Elder Holland to speak at anti-pornography conference

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Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve will contribute to the Utah Coalition Against Pornography Conference: Stronger Together on March 12 in Salt Lake City Utah.

He will speak against pornography at 9 a.m. and be followed by a wide range of other speakers and therapists throughout the day.

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland was called as a General Authority in 1989 at age 48. Photo Courtesy of Mormon Newsroom.
Elder Jeffrey R. Holland will be speaking at Utah Coalition Against Pornography Conference: Stronger Together. (Mormon Newsroom)

According to Vauna Davis, UCAP executive director, the conference will cover four different areas surrounding the issue of pornography: addiction and recovery, helping loved ones heal, helping parents keep their children from pornography and the social impact of pornography.

“Therapists will be speaking on how you can understand the role of accountability and how you can get out of the pornography addiction cycle,” Davis said.

Davis expressed surprise regarding the percentage of younger people interested in attending the event.

“We have a lot of younger people coming this year. There are 1,100 registered so far. Of those, 739 answered a survey question about their age, and out of this, 230 are between the ages of 16 and 30,” Davis said.

Of those respondents ages 16–30, Davis said 170 are 25 or younger. Of the others coming, 338 are 30-50 and 168 are over 50.

Davis believes one reason so many young adults are going to the event is because coalition directors specifically created classes that will appeal to young people.

Melissa Richardson, Miss Provo 2014 and recent BYU graduate from the School of Family Life, will be speaking at the event on the power of young adults picking up and changing a culture.

Clay Olsen, director and creator of Fight the New Drug, will also be speaking at the event, and Davis suspects he will be particularly good for the younger people in the audience.

With such strong emotions surrounding the topic of pornography, Davis believes this conference is not something to shy away from.

“People can think it is really scary to go to something like this, but we do surveys after the events, and people always say how helpful it was and how safe they felt at the conference,” Davis said. “They love being with a community and group of people that care about this issue and that want to make a difference.”

Davis says the program is seeking to break the silence in order to encourage progress rather than fear.

“Silence creates so much damage and isolation. When people come to the conference they finally start to feel more comfortable. They learn to talk,” Davis said.

The event will be held at the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City. Check-in will begin at 8 a.m.

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