Sexting is a growing problem that is growing across America today. Many young adults are sending nude pictures or texts that suggest sexual activity to each other or in some cases to a much older recipient.
What baffles me is, if the person is sending this picture to someone who they truly love and care about, who are we to judge them. I do not under any circumstance think that sending a naked picture between a teacher or a student in any way is okay. What I am trying to say is, if a 16 year old sends a picture to her boyfriend that just turned 18 but had the picture on his phone when he was 17 and the girl had no problem doing so is it okay for the boyfriend to get charged with child pornography? This is where I seem to disagree. I don't believe the boyfriend should get into any trouble what so ever especially if his girlfriend wants him to see this picture of herself. I believe a cell phone is "personal property" and we do practice freedom of speech in America so who are we to judge what is being sent from cell phone to cell phone, with the understanding that it is being used for good intentions, and is not illegal.
I feel that the problem is only serious if the messengers are truly breaking the law and the pictures are being sent unlawfully, but if two individuals are in love like I said who are we to judge their relationship? This is something that others may not agree with and like I said I am not trying to say sexting is in anyway okay, I just want us to be able to see the different factors that play into sequence rather then just jumping to different conclusions.
This week I actually wrote about the same subject. I talked about it in a more general way but I like the point you are making. But I do think that we should try and encourage teens to stop sexting because it can be dangerous. Like you said we are no one to judge someones relationship but teens are not always that responsible about their actions. Teens girls that sent pictures to their boyfriends should realize that maybe their boyfriends don't have the intentions to share those pictures but what if your boyfriend forgets his phone somewhere or what if he loses it. I just feel that sexting can not have a good ending.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Isabel. Sexting is not ok in my opinion. I don't think its appropriate for teenagers to be sending nude or partially nude pictures to anybody. How many times has there been a story about a couple breaking up and some nude pictures getting around the school because one of the two in the relationship wanted to get back at the other. It happened to a girl in my graduating class towards the end of my senior year of high school and the picture was sent to over half the school. she ended up losing an athletic scholarship because a parent reported it to the university she was planning on attending. The entire course of her future changed because she snapped a naked picture and sent it in a text. I'm not saying that this happens all the time and I'm not saying that it will happen to everyone, but it COULD happen to anyone and although the consequences may not be as drastic as the ones for the girl in my high school, there will be negative consequences to deal with.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that it seems a bit harsh to be charging someone with child pornography when that is not the intention. I can see how a girls embarrassed parents may charge the guy with that to somewhat protect their daughter's reputation. However, they should more be upset with their daughter for not considering the consequences of her actions.
ReplyDeleteA 18 year old will not or should not get charged with child pornography due to the age differences. I agree that there are some very wild situations out there but most of them are not between people like that, but more between much older people. But a very valid point made though.
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