By Megan Hurt

What are your thoughts on porn?

That’s what Jesse Wingret wants to find out by placing boards holding blank paper on campus, inviting students to write down their opinions on pornography.

“Our intent is to get people to say their positive and negative thoughts on porn. We’ve had a few people be immature, but mostly seen a good response,” said Wingret, a foreign language and international economics senior and student leader of UK’s Campus Crusade for Christ.

The boards, located on Rose Street, next to the Classroom building and in the Free Speech area next to the Student Center, are part of the promotion for the Campus Crusade for Christ’s event “Porn Nation,” held Thursday in the Singletary Center.

For the event, Michael Leahy will hold a 90-minute multimedia presentation on porn in our society. Leahy is a recovering porn addict, author and expert on sex education, according to his Web site (www.pornnationthebook.com). He has written a personal account of his porn addiction and his thoughts on the dangers of porn in America in his book, “Porn Nation: Conquering America’s #1 Addiction.”

Leahy has been personally affected by pornography, which grew into a sexual addiction that cost him a 15-year marriage, according to his Web site. After overcoming the addiction through religion, he has since devoted his time to attending events where he can share his message of overcoming sexual and porn addiction and helping college students better understand the dangers of porn, according to his Web site.

He is also currently trying to better understand college students opinions on sex for a book that is scheduled to be published in April titled “Porn University: What College Students are Really Saying About Sex on Campus.”

The boards UK students use to write their opinions on porn will be given to Leahy after the event so he can compare thoughts on porn from students at UK to other college campuses.

“(Pornography) is something that is easily accessible,” he said. “We’re out of home and not under our parents watch and control. It’s something that is a temptation so it’s good to be more informed on how it affects our society.”

“Porn Nation” was held on UK’s campus three years ago in Memorial Hall and was so popular, students were turned away at the door, Wingret said. He hopes this event will have the same results, even though it is held in the Main Auditorium of the Singletary Center, which holds more people.

This year’s event, which is free, will be start at 7:30 p.m. Thursday in the Main Auditorium of the Singletary Center. For more information on Michael Leahy or “Porn Nation” visit his Web site www.pornnationthebook.com or to participate in his national sex survey visit the Web site, www.mysexsurvey.com.

Wingret encourages students to continue to share their thoughts on porn on the boards on campus, which will be left up until Friday morning.