As an anti-porn, pro-love organization, Fight the New Drug is all about infusing more sexiness into the world, not less.
When you think “anti-porn,” you might think “anti-sex,” but that is absolutely not what we’re about. Humans are wired to desire sex, and for good reason. Sex is an awesome and healthy part of committed, loving relationships. As humans, we are programmed to need love, to feel loved, and to feel the desire to be sexual with another person. While that is positive and healthy, there is a twisted counterfeit that seeks to hijack and profit from this natural wiring—porn.
Did you know that choosing to not watch porn is one of the most sex-positive things you can do?
Porn isn’t produced with the intent of helping relationships
Think of it this way—porn isn’t sex, and it doesn’t concern itself with the sexual health of the consumer. That’s not something you expected to read today, is it?
The problem is, porn does a stellar job of selling itself as a specific version of “sexy” and pretending to be about sex. We’ll even go so far as to say it’s a product of the commodification of sex, but it’s not actually about sex itself.
Consider the facts. Study after study has shown that porn is directly related to problems with arousal, attraction, and sexual performance. [1]. Porn leads to less sex and to less sexual satisfaction within a relationship. [2] Researchers have shown a strong connection between porn consumption and low sex drive, erectile dysfunction, and trouble reaching orgasm. [3] Many frequent porn users reach a point where they have an easier time getting aroused by internet porn than by having actual sex with a real partner. [4] One recent study even concluded that porn use was likely the reason for low sexual desire among a random sample of high school seniors. [5] Who has ever heard of that—low sex drive among a sample of people with raging hormones?
Related: How The Porn Industry Hijacks Natural Sexual Curiosity And Hooks Teens
Look at it this way: if porn were totally about sex, there might be more effort on the part of the producers to prevent this sexual dysfunction among their consumers, rather than promote it. Or, better yet, to promote sexual satisfaction among their consumers, rather than prevent it. [6][7][8][9][10][11]
Even more, if it were truly about sex, even aside from all the sex problems porn fuels, there might just be less incentive to employ isolating compulsion and addiction as the industry’s leading marketing strategy.
Clearly, the world of porn and the promotion of physical intimacy in consumers’ lives are universes apart. How? We’ll show you…
Pornography is…
Fake. Nothing about porn is real. Not only is it not real, it creates unrealistic sexual expectations. In a society where “body positivity” dominates conversations, porn teaches consumers that their bodies need to look a certain way and be groomed a certain way to be sexually appealing. It’s all fake, and it’s a complete lie. Nothing is more attractive than what’s real and authentic.
Selfish. Porn only cares about itself. It will leave you just as it found you—alone. Pornography minimizes committed relationships, glorifies violence and abuse, and reduces the individual to body parts to be used and discarded without any consideration to other characteristics that make them a human being—personality, hopes, dreams, and emotions.
Ugly. There is nothing glamorous about porn. It treats people as disposable sex objects, and that’s ugly. We as human beings are wired with the need to love, to feel love, and to share those feelings of connection with another person. Pornography makes you think those needs are being met, but really, they aren’t. Pornography will not and cannot love you back.
Love and sex are…
Real. Sharing your time with another actual person, learning and growing together—that’s love. That’s real. If you feel it, you know it. Love puts the needs of others above the needs of self. It wants what is best for the other person regardless of the sacrifice. Love leaves you better than you were when it found you. Love allows you to be vulnerable and gives you the ability to be responsible to treat with care the vulnerabilities of another person.
Beautiful. Some people might think, “Pornographic images are beautiful to me,” but there is nothing beautiful about sexual exploitation. Two real individuals in a committed relationship—now that’s beautiful. Someone who has confidence in their natural, beautifully flawed self, now that’s beautiful. Porn cannot compare to the value of real passion and intimacy in relationships. It’s empty and hollow, in comparison.
Giving. Love gives all it has without the thought of receiving anything in return. It is important to remember that even in a society that is saturated with normalization and celebration of porn, you can choose to rebel—you can fight for love. As long as you are fighting back, and rejecting lies that porn sells, love wins.
Fight for love
Fight the New Drug is all about fighting for real love, healthy sex, and rejecting their hollow counterfeit, porn. Talk to those around you about this issue. Don’t let society tell you that it’s too taboo to address—it isn’t. We can’t afford to continue in silence because we feel awkward or uncomfortable talking about it. Learn all you can about the harmful effects of pornography so you are prepared and equipped in your fight against it.
We are not here to battle with the porn industry and erase porn from the face of the planet. Our purpose is just as much to promote real love and healthy relationships, which is why we call ourselves a movement for love.
