A Simple Phone Call
It’s that time of year – when people are blindsided by
pornography in the grocery store aisle, in the form of the Sports Illustrated
Swimsuit Edition. Anyone who receives the
magazine, by the way, can opt out of receiving the Swimsuit Edition and have
their subscription extended by two issues.
This morning I went to the grocery store and saw, in the
middle of the main aisle, a stand-alone display of the issue, whose cover can
not be called anything but pornography.
I was actually shocked when I came upon it. I figured I’d at least turn the front issues
around backwards, but the back cover was just as bad.
When I got home, I called the store and spoke to the
manager. I told him that it was bad
enough I had to unwillingly see the cover, but as a father of four boys, I
wouldn’t be able to bring my family back to the store. His response both surprised and encouraged
me.
He thanked me for calling and told me that the store is
contractually obligated to provide the display.
However, once they receive a complaint, they are freed from that
responsibility and permitted to put the magazine in a more inconspicuous place,
with the cover….covered. He promised to
take care of it as soon as we got off the phone.
This may not be news to many people, but I found it
enlightening. How many store managers
need only one phone call to clean up their stores? Even if they don’t personally agree, as the
one I spoke with seemed to, they know that no one will avoid a grocery store
for not displaying the such things, but once they realize there are people who
will when they do, no reasonable businessman would take the chance.
This is a great opportunity.
With one phone call, we can win back some dignity for the women in the
magazine; we can protect the men who struggle with pornography, not to mention
our own kids; and we can win one small victory over the devil for whom things
like the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition can be a powerful weapon.
