Americans

are quick to defend their

rights and freedoms, but few people
understand that absolute freedom does
not exist in this world. You may have the
right to say or do something, but is it
beneficial to all concerned? The world
has become increasingly more complex
and more dangerous. We share this
planet with many cultures, ideas and
views. Common sense would say that if
we have to live together, we might as
By Paula Matthews
well learn how to get along with each. In

practice, that is not what happens in
America. We preach tolerance, but
Americans will always defend their
words or their actions based upon their
freedom of speech or freedom of
expression. Whether they are right or
wrong, clever or foolish, Americans
cherish their right to express themselves
freely. Unfortunately, they do so with
little or no concern for others.

Have we forgotten why Americans were
granted these freedoms in the first
place? It was not to create factions and
nor was it intended that we should
divide our nation along the lines of
religious beliefs, race or sexual
preferences. The initial intent was to
allow freedom for all voices to be
expressed and heard in the marketplace
of ideas. The concept seems fair, but in practice it often creates turmoil and endless debates over
who has the right over another to express himself. Tolerance would require that there be a
compromise in the pursuit of peace between the parties. Pursuing peace sounds good, but how
can we obtain peace when both sides want to continue the war of: Whose right is right? Let me
share a personal story of such a battle.

I recall walking along a particular street in Los Angeles, near a train station, when a Russian-
speaking woman, came alongside me and said, All Americans are stupid. It struck me odd that
she intentionally came to me with this comment. So, of course I stopped and told her that her
statement was not true. But I was very curious to find out why she would say such a thing. This
woman said that she knew more about our country than the Americans she had met. In her
opinion, if it wasnt in a movie or on a hit song, Americans didnt know it. There was a lot of truth
in what she said. Many Americans dont research what they are hearing or seeing in the media.
Instead, they let the media tell them what to think and how to behave. For me, this was a highly
prophetic conversation that took place just a few days after I had filed a case in Federal Court
against a former employer. In this one simple conversation, a visitor to our nation opened my
eyes to see just how the media had influenced everything that happened to me on my job.

The major issue was pornography on my job. In America, pornography is an accepted form of
expression, but when introduced on the job, porn can turn the workplace into a sexually unsafe


place. Its no different from being in a hotel where a man (or woman) has been looking at
pornography on television, and then they leave that hotel room looking for a willing (or
unwilling) sex partner. Pornography is fine as long as it was confined to one person in a room,
but when that person decides to prey upon others, it becomes quite a different story. That is
what happened on my job. For some odd reason, pornography on the job was completely
acceptable. We had monthly girlie magazines and porn films come in the mail to specific
individuals. It was obvious to me that these people did not want to get such materials in front of
their families, so it was safer for them to receive these packages at work. It was no ones
business, so it was okay. The only reason I knew about it, was because I was responsible for
distributing the office mail. For the most part, only a few employees were affected. Although
there was the time when someone sat in his office with the girlie magazine during work hours,
while clients were in the lobby waiting for him. Once, he got angry with me for bothering him.
He said he was busy. Yeah, he was busy all right. I had accidently walked in on him with his
head lost in the fantasy of that magazine. Then, there was the occasional issue of co-workers
taking the magazine and starting discussions about its contents with the entire office. I do recall
one woman becoming so affected, that she began walking through our office saying, I need sex
right now. She wanted to know which of the guys in the office was ready to go at it right on the
spot. At first, no one said a word. Then one of the nerdy guys in the office said, Ill do it. There
was still no response from the peanut gallery, until the woman came around the corner looked
the guy up and down and said, Forget it! Then everyone broke up in laughter.

Okay, there was pornography in the office. So what! Thats the way it was before I took the job
and it was that way for all the years I worked there. I didnt approve, but since it didnt affect my
job, it was not that big of an issue. That soon changed one particular year when a couple of new
employees were hired. I recall a new female employee expressing her offense at having sexual
magazines in the office. It was then that I felt guilt, overhearing one of the managers say, Paulas
not offended. As if to say that since Paula was not offended, she should not be either. Now,
some people might read this and call me a weak Christian for not standing up and demanding
they get rid of the porn. Heres what you dont know. Most of the people in the office considered
themselves either Christian/Catholic or Jewish. They all knew right from wrong without me
beating them over the head with a Bible. Besides, thats not my style. I let Gods wisdom guide
me in such matters (at least that is my goal). In hindsight, I never expressed offense, because
other woman in the office always dealt with it. It was not uncommon to hear a woman calling
one of the guys a pervert. Other women would tease the men saying that they were using the
magazines because of issues with sexual performance. Comments like these always kept the
guys in line. There was never a need for me to say a word. In general, I only did and said what
the Holy Spirit would have me say and do in those situations. For instance, the men were greatly
affected by the porn. They tried to hide it, but I saw it in their eyes. The demons of pornography
had these men in their grip. The Holy Spirit simply told me to break them free. I didnt get up
from my seat. I simply spoke under by breath, Let them go. The demons left, and the men were
back to their normal behavior. They never knew what hit them and never knew what set them
free. It was just between me and my God, who loved them enough to want them set free. Was it
their right to read porn? Of course, but it was also my duty to obey God on their behalf; but, if
God said nothing, I said and did nothing; end of story.

Most Americans who are okay with porn have no understanding of the spiritual consequences of
porn; neither are they ready to hear the truth about porn. I grew up in a home where porn was
hidden, nonetheless I witnessed how porn ruined families and marriages, by infecting the
children and even the animals with sexual perversion. Then I married a man who was addicted
to kiddie porn. He let those demons turn him into a monster. They took away his humanity
causing him to make every woman (and child) his potential prey. Men like this are very
dangerous. I remember how I found what looked like a family photo album in a closet. When I


opened it, it was filled with pornographic pictures of women I knew. Most of them were co-
workers of this man. When I questioned why he took the pictures and kept them. He compared
himself to Hugh Heffner, and said that he was making his own version of Playboy magazine.
After we divorced, his secretary called the authorities to make a rather odd report of how she
had been in our former residence and found a bag containing womens lingerie and a handgun.
In that bag, were also pictures of women who appeared to be terrified. They were apparently
forced to wear the lingerie by gunpoint. It seemed that the man I divorced was still creating his
own magazine. Later it would be reported that he would begin videotaping his victims, and that
he was also involved in buying and selling women for prostitution.

Shortly thereafter I found myself being stalked by numerous men. The police who were
investigating my case told me that porn had reached a new level. They said that men who were
reading the magazines and looking at the porno films were going after women who were more
accessible to them. There were increased reports of women being stalked by men who knew
them from work or from their neighborhoods and other familiar places. The police said that
these new levels of porn were putting women in great danger. The police had suspected that the
men stalking me were from the same porno ring that had been stalking other women in Ohio. A
psychologist friend of mine also confirmed the reports I received from the police. He went as far
as telling me just how these men were videoing their neighbors and sending them viral on the
web. He gave me a foolproof way to determine if I was being videoed by my neighbor. When I
did what this friend told me to do, all hell broke loose and the neighbor threatened my life. This
nut watched me by camera day and night. He began thinking that I was his wife. From that time
on, the police put a special investigator on my case. I moved to another city and it happened
again. The neighbor downstairs was videotaping me. This man was married, but the demon in
his head kept telling him that I was his wife. Then I moved to Los Angeles, hoping to get far
away from those nutcases. It was the Holy Spirit who initially told me to move to LA. He said I
would be safe there. I also received an anonymous phone call from someone who had been
following my case. I was told that my ex was behind all the stalking. This anonymous caller told
me that I would be safe in LA. The caller also said that they wanted this mans life and the only
thing they knew for sure was that he and his goons followed me wherever I went. I was also told
that if he (or his goons) were to show up in California, they would be dead men. With that kind
of assurance, I just knew LA was going to be the perfect place to start my life over and put the
past behind me.

LA is a very beautiful, yet strange place. Ive never lived anywhere quite like it. Never in my life
have I had so many young Black men bold enough to sing sexually illicit rap lyrics to women on
the street. Its the craziest thing ever. Is that supposed to lure women? What happened to
bragging about your money, or about your J.O.B.? But, to brag about whats in your pants and
how you are going to use it on some woman you dont even know, is just plain vulgar. After a
while, I learned to ignore them. I did stop one young man claiming to be a rap artist, after he
propositioned me on a train. I asked him why he did what he did. He said that he liked what he
saw, and just had to have me. I was not flattered. I told him that I was old enough to be his
mother. He didnt care. He then began telling me about how the label was promoting his latest
album and how he had just come from France and had bought a home there. He said that the
public expects him to go after women like he does in his music videos. Before I got off the train,
he had me pray for his success. I told him to be careful because the things we desire with our
eyes can often be a set up for our demise. This young man respectfully thanked me for my
concern and said he would take my advice.

I had six relatively peaceful years in LA. Although there were perverts and nutcases everywhere
in LA, there were no signs of nutcases on my job or at my home like it had been in Indiana and
Ohio. I didnt know it at the time, but that peace was about to end. The company hired a young


man who had a serious problem. He acted like he was mentally unstable. For some reason, this
young man came after me, his first day on the job. When I indicated that I was not interested in
him, he became angry. He became very disrespectful, and it was like he was confusing me with
someone else. Then it came out, Woman, you always treat me this way. Youre going to listen to
me. I asked him, whom he was talking to. Im talking to you, he said. I told him that I was not
his woman, but he didnt want to hear that. It was obvious that I could not speak with him
civilly, so I just avoided this man altogether. Then he would show up at my desk and pace like
an animal ready to pounce upon me. I still ignored him; but his behavior was so obvious that
another employee came in and told him to leave me alone. I made an official complaint with my
management. They promised to talk to the man and encourage him to leave me alone. I was also
advised by the attorney to document any further incidents. Indeed, there were many more
incidents because the man was furious that I had spoken to management about his behavior. I
documented every incident and forwarded copies to the management and to the attorneys. The
attorneys promised to investigate fully, but nothing happened. The Holy Spirit spoke boldly to
me about the situation. He said that management was trying to ignore the matter. The Lord told
me that if I were foolish enough to just go along with management, it would cost me my life. I
never said anything to anyone and never complained about my situation except to management.
Several people came to me saying that God spoke to them about me. One man came to our office
and told me that he felt like someone wanted to take my life. Even people outside of the job
were praying for my life. When I asked the Lord what to do. He suggested that I go to E.E.O.C.
and file a report and let them investigate. I obeyed immediately. A couple of days later the
management brought in a consultant that usually intervenes in employee matters. I was looking
forward to speaking to someone, but it was not to be. The person was called in to perform the
companys very first training on sexual harassment. The staff was then forced to sign a
statement saying that upon leaving the company they would not sue for any reason. I became
very suspicious, as did the entire office. It was obvious that the company was preparing to fire
someone and they wanted to cover their asses in the process. I refused to sign the form unless
someone could explain what was going on. No one in management would speak. Then it
happened. I was called into the Vice Presidents office. There sat my supervisor and two other
managers along with the attorney. The attorney told me that I was being fired. When I asked
why they were firing me, I was told that it was because I was a Christian. What? What does my
being Christian have to do with this case? The attorney then spoke words that I will never
forget. He said that my Christian values had negatively influenced my view of the incidents that
occurred in the office. He continued to say that because I was a Christian, I had no
understanding of how things are done today (referring to what was being portrayed in the
media and deemed acceptable by the masses). He said that although I thought I was being
harassed, in their assessment, I was not harassed at all. Therefore, I lied on another employee
and they had to let me go. I was told that my accusations had infringed upon another
employees right to express himself.

A few days after I was fired, another man approached me on the streets of LA, bragging about
how he and his friend got me fired from my job. Then it dawned on me. The man, who harassed
me on the job, vowed that he would get me fired if I reported him to management. Frankly, I
didnt believe that management would fall for his game, so I ignored him. Now, this man on the
street was confirming the plot against me. Why was I being targeted? The man said that they
had been following me and knew for a fact that I was not dating anyone. I was told that since
there was no man in my life, it was Open season on Paula. How could he say that? Didnt I
have a right to determine what I wanted for my own life? His response, You have no rights. This
is America, I can say and do whatever I want to do and nobody is going to stop me. I own you.
Then he said something even crazier, I paid good money for you. Who did he pay? Why did he
pay them? He wouldnt say whom he paid, but at that moment I knew. This was the same mess
my ex started in Ohio. It was then that I knew that the man on my job was associated with that


same porno ring. He had been stalking me like all the others. According to this man, they did it
for the money. He said, Youre going to be rich and we want some of that money. I could not
believe this foolishness, but I continued to ask just how he thought this was going to get away
with his scheme. This crazy man said he was going to marry me. Sarcastically, I asked, So,
whats the plan, to kidnap me and force me to marry you? He responded, Yes. Then I simply
lost it. I told him to leave me alone. I even threatened bodily harm if he would ever come around
me again speaking that nonsense. Then I heard all these people laughing and pointing at the
man as I yelled at him. There was a crowd of about thirty or more people who were laughing,
shouting and calling him names. The man ran away in embarrassment.

After all of these crazy incidents, I needed to clear my head. I decided to get away from Los
Angeles. It just so happened that I was invited to Europe on a missions trip. Things were quite
pleasant for the first couple of months or so. Then something very strange happened. Late one
night, a friend and I were walking back to our hotel in France and decided to go to this small
grocery. There were three or four young Arab men running the store. When we went to check
out, the cashier began singing along with an American rap CD. Instead of waiting on us, he
decided to sing sexually illicit lyrics to us, as if we were supposed to enjoy it. My friend and I
were appalled, but we didnt want to create a scene. Fortunately, before we had time to say
anything, one of the other guys came forward and helped us. We left France a few days later, but
not without further incident. While waiting to get our reservations and tickets arranged with
the airlines, we were followed throughout the airport by several men. A policeman came to our
rescue. He apologized for the harassment, and explained how prostitution was common in the
airport. He said that the men probably thought we were hookers. It wasnt because of how we
were dressed, or because of how we behaved. According to the policeman, there is a perception
about American women; a perception that is often portrayed in our film and our music. Again,
the policeman apologized and told us that it would be best if we could hurry our business and
get out of town. Getting out of town seemed impossible. There was a major problem with the
flights leaving at a decent hour. In our desperation to escape further harassment, we got on a
shuttle and caught a train to Italy in a return route to the states. Later I would meet a friend in
New York who also complained about how the young Arab men in France were becoming
increasing aggressive towards Black women. Another friend had travelled to Jordan and also
said that the Arab men kept treating her like she was one of those women on the rap videos. We
all agreed that the violence of American entertainment has left a stigma on single women
(especially Black women) who enjoy travelling overseas.

All of these incidents were quite disturbing to me because I have been in (and out of) the
entertainment industry for most of my life. I am preparing to re-enter the industry on a much
grander scale with projects of my own. After many hours in prayer about my assignment, I
needed to identify exactly what was going on in the heads of these people. Hollywood is a bubble
of its own making, but its not the real world. Its a world of illusion and deception.
Unfortunately, the audiences think it is real. Therefore they emulate what they see on the big
screen and what they hear on CDs. The Lord said that he had to open my eyes to the truth about
Freedom of Expression in the media. He wanted me to see first hand, how Hollywood really
affects ordinary people. I saw it clearly; people are no longer satisfied with watching media.
They want to act out what is being suggested in film and music. In America, life is imitating art,
and its a pretty scary thing when someone has written you into the demented script they have
in their heads. To this day, I still have men stalking me who believe that I am their wife. Saying
no to them is seen as an affront. The Lord said that I am experiencing media induced
violence. The Lord said, that too many Americans are addicted to the media. Many people
can no longer discern between whats real and whats made for entertainment. He said
that was why many are hooked on pornography, soap operas, reality television and romance
novels. Who is at fault according to God? The media is at fault for irresponsibly dumping its


toxic waste upon the American public; and for polluting audiences around the world. For
many, this has been an artistic license to steal, kill and destroy the very moral fabric that
defines our humanity. We often speak of terrorism as those who blow things up and threaten
the peace and livelihood of others. According to God, those who use the media irresponsibly;
who intentionally hurt and harm others by spewing out vile under the guise of Freedom of
Expression; these are no different than the terrorists who hinder the liberty of others;
inspiring simple minds to acts of lawlessness and disorder against society.

Did the media have a right to produce what they produced? Sure they did. It was within their
right to do so, but it may not have been beneficial to everyone in the viewing audience. Perhaps
there needs to be additional disclaimers on such entertainment. Maybe audiences need to be
reminded that what they are seeing is fictitious, and that to repeat the actions seen, heard or
suggested in the production could lead to legal prosecution resulting in fines, penalties and/or
imprisonment. Since the Lord said that people could no longer make the distinction between
reality and entertainment, it would make sense to have the villain or the lead performer step out
of character to make such an appeal to the audience directly. After the attacks of 911, some
directors took responsibility for the violence in their films, and they chose to speak to audiences
themselves.

Entertainment shapes our pop culture. International audiences draw their conclusions about
Americans based upon what comes from our entertainment media. Foreigners believe that our
media presents a true depiction of the American lifestyle. Even, Americans believe that
entertainment depicts our lifestyle. That is why I got fired from my job. No one ever heard the
facts. They never investigated. With the exception of the person who hired me, no one in
management even knew about my past. I made a deal with the friend that hired me; I would not
tell anyone about my past. LA was to be a fresh start for me, but it didnt last as long as I desired.
If the company had just done due diligence in gathering the facts in this case, but instead they
acted against me based upon what was trending in the media. In short, I was being told that it
was part of the LA culture for men to act sexually aggressive towards women. Yeah, I got that,
but when it happens on the job, its called sexual harassment. I could have walked away from
being fired and started my life over in another country. That was my plan, but it was the Holy
Spirit who told me to return to America and file a complaint of criminal negligence against the
former employer in Federal court. (By the way, that statement the employer was trying to force
everyone to sign before they fired me; the one stating that we would not sue the employer for
any reason? Well, the attorneys forged my signature on the statement form and presented it to
the judge in an attempt to have the case dismissed. It didnt work.) No attorney was willing to
fight for me, so with the help of the Holy Spirit, I filed the case myself. I followed his instructions
in detail. He even told me how much to ask for in damages. The Holy Spirit said that with this
money I was to launch my nonprofit foundation and to start my first of many film ventures.

No one should have the right to use their freedoms to promote violence; nor should this violence
be used to terrorize others; and yet it happens everyday somewhere in the world. Rather than
playing the victim and walking away from this matter, I have chosen to take on a battle that
could shake up an entire industry. This is my right. It is also my call and divine assignment from
Almighty God. So, be it!
2015 Paula Matthews All Rights Reserved.


Paula Matthews is an author, writer and award-winning television producer. She has been a long time advocate for victims of
violence and abuse. Ms. Matthews recently introduced the concept for her nonprofit Kingdom Benefit Charities, Inc. to assist
victims of these and others crises. The foundation launch is pending.