.
In a press conference held May 17, the National Coalition for the Protection of
Children and Families announced a metro-wide effort to shut down pornography
outlets in Kansas City.
Grand jury petitions containing more than 20,000 signatures were displayed at
the Salvation Army headquarters, where pastors and activists gathered along
with local media. Pastors were then dispatched to take petitions to each
individual county courthouse, simultaneously.
“One day, one hour, one major U.S. city. This has never been done before,” said Phillip Cosby, executive director for the Kansas City office of the
National Coalition for the Protection of Children and Families. Cosby addressed
the gathering to discuss the plan for the petitions and provide inspiration for
the cause, as did the coalition
’s founder, Dr. Jerry Kirk.
The largely grass-roots effort coordinated by the coalition involved mobilizing
members of churches of all denominations in each of the six counties in the
metropolitan area, including Wyandotte and Johnson counties in the archdiocese.
Petitions were circulated requesting the county grand juries to investigate 32
stores selling pornography in the Kansas City area. Parishioners were
encouraged to sign the petitions after weekend Masses at participating
churches.
“We’re the Christian church. This is basic to who we are, fundamental to what we
believe. It
’s what God has called us to be — salt and light of the earth,” said Cosby. “We’re called to be a prophetic voice to an indifferent community.”
The Catholic voice was particularly instrumental in Kansas City, Kan., where
four parishes participated: St. Patrick, Sts. Cyril and Methodius, the
Cathedral of St. Peter, and St. John the Evangelist. So key was the Catholic
population in obtaining the needed signatures for Wyandotte County, the
coalition asked Msgr. Michael Mullen, pastor of St. Patrick Parish, to present
the Wyandotte County petition to the prosecutor
’s office. St. Patrick’s alone accounted for over 400 of the 1,200 signatures in Wyandotte County.
“I think this was a way for us to continue our involvement in the As For Me and
My House program on the parish level,
” said Msgr. Mullen.
“I think the petition drive has already brought a heightened awareness of the
importance of virtues and the harmful message involved with pornography. I hope
this will encourage families to protect children and give courage to
individuals using pornography, to have the strength and wisdom to separate
themselves from its influence,
” he added.
Msgr. Mullen attended meetings throughout the previous year with local activists
coordinating the petition drive. Prior communication had taken place between
the national coalition and the sheriff
’s and prosecutor’s offices in each county. The petitions call for each of the six county grand
juries to investigate specific pornography outlets in the metropolitan area for
possible violations of the Kansas and Missouri statutes of
“promotion of obscenity.”
“Know this: Obscenity is not free speech. It is not protected free speech. It is
like libel, slander, and perjury,
” said Cosby. “But the federal courts did not define for every community what was considered
obscene. Every community has the legal right to go into the pornography stores,
lift merchandise off the shelf and place it in the courtroom for a jury to
decide if it
’s obscene.”
Similar grand jury indictments have been successful in Topeka and Wichita, where
criminal charges were filed and trials have been held asking the
“community standards” question. Cosby hopes the petitions will bring similar trials in the six-county
Kansas City area.
“All we are asking from our prosecutors is to give us the ‘community standards’ question. Give us a chance to change the community around us and engage the
culture,
” said Cosby. “We want to change the climate around us, to change the attitude of indifference.”
During his speech, Cosby cited numerous law enforcement studies linking sex
crimes, especially rape, to pornography use. One third of criminals in Kansas
prisons, he said, are serving time for sex crimes.
He also noted that this effort was not rooted in a plan to demonize sexuality,
but to simply bring it back to its original purpose.
“It’s God’s idea; it’s his creation. It’s a wonderful gift God has given us to be enjoyed within the covenant of
marriage,
” said Cosby. “When that gift is taken out of the context of marriage, it destroys families,
children, and society.
”
