What to do about mail porn

'Project Postporn'

On July 1, 1988, the U.S. Justice Department and U.S. Postal Service announced that criminal charges had been brought in eight states against 20 persons and 14 corporations for using the mails to advertise and distribute obscene material in violation of the Federal obscene mails statute [18 U.S.C. 1461].

The July 1 Release also said that "Project Postporn" was launched after "thousands of complaints" had been received by the Postal Service regarding advertisements for "Hard-core videos, films and magazines" and that many of the ads contained photographs from the materials advertised.   "Project Postporn" was launched while President George H.W. Bush was in office, and by the end of his administration, use of the mails to send or advertise obscenity had virtually come to a halt.  

Obscenity Laws

In the 1973 Miller v. California (413 U.S. 15) case, the Supreme Court held that obscenity laws could constitutionally be enforced against “hardcore” pornography.  Typical “hardcore” pornography consists of little if anything more than graphic depictions sex acts.

If you receive an unsolicited "sexually oriented ad" that includes pornographic depictions that you think may be obscene or that advertises pornographic material that you think may be obscene, you should take the offending material to your local Post Office and ask them to initiate an investigation for possible violations of the Federal Obscene Mail Law (18 U.S.C. 1461), which prohibits both the sending of obscene matter and ads for obscene matter.

Say that you would like to know what the results of the investigation are and that you will contact them again about the matter.  Don't accept any nonsense about the materials being "legal" or "protected by the First Amendment." The First Amendment Obscene does not protect obscene materials, and there is no way for Postal Inspectors to determine if the advertised matter may be obscene until they order and view it.

You can also send a brief letter of complaint to the following address: Obscenity Prosecution Task Force; U.S. Justice Dept., 1400 New York Avenue NW; Washington, DC 20530. Make sure you include the name and address of the mailer and the address of the Post Office where you made the complaint.

'Pandering Advertisements' and 'Sexually Oriented Advertisements'

If you are concerned about your children being exposed to sexually oriented advertising in the mail, or if you are personally offended by receiving such advertising, the U.S. Postal Service has a form (Form 1500) that allows you to protect yourself and your children.

Form 1500 has two parts. If you receive an advertisement that you believe to be "erotically arousing or sexually provocative," Form 1500 allows you to obtain a Prohibitory Order against the particular mailer under the Pandering Advertisements statute (30 USC 3008). "Pandering advertisements" are defined in the statute as any advertisement “which offers for sale matter which the addressee in his or her sole discretion believes to be erotically arousing or sexually provocative."

You can also add your name, and the names of your minor children, to the Postal Service's list of persons who do not want to receive sexually oriented advertising. This is in accordance with the Sexually Oriented Advertisements statute (39 USC 3010).

"Sexually oriented advertisements" are defined in Section 3010 to mean "any advertisement that depicts, in actual or simulated form, or explicitly describes, in a predominantly sexual context, human genitalia, any act of natural or unnatural sexual intercourse, any act of sadism or masochism, or any other erotic subject directly related to the foregoing."  Section 3010 goes on to say that "Material otherwise within the definition of this subsection shall be deemed to not constitute a 'sexually oriented advertisement' if it constitutes only a small and insignificant part of the whole of a single catalogue, book, periodical, or other work the remainder of which is not primarily devoted to sexual matters."

39 U.S.C. 3010 also requires that the legend "Sexually Oriented Ad" appear either on the exterior envelope of a mailing piece or a sealed interior envelope that contains the sexual material. If no such legend appears, you should point this out to your local Post Office, and ask them to begin proceedings against the mailer.