To be clear, the documentary in question is not a piece of independent journalism, nor a dispassionate examination of the facts. It's propaganda in support of a specific social issue agenda: "abolishing sex trafficking and breaking the cycle of commercial sexual exploitation".
exoduscry.com
This is in my opinion a noble goal and one worth supporting. But that doesn't mean everything done in the service of a noble goal is itself noble, or even productive. Maybe Exodus Cry handles the topic with more integrity; I don't know. Part of their stated strategy is to "shift the culture with powerful messaging through films, videos... and the written word."
Their porn "documentary" is less a documentary and more a marketing tool. It's not meant to give you the facts so you can make informed decisions based on your values and preferences. It's meant to shift your decision-making "with powerful messaging".
I think part of Poem's problem here is that he's drank a little too much of Exodus Cry's marketing kool-aid. He was told their messaging is "powerful", and now he's trying to cope with the fact that it has little to no power here.
A myriad of members here have noted that Poem's actual goal is the reform of the entire pornography industry. This is consistent with Exodus Cry's stated goals, which are similarly comprehensive in scope. "Barely Legal" is just the first chapter of their anti-porn "documentary".
Exodus Cry says their solution is in three parts: Shifting Culture, Changing Laws, and Reaching Out.
I was going to include a section in this post examining the kinds of specific measures Poem might propose, from EC's "changing laws" page. But it turns out EC doesn't have any specific measures to propose:
exoduscry.com
Hilariously, the bulk of their "changing laws" concept is really just having lawmakers watch their propaganda films (which they present as 'documentaries', even though they're aimed at changing opinions, not documenting facts).
Their "changing laws" page does not name a single law that they would like to see changed, let alone what specific changes they would recommend making. Ironically, there is more detail about what exactly they want changed on their "Get Involved" page:
exoduscry.com
They have petitions you can sign, for the abolition of prostitution, and for stronger legal tools to prevent pornographers from exploiting vulnerable teens. They also think you can get involved by giving them money, watching their
propaganda powerful messaging and hosting tupperware parties where you get other people to watch it too, and buying their merch.
It's not all bad, of course. I agree with a lot of what they have to say about the problems, and with a lot of what they have to say about the solutions. Loving outreach to victims, for example. I wonder if Poem's time and wellbeing might be better served by leaning into the outreach side of things, rather than the propaganda side. Start up a collection for a local shelter that serves this community, or even for a victim whose life you've personally touched, and I bet you'd get plenty of supporters here.
And of course I'm in favor of changing laws, as a general rule. In a democracy, it's one of the better ways to improve society. But that doesn't mean that every knee-jerk, emotionally driven piece of legislation that panders to a particular interest group is actually a net positive for society as a whole. I'd like it better if EC were more specific about real-world laws they think are part of the problem, and what changes they would make to have those laws become part of the solution. If EC won't say, how is Poem supposed to know?
In closing, I present this amusing coda. At the bottom of their "changing laws" page, they summarize their impact on the world's legislators as follows:
- "Advised governments and legislatures in 13 countries"
- "Received consultative status with United Nations"
- "Advocate for stronger anti-trafficking laws by educating legislators"
Missing from the list is any actual impact.
