American Family Association (AFA) today called on 7-Eleven stores to reconsider their decision to sell the November issue of Playboy, which will feature a cartoon character on the cover. The magazine will hit newsstands on October 16 with a cover and two-page centerfold featuring Marge Simpson, the mother on the Fox animated series The Simpsons.

“Most American dads know the dangers that porn represents to young males. It’s irresponsible of 7-Eleven to display porn in front of boys who pop into 7-11s for a hot dog or a Slurpee,” said Randy Sharp, AFA Special Projects Director.

“The cover will create the kind of curiosity that can easily lead them into an addictive porn habit,” he said. “This is not what American families want to see in their neighborhood convenience store.”

The magazine will be carried in the 1,200 7-Eleven stores that are corporately owned, stores that have been virtually porn-free for the last two decades.

Monica Cole, Director of AFA’s OneMillionMoms.com, and a mother herself, finds 7-Eleven’s decision deeply offensive. “Marge Simpson on the cover of Playboy is disturbing on so many levels,” she said. “7-Eleven has to know that using an animated character on the cover of a pornographic magazine is deceptive and harmful because it will attract the attention of children.

“It’s inexcusable for a company that wants to be a responsible member of American society to use a cartoon character to hawk pornography,” Cole said. “America’s moms didn’t like Joe Camel selling cigarettes to their kids, and they don’t want Marge Simpson selling degrading images of women either.

“A lot of moms are going to shop somewhere else if 7-Eleven doesn’t do the right thing and refuse to stock this magazine.”