Ending Sexual Exploitation

For REAL

Did you know?

Shame is one of the biggest reasons why many resort to consuming pornography and prostitution, and fuels human sex trafficking world-wide.

Human trafficking is fundamentally a demand-driven market. If there were no buyers, traffickers would have no business model. While much of the anti-trafficking movement focuses on rescuing victims and prosecuting traffickers, lasting change requires addressing the force that fuels the entire system: demand. Trafficking follows demand the same way drug cartels follow addiction.

Traffickers are entrepreneurs of exploitation. They respond to money. Buyers create the marketplace. The internet has made access to exploitation easier, faster, and more profitable than ever before. Without demand, trafficking collapses economically.

Buying Her tackles this critical injustice as the first documentary ever to explore the lives of sex buyers and what drives them. Through raw firsthand accounts from both sex buyers and trafficking survivors, the film lays bare the men’s journeys from childhood exposure to pornography, to becoming hardened predators, to what ultimately turned their lives around. Their heart-wrenching stories provide a beacon of hope for the restoration of broken and hurting men, the accountability of perpetrators, and the ending of sex trafficking. CONTENT WARNING: This film contains strong language, sexual situations, and brief sexual violence. Recommended for ages 16+.

Ignoring Emotional Pain Doesn't
Make it Go Away

Gene McConnell grew up in a religious household as the son of a pastor, but early trauma left lasting scars. Rather than confronting the pain, he buried it—leading to a decades-long battle with sexual addiction that deeply impacted his life and relationships. It wasn’t a dramatic conversion or sudden insight that turned things around, but a slow, difficult process sparked by a friend’s unexpected kindness. That small gesture opened the door to a years-long path of wrestling with shame, emotional wounds, and the long road toward healing. Through his struggles, Gene learned that ignoring emotional pain doesn’t make it go away—it only drives it deeper. And while his journey hasn’t been easy or perfect, it’s shown him that change, however slow, is possible. Today, Gene speaks from experience as someone who has walked through darkness and come out with hard-won perspective. His message: healing takes time, but it is possible.

Pornography

We live in a pornographic culture

Our culture is saturated with sexual messages bombarding every segment of our society.

Did you know…

Every man, woman and child is a consumer of some form of pornography?

Pornographic messages are woven into all aspects of our society. You cannot go anywhere in our culture and not be exposed to sex-charged music, sex-charged images and sex-charged advertising.

Hardcore pornography’s expanse into the digital age has made access and consumption virtually unrestricted, even to our children. Healthy attitudes and the sexuality of our society is being distorted – the result often being the deterioration of relationships by the fantasy lie of pornography.

Everyone is a consumer

Hardcore porn consumption is bigger than you thought

OF MEN

0 %

OF WOMEN

0 %

DAILY INTERNET USE

0 %

Our true need is intimacy

Intimacy?

The message porn sends is that VALUE is placed on a body shape. There is no regard for the heart, the mind and dreams that belong to the objectified people in pornograpic depictions.

What we truly need is INTIMACY

As human beings we must have connection. We need connection with God, with others and ourselves. Intimacy has very little to do with sex. Intimacy can be broken down into:

In-To-Me-See

Our deepest longings is to be truly known and accepted in spite of our flaws, our mistakes and choices in the past. Sadly, for many, the risk is perceived to be too great and we settle for shallow and unfulfilling relationships that leave us empty and searching.

Did you know? There is a strong link between pornography and human sex trafficking.

Prostitution & human sex trafficking

Dealing with Demand

The reason for every victim of human sex trafficking is because of demand. Prostitution is alive and well because there is huge demand for it. The world tries to respond by enacting stronger laws and stiffer punishments. Though needed, the actual demand for prostitution and sex trafficking will not diminish with just these measures.

Demand strips away humanity

When women are reduced to objects they become less than a person. Victims of human sex trafficking and prostitution are treated like a body part or piece of meat.

But she is somone's daughter sister mother

We Must Address the Demand Side of the Problem

Society has taught us to look at the fruit (addictions/compulsive behaviors) as the problem. We readily consume self-help books, go to counseling or treatment centers, turn to the church or religious institutions for help and guidance, or join one of the many anonymous groups in an effort to eliminate the behavior.

All too often, these well-meaning resources focus solely on eradicating the behavior—the fruit. But much like a tree that’s been pruned—having the branches/fruit cut off—the fruit temporarily goes away then often comes back later with a vengeance, stronger and more resilient than ever.

Until we attack the root of shame, we will not truly free ourselves of the behavior that is causing us and others harm.

Getting to the root

Real men, Real Women, Real stories

This is how we bring about real change that goes after the very heart of the demand side of prostitution and human sex trafficking.

The Missing Ingredient: The One Thing We’re Not Doing to Stop Trafficking

We fight traffickers, protect victims, and raise awareness—but what about the buyers? In this powerful plenary, Gene McConnell exposes the often-ignored force driving sexual exploitation: demand. Discover why confronting the appetite that fuels trafficking may be the missing key to protecting women and children.

Why Men Buy: The Hidden Forces Behind Exploitation

What drives men to purchase sex, pornography, and exploitation? This eye-opening session uncovers the cultural messages, personal wounds, and beliefs that fuel demand. Learn why understanding the buyer is essential if we hope to end trafficking at its source.

From Consumption to Connection: A New Path for Men

Men are often viewed as part of the problem—but what if they can become part of the solution? Gene McConnell shares a hopeful and practical vision for helping men break free from destructive patterns and pursue integrity, honor, and authentic connection. Real change is possible when men are invited into healing rather than shame.

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Ending Sexual Exploitation

Ignoring Emotional Pain Doesn't
Make it Go Away