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Editor’s Note: Meridian reports this as a success in the fight against sexual exploitation and salutes corporations that will act responsibly.

Image via Hilton Hotel Houston. 

The TEXXXAS pornography expo will now take place in a local Houston strip club, rather than a mainstream hotel. The Hilton Houston Galleria Area Hotel, and the independently owned Holiday Inn Southwest hotel opted to cancel contracts with the TEXXXAS event. The National Center on Sexual Exploitation declares this development a victory for the movement to end sexual exploitation.

“The TEXXXAS pornography expo has been pushed out of the mainstream,” said Dawn Hawkins, Executive Director of the National Center on Sexual Exploitation. “In less than two weeks, two hotels chose to break contracts with the TEXXXAS porn event. Organizers must now resort to holding the event at local strip club. It’s significant that socially responsible corporations are refusing to do business with this expo in light of the many harms associated with pornography.“

“Among those concerns was the potential for an uptick in sex trafficking and prostitution. We know this is likely, because Dallas police have reported that a similar pornography expo held there was directly linked to several arrests of men seeking to buy sex. Additionally, pornography expos are built around an industry that glorifies sexual violence against women, and the perpetuation of rape myths, and are therefore incompatible with any mainstream venue. I applaud the local Hilton and Holiday Inn hotels for recognizing that this event exemplified the exact opposite of their brand standards for guest safety and anti-sex trafficking initiatives.”

“John Gray, the TEXXXAS event’s creator, claims the event will be PG,” Hawkins stated. “I ask Mr. Gray, if his event is PG why did he attempt to assure the public with promises that the windows would be blacked out? And why would attendees have to be 18 years old to enter? The answers to these questions make it obvious that Mr. Gray’s event is right where it belongs: in a seedy strip club where the purpose of the expo—which is to leer at and sexually exploit women—cannot be denied or given a veneer of sophistication.”

“Anyone who is interested in joining the larger movement opposing sexual exploitation in all of its forms is welcome to attend our Coalition to End Sexual Exploitation (CESE) Summit in Houston, TX, this Sept. 29 – Oct. 1,” Hawkins added. “This event will be the exact opposite of the TEXXXAS expo. At the CESE Summit you can learn more about the harms of pornography, sex trafficking, child sexual abuse and other topics, in addition to learning ways you can get involved and make a difference in your community.”