Social Impact Heroes: Why & How Brittni De La Mora of ‘Love Always Ministries’ Is Helping To Change Our World
… Write down your vision. You won’t get much done if you don’t have a clear vision.
It’s going to be hard, and there will be times when you’ll want to throw in the towel. Don’t do it. You’re called! Keep going, and it’ll all be worth it.
It’s a faith walk. You won’t always know what you’re doing or where you’re headed, but God will guide you. Trust Him.
Accountability and inner circle are key. Link arms with people who believe in you and inspire you.
As part of my series about “individuals and organizations making an important social impact”, I had the pleasure of interviewing Brittni De La Mora of Love Always Ministries.
Brittni is a wife, mother, pastor, author, and advocate and she was also once named one of the world’s most famous porn stars. At the pinnacle of her career in the adult entertainment industry, she had acquired fame, money, and success by having landed over 250+ roles in film. However, the prominent memories she recalls during this time were the deepest, darkest days of despair. After finally leaving the industry and getting free from drug and alcohol addiction, she is now a passionate advocate for women involved in the sex industry and helping people get free from porn addiction.
Thank you so much for joining us on this interview series. Can you share with us the backstory that led you to this path of activism and leadership?
Thank you for including me! I was in the adult film industry for seven years and experienced a lot of heartache in that business. When I got into the industry at 18 years old, I thought it would be a glamorous industry because of what the media painted at that time, but that was far from what I experienced. I was a young, vulnerable teen looking for acceptance, belonging, and affirmation.
At 18, I wasn’t getting booked for anything remotely glamorous. Instead, I got booked for young teeny bopper scenes that encouraged pedophilia. Hair and makeup consisted of very little makeup and pigtails. The wardrobe resembled something I might put on my four-year-old daughter; bright colors, plastic jewelry, sparkly hair clips, or sometimes schoolgirl uniforms.
The producers paired me with much older men, typically in their fifties. After only getting booked for this type of work for a month or two, I told my agent to stop booking me for scenes that made me look like a 12-year-old. I told him I would no longer stand for bookings encouraging molestation and pedophilia.
I left the adult industry in 2012 and felt a call to raise awareness based on my experience to help people that want to stop watching porn and to help those still performing in the industry transition out.
What would you advise a young person who wants to follow a similar path in activism?
I would say go for it! We need more people to take a stand because change doesn’t happen until people speak out. I’d also encourage you to join forces with others who are doing what you want to do.
We are better together.
Is there a person that made a profound impact on your life? Can you share a story?
When I was in porn, a woman named Rachel used to show up to the porn conventions and tell me that Jesus loved me. She brought me gifts and a Bible and prayed for me often. She loved me right where I was and expected nothing from me. With her actions, she showed me how much I was truly loved. Love constantly changes people. Years later, I connected with her and thanked her for making me feel loved. I told her that all the seeds she planted in my life had finally reaped a harvest and we’re still friends to this day. In activism, we must lead from a place of love. Fear, judgment, and criticism have no place in activism.
How are you using your platform to bring goodness to the world? Can you share with us the social impact causes you’re working on right now?
I use my platform to help those who want out of porn, to transition out. I also help those who want to stop watching porn to break the cycle. Currently, the project I’m most excited about is my partnership with an anti-trafficking organization called Exodus Cry. They’ve just released a documentary that exposes the violation, coercion, and abuse that takes place daily in the porn industry. It’s called Beyond Fantasy, available on beyondfantasy.com. I’ve teamed up with them on their #ENDTEENPORN campaign by creating an open letter that demands change from the porn industry.
The porn industry has been using and abusing teens in porn for decades, and it’s destroying impressionable, vulnerable young lives. Teen porn sells the fantasy of sex with a child or a minor. We are demanding the porn industry change the legal entry age from 18 to 21. I believe this change is monumental and will protect many moving forward.
Can you share with us a story behind why you chose to take up this particular cause?
I’ve experienced firsthand how porn encourages pedophilia. Porn is like a drug. Perhaps one starts off watching “morally acceptable” scenes, but those stop satisfying them. So they start watching young girls with older men, but what happens when that no longer fills them? They turn to the dark web or attempt to recreate what they see in their own lives. It’s a dark, sick, and twisted cycle. So I have no choice but to speak up, and who better to join forces with than Exodus Cry?
Can you share with us a story about a person who was impacted by your cause?
An adult star reached out to me after hearing my story. She felt convicted and wanted to leave porn but didn’t know how. My ministry, Love Always Ministries, helped her transition out. We provided mentorship, spiritual counsel, and financial aid. As a result, she went back to school, has a great job, and is blessed with a beautiful baby girl.
Are there three things or are there things that individuals, society, or the government can do to support you in this effort?
First and foremost, it IS possible to get free from porn addiction and stop consuming this deeply damaging content. People can follow @ExodusCry on Instagram ot help educate themselves about all forms of commercial sexual exploitation. They also have a new documentary miniseries on YouTube called Beyond Fantasy that I highly recommend watching. It is a 3-part series exposing how the porn industry profits from ethical violation, coercion, and abuse.
We need the government to listen to the voices of former porn performers and trafficking survivors and create bills that provide people in similar scenarios with more agency. One example of this is a bill that makes the minimum age of entry into porn 21 years old. 18-year-olds are far too young to be making such dramatic and life altering decisions — especially with the lack of understanding about what the porn industry is really like. Individuals can sign the petition calling for this at Exodus Cry’s website.
What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started” (in activism).
1. Not everyone will like you, and those who are against what you support will lash out at you. Don’t ever let it bother you. The negative attacks will only work if you let them influence you.
2. Write down your vision. You won’t get much done if you don’t have a clear vision.
3. It’s going to be hard, and there will be times when you’ll want to throw in the towel. Don’t do it. You’re called! Keep going, and it’ll all be worth it.
4. It’s a faith walk. You won’t always know what you’re doing or where you’re headed, but God will guide you. Trust Him.
5. Accountability and inner circle are key. Link arms with people who believe in you and inspire you.
You’re a person of great influence. If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be?
The other day, I pondered this question, “What do you want to be known for in life?” My answer is that I want to be known for the way I love people. People leave the most significant imprints on our hearts when they love us well. If I could create a movement that would inspire the world to love more deeply, I believe so much would change. The porn industry wouldn’t exist if we all loved each other well because porn wasn’t created from love; it came from lust. Think about all the evil in the world. None of it stems from love, but from the absence of love.
Can you please give us your favorite life lesson quote? And can you explain how that was relevant in your life?
My grandpa once said, “Sometimes you have to give up the life you wanted to live in order to live the life you were created to live.” That hit me. My life looks much different than my childhood dreams, but my life is far more purposeful than I ever could have imagined because I surrendered my will for something much more significant and wouldn’t change a thing.
We are blessed that some very prominent names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch, and why?
That’s a great question. Oprah Winfrey. Like myself, she had a difficult upbringing, but she never let life limit her despite what it threw at her. I like to surround myself with people who find success after hardships and Oprah did just that!
This was very meaningful, thank you so much. We wish you only continued success on your great work!
Social Impact Heroes: Why & How Brittni De La Mora of ‘Love Always Ministries’ Is Helping To Change… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.