If you drive in the Silicon Valley regularly, you might have noticed some attention-grabbing signs popping up.
“Porn Kills Love” and “Fight For Love” are just two phrases that appear on one billboard in Willow Glen area.
Members of Fight The New Drug, the anti-pornography advocacy group responsible for that billboard, say they are trying to raise awareness about the harmful effects of pornography through social media and the company website.
The site boasts articles with titles such as “Porn Stars Speak Openly About Their Most Popular Scenes” and “5 Celebrities That Hate Porn,” and intentionally appeals to a younger audience. Users can buy t-shirts and other memorabilia with the same anti-porn message.
"There's this kind of myth about pornography that it can spice up a marriage, but what we found out is that it’s a very temporary solution,” said Fight The New Drug co-founder Clay Olsen. “The long-term impact of that overtime is individuals eventually end up preferring fantasy to reality, pixels to people."
He continued: “Our intent is to start a conversation.”
But some residents are less than pleased with the new signs and find the conversations they stir up to be uncomfortable rather than beneficial.
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“It’s kind of awkward when you get a kid walking home from school saying: Barber Rick, what’s porn?” said Thomas Holguin, who works at the Deluxe Barbershop near where the billboard is located.
Others say the billboard incorrectly assumes porn is to blame for the “killing” of love.
"I don't think it's porn that kills love,” said Dawn Armador, a Willow Glen business owner. “I think there’s a deeper issue in society with social media, instant gratification, and not nurturing our relationships."
Though Fight The New Drug has many religious members, and its founders have ties to the Mormon church, the organization itself is not affiliated with any religious group.
