The not so family-friendly supermarket

By: American Decency Staff

Would you tolerate the sale of pornographic magazines in the checkout aisle of your family grocery store? Would you shop at a store where you and your children are subjected to erotic material while waiting in line? Most would not tolerate the sale of “Playboy” in their local supermarket’s checkout aisles, but far too many tolerate the in-your-face display of the pornographic “Cosmopolitan”, a women’s magazine equally as harmful as “Playboy”. From the front cover to the last page, Cosmo is filled with pornographic articles, giving women perverse, sexual ‘advice’. The cover headlines attest to that. These are the Cosmo cover headlines that are on display at the eye level of children right now in stores all across the country: – “THE SEX HE’LL DIE FOR, Foreplay Ideas Almost Too Risque to Share – Almost” – “Turn Your Man Into a You-Pleasing Sex Genius (Warning: Earthquake Coming!)” – “Caught With Their Pants Down, Hilarious Tales of Daring Couples Who Got Nailed Getting Naughty” – “9 Love Lies Guys Tell” – “A Dirty Little Secret You Never Hear About Marriage”. Warning: The examples below are explicit, but are certainly much less graphic than some of Cosmo’s content. We list these so that you, too, will share out outrage over the pornographic messages foisted upon us in the family shopping place and degrade young women who fall victim to these lies. Cosmo bombards its female readers with the message that sexual promiscuity is expected, that sexual intimacy has no more significance than a handshake. This message is reinforced over and over, as Cosmo readers attest. “I haven’t had sex in two months, and I’m ready to pull all my hair out. Sure, I can take care of myself, but I’m dying for a hot, sweaty night with a sexy man!” – Tricia, 32; “Men assume that just because we turn them down sometimes, we don’t need sex like they do. Wrong! Without biweekly orgasms, I seriously can’t function.” – Carla, 25. And Cosmo inundates the view to vulnerable young women that men will expect them to “put out”. Cosmo: “When a guy looks ahead to his future with a girl, he wants to imagine crazy nights of wake-the-neighbors sex. So if you’re already an eager little bed devil to begin with, he knows he has a lot to look forward to in a relationship. ‘I dated this girl briefly who was great in every way, but when it came to sex, she was really inhibited. Instead of enjoying sex, it always seems like she was doing me some kind of favor,’ says Lucas, 29. ‘I knew it would just get worse as time went on, so I decided that I had to break it off.’ - ‘I drove four hours to visit a girl I used to hook up with right after I graduated from college. My goal was to get it on with her, and I bragged about it to my friends. …” In article after article Cosmo gives young women lessons on how to degrade and prostitute themselves, turning an act of love into something sleazy. Example: “THE SEX HE’LL DIE FOR – You have the power to supersize, pleasure-ize and totally intensify your guy’s orgasm. But most women don’t realize it. The secret: six red-hot foreplay strategies that bring on the bliss.” In this article Cosmo gives explicit sexual ‘advice’ that is extremely pornographic and graphic. The trend continues throughout the magazine, reinforcing the idea that sex is meaningless and encouraging their readers to write in with their sexual experiences. “…I met this sweet guy [at a party]. He kept complimenting me and I had just broken up with my boyfriend. … It was clear that we both wanted to hook up, so he asked if I’d be up for going to a nearby playground. I agreed, and we ended up having sex on the slide – and then the swings. …” – Arielle, 24; “I was working the concession stand at my brother’s soccer game when my boyfriend, Todd, stopped by. … I thanked him by shutting down the fast-food trailer and mounting him on the counter where the hot dogs were rotating.” – Tammy, 21. Cosmo’s sexual advice continues with a Q&A telling young women: “… if you think you can handle it, a strip club may be a fun place for you and your guy to explore. Some couples get hot looking at naked people with each other, and strip clubs are the place to do that. You may also get off on the taboo, slightly sleazy aspects of it. …” Does your family supermarket display Cosmo to captive shoppers at the checkout? If so, take a few moments to speak with the manager and kindly but firmly urge him or her to remove this harmful magazine from the checkout aisle. We can list numbers of cases where one person did indeed make a difference. When one loyal customer expressed concern and dismay to a store manager and as a result that store changed its magazine display policy. If we keep silent, erotic material will become more and more prevalent. Our silence as Christians gives indecency a stamp of acceptability. Meijer, Inc, a popular supermarket chain in our area and in the mid-west needs to hear from shoppers regarding this concern. This family-oriented chain regularly displays Cosmo at eye-level of children in their many checkout aisles. They need to be reminded that the erotic material they boldly display and sell is harmful to the families they rely on for their business. A captive audience, regardless of age, shouldn’t be required to pass through a gauntlet of smut to purchase necessities. Contact Meijer at: Meijer, Inc. Hendrik Meijer – CEO 2929 Walker Ave. NW Grand Rapids MI 49544 Email Meijer”s John Zimmerman: zimmermj@meijer.com Or email Meijer at: http://www.meijer.com/contact/pcaform.asp The sample letter below can be used to contact Meijer and/or to contact the supermarkets in your local community. Of course, it is always best to write a personal letter when contacting corporations. Dear … I am a shopper that does not like to have the moral sensibilities of my family assaulted with images and words that depict or describe sexual activities and eroticism. The February 2007 issue of Cosmopolitan now displayed in your stores is so offensive and disgusting that it is below any normal standards of decency. This magazine should not be a part of the family marketplace. I am writing to urge you to restore decency at your checkout counters by either discontinuing the sale of Cosmopolitan and other erotic magazines or at the very least removing these magazines from display at your checkout lanes. This is not just a temporary concern of mine. I urge your action to place the welfare of our families above profit gained from prurient material. Sincerely, ========================================== Let’s encourage one another and strengthen one another to be more like our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. American Decency Association Bill Johnson, President P.O. Box 202 Fremont, MI 49412 ph: 231-924-4050 www.americandecency.org

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