KANSAS CITY, MO (NCAP) – Three out of four residents of Kansas City were aware of the S.T.O.P! campaign conducted there by the National Coalition Against Pornography(NCAP), and roughly the same number opposed sale of hardcore pornography in their community.

Two Gallup polls taken before and after the month-long pornography awareness campaign show significant shifts in public perception of pornography and it’s harms to society.

The survey “shows that the move against obscenity has strong citizen support that is growing,” said Chris Cooper, executive director of the Coalition Against Pornography in Kansas City.

Seventy-one percent oppose sale of hardcore pornography in their state; 79 percent oppose its sale in their neighborhood. Only 17 percent considered pornography a safe outlet for persons with sexual problems, and 74 percent believe pornography leads some to commit sex crimes.

“The consistency shown in the first and second poll reveals strong citizen consensus on this issue,” Cooper said. An overwhelming majority of Kansas City residents support prosecution of hardcore pornography distributors and producers. Support for such action ranged from 61 to 77 percent depending on the severity of the material, whether it showed explicit sexual intercourse, hardcore sex or sexual violence.

“Just as we hoped, the campaign reached thousands of people with the message that child pornography and violent, degrading obscenity are harmful and illegal,” Cooper said.

Results for several of the survey questions showed significant change in public perception and attitudes, probably reflecting the impact of the S.T.O.P! campaign. Eighty-one percent of those surveyed considered pornography a somewhat or very important problem for Kansas City before and after the S.T.O.P.! campaign – but the number considering it “very important” increased from 48 percent to 59 percent.

And there were shifts in the numbers of people willing to allow hardcore pornography to be sold in Kansas City, their state, and neighborhood. The number of people who consider sexually violent pornography as “entertainment” dropped 10 percentage points, from 55 percent to 45 percent.

“Our work now is to continue raising public awareness, ensure enforcement of obscenity and child protection laws and ultimately eliminate all illegal obscenity from Kansas City,” Cooper explained.

The plans of the organization include a court-watch program to monitor pending obscenity-related cases; city-wide education seminars; distribution of films, brochures, and information packets.

The S.T.O.P! (Standing Together Opposing Pornography) campaign used advertising, a television special, rallies, and other motivational and educational devices to make the citizens of Kansas City aware of the pornography problem, and to mobilize them to demand enforcement of laws against illegal obscenity.