Enough Is Enough (organization)
Encyclopedia
Enough Is Enough is an American non-profit organization
whose stated purpose is to make the Internet safer for families and children. It carries out lobbying efforts in Washington, D.C.
, and played a role in the passage of the Communications Decency Act of 1996 , the Child Online Protection Act of 1998, and the Children's Internet Protection Act of 2000. The group is based in the Commonwealth of Virginia. They sometimes refer to themselves acronymically as EIE.
, but shifted its focus in 1994 to confront online pornography, child pornography, child stalking, and sexual predation.
The organization's co-founder and first president was Dee Jepsen, wife of former U.S. Senator from Iowa Roger Jepsen
. Other co-founders were Sarah Blanken and Monique Nelson. Its president and chair since 2002 has been Donna Rice Hughes, who first joined the group in 1994 and was vice president of marketing and public relations. As Donna Rice, she had received considerable attention as the "other woman" in the Gary Hart
Monkey Business affair during the previous decade. In her new role as an activist, she neither hid nor promoted her former fame, but the activity helped her overcome her sexually stigmatized past. Future Delaware
political candidate Christine O'Donnell
worked for the group for a while starting in 1993.
The group effectively lobbied the U.S. Congress to include restrictions against online obscenity in the Communications Decency Act of 1996. This included showing U.S. Senators graphic images from the Internet of bondage, bestiality and pedophilia that were available to all users of all ages. Opposition to the bill came strongly from the ACLU. Senator James Exon of Nebraska, co-sponsor of the measure, credited Jepsen and Hughes with helping to find common ground between Christian conservative
s and pro-business Republicans
on the issue, groups that had been feuding. Hughes emphasized that "We want to do everything we can to protect children against pornography. But we want a bill that will be constitutional and will be effective." The group's connections in Washington helped that coalition succeed in passing the legislation, and Jepsen and Hughes became recognized as influential lobbyists.
The group filed a legal brief in the 1997 U.S. Supreme Court case Reno v. American Civil Liberties Union
in favor of upholding that law; the Court instead ruled large parts of it unconstitutional. By 1998, Hughes had become a nationally recognized leader in the battle against online pornography. Steve Case
, CEO of America Online, called her "a key voice in the debate over how we best build this new medium and make it a safe place for families," and she won personal praise from legislative opponents such as U.S. Representative Christopher Cox and compliments from pornography advocate Larry Flynt
.
The group lobbied for the Child Online Protection Act of 1998, intended to replace those parts of the previous act deemed unconstitutional. The group and Hughes in particular were major force behind its eventual passage. Jepsen said in that debate, "It is not a First Amendment issue. As our culture has become coarser, children have been robbed of their childhood." This law also ran into problems in the courts. Enough Is Enough was among a number of groups who backed a substitute measure, the Children's Internet Protection Act of 2000, which gained passage and was eventually upheld in the courts.
The group continued to get its message across by displaying to people some of the worst images found on the Internet. The group also put out a twenty-page report entitled "Just Harmless Fun?" that portrayed what it believes are negative effects of pornography from a social science viewpoint. The group also provided parental advice on appropriate websites for children and how to keep them away from the inappropriate ones.
In 2009, Enough Is Enough criticized Microsoft
's Bing search engine for displaying preview clips of videos on search results pages, and thus potentially exposing children to sexually themed content without actually clicking on it. During 2010, the group criticized approval of the .xxx domain by ICANN
, saying that it would allow pornography providers to co-locate content on both regular and specialty domains; Hughes predicted this would "dramatically increas[e] pornography's pollution of the Internet."
Non-profit organization
Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...
whose stated purpose is to make the Internet safer for families and children. It carries out lobbying efforts in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, and played a role in the passage of the Communications Decency Act of 1996 , the Child Online Protection Act of 1998, and the Children's Internet Protection Act of 2000. The group is based in the Commonwealth of Virginia. They sometimes refer to themselves acronymically as EIE.
Founding and staff
Enough Is Enough was founded in 1992 as part of the U.S. anti-pornography movementAnti-pornography movement in the United States
The anti-pornography movement in the United States has existed ever since a 1969 Supreme Court decision which held that people could view whatever they wished in the privacy of their own homes. This caused President Lyndon B...
, but shifted its focus in 1994 to confront online pornography, child pornography, child stalking, and sexual predation.
The organization's co-founder and first president was Dee Jepsen, wife of former U.S. Senator from Iowa Roger Jepsen
Roger Jepsen
Roger William Jepsen is an American politician from the state of Iowa. A Republican, he served in the United States Senate.-Biography :...
. Other co-founders were Sarah Blanken and Monique Nelson. Its president and chair since 2002 has been Donna Rice Hughes, who first joined the group in 1994 and was vice president of marketing and public relations. As Donna Rice, she had received considerable attention as the "other woman" in the Gary Hart
Gary Hart
Gary Hart is an American politician, lawyer, author, professor and commentator. He served as a Democratic Senator representing Colorado , and ran in the U.S...
Monkey Business affair during the previous decade. In her new role as an activist, she neither hid nor promoted her former fame, but the activity helped her overcome her sexually stigmatized past. Future Delaware
Delaware
Delaware is a U.S. state located on the Atlantic Coast in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It is bordered to the south and west by Maryland, and to the north by Pennsylvania...
political candidate Christine O'Donnell
Christine O'Donnell
Christine Therese O'Donnell is an American Republican Party politician who founded two advocacy organizations. She has been an advocate for nonprofit clients and nonprofit causes for nearly 20 years. A Tea Party favorite, and with strong financial support from the Tea Party movement, she defeated...
worked for the group for a while starting in 1993.
Activities
By 1995, Enough Is Enough was engaging in community-level actions to get across their view of the effects of pornography upon society, such as raiding magazine stands, protesting against adult businesses, and speaking on radio and television talk shows.The group effectively lobbied the U.S. Congress to include restrictions against online obscenity in the Communications Decency Act of 1996. This included showing U.S. Senators graphic images from the Internet of bondage, bestiality and pedophilia that were available to all users of all ages. Opposition to the bill came strongly from the ACLU. Senator James Exon of Nebraska, co-sponsor of the measure, credited Jepsen and Hughes with helping to find common ground between Christian conservative
Christian conservative
Christian conservative may refer to political position:*Christian right*Christian agrarian conservatism of Europe...
s and pro-business Republicans
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
on the issue, groups that had been feuding. Hughes emphasized that "We want to do everything we can to protect children against pornography. But we want a bill that will be constitutional and will be effective." The group's connections in Washington helped that coalition succeed in passing the legislation, and Jepsen and Hughes became recognized as influential lobbyists.
The group filed a legal brief in the 1997 U.S. Supreme Court case Reno v. American Civil Liberties Union
Reno v. American Civil Liberties Union
Reno v. American Civil Liberties Union, , is a United States Supreme Court case, in which all nine Justices of the Court voted to strike down anti-indecency provisions of the Communications Decency Act , finding they violated the freedom of speech provisions of the First Amendment. Two Justices...
in favor of upholding that law; the Court instead ruled large parts of it unconstitutional. By 1998, Hughes had become a nationally recognized leader in the battle against online pornography. Steve Case
Steve Case
Stephen McConnell "Steve" Case is an American businessman best known as the co-founder and former chief executive officer and chairman of America Online . Since his retirement as chairman of AOL Time Warner in 2003, he has gone on to build a variety of new businesses through his investment...
, CEO of America Online, called her "a key voice in the debate over how we best build this new medium and make it a safe place for families," and she won personal praise from legislative opponents such as U.S. Representative Christopher Cox and compliments from pornography advocate Larry Flynt
Larry Flynt
Larry Claxton Flynt, Jr. is an American publisher and the president of Larry Flynt Publications . In 2003, Arena magazine listed him as the number one on the "50 Powerful People in Porn" list....
.
The group lobbied for the Child Online Protection Act of 1998, intended to replace those parts of the previous act deemed unconstitutional. The group and Hughes in particular were major force behind its eventual passage. Jepsen said in that debate, "It is not a First Amendment issue. As our culture has become coarser, children have been robbed of their childhood." This law also ran into problems in the courts. Enough Is Enough was among a number of groups who backed a substitute measure, the Children's Internet Protection Act of 2000, which gained passage and was eventually upheld in the courts.
The group continued to get its message across by displaying to people some of the worst images found on the Internet. The group also put out a twenty-page report entitled "Just Harmless Fun?" that portrayed what it believes are negative effects of pornography from a social science viewpoint. The group also provided parental advice on appropriate websites for children and how to keep them away from the inappropriate ones.
In 2009, Enough Is Enough criticized Microsoft
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
's Bing search engine for displaying preview clips of videos on search results pages, and thus potentially exposing children to sexually themed content without actually clicking on it. During 2010, the group criticized approval of the .xxx domain by ICANN
ICANN
The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers is a non-profit corporation headquartered in Marina del Rey, California, United States, that was created on September 18, 1998, and incorporated on September 30, 1998 to oversee a number of Internet-related tasks previously performed directly...
, saying that it would allow pornography providers to co-locate content on both regular and specialty domains; Hughes predicted this would "dramatically increas[e] pornography's pollution of the Internet."