The Gaytheist Agenda

Here is the latest press release from Truth Wins Out, and they have a new video!

In Exclusive New TWO Video, A Survivor Tells Of His Escape From ‘Ex-Gay’ Ministries

ORLANDO - A coalition of gay and lesbian community leaders held a media conference today to counter Focus on the Family’s ex-gay Love Won Out symposium, which will take place on Saturday. The ex-gay road show was specifically planned to coincide with Gay Days at Disney and to push Focus on the Family’s election year political agenda, says TruthWinsOut.org(TWO).

“Love Won Out distorts gay life and confuses stereotypes with science, while selling false hope to vulnerable people,” said TruthWinsOut.org’s Executive Director Wayne Besen, at the media conference. “The symposium promotes outdated ideas that are rejected by every reputable mental health association in America. Unfortunately, the real goal of this conference is to pass anti-gay laws and stigmatize gay men and women.”

The conference is strategically timed in a presidential year that will include a constitutional amendment on the Florida ballot that seeks to prohibit same-sex marriage and domestic partnership benefits. The event also coincides with Gay Days at Disney and takes place in the shadow of the monumental California Supreme Court ruling legalizing same-sex marriage. Focus on the Family has exploited these opportunities and promoted this conference by placing offensive billboards in Orlando.

“This is a hurtful symposium that sends the toxic message that some people are inferior and need to change,” said Besen. “Love Won Out divides communities and pits people against each other for political gain.”

To highlight the trauma ex-gay ministries often cause families, TWO released an exclusive video today documenting the story of “ex-gay” survivor Robert Elster, who participated in ex-gay programs for 20 years. Convinced by these groups that he was cured, he married his wife Judy for 15 years and they had two children. Unfortunately, the marriage ended because Robert had not become straight. He had been sold false hope and bought into what he now calls his “inauthentic self.” Today, he lives as an out, proud openly gay man in California.

Additionally, TWO will participate in a Saturday PFLAG-sponsored prayer vigil in front of the Love Won Out conference at 7AM. (First Presbyterian Church of Orlando, 106 East Church Street).

Today’s media conference was held at The Gay, Lesbian & Bisexual Community Center of Central Florida. Speakers included: Dr. Kathryn Norsworthy, licensed psychologist; Garrett Granger, Survivor of ex-gay ministries; Rev. John Middleton, Joy Metropolitan Community Church; Pastor Brei Taylor, Oasis Ministries; Linn Possell; Hope Unites United Church of Christ; Wayne Besen, Executive Director, TruthWinsOut.org.

Love Won Out is a quarterly ex-gay symposium that preys on vulnerable and desperate parents. John Paulk, an ex-gay leader who was on the cover of Newsweek, founded the program. Love Won Out suffered a major setback after Paulk was photographed inside a Washington, DC gay bar by Besen in 2000.

TruthWinsOut.org is a non-profit organization that counters right wing propaganda, exposes the “ex-gay” myth and educates America about gay life.

I met Mr. Elster at the vigil and panel discussion here in California. He struck me as a wonderful man, and I’m thrilled he was able to escape the clutches of the “ex-gay” industry and get his life on track. I am also glad he was able to create this video for TWO so more people can learn the insidious truth about the “ex-gay” ministries.

 

Those lovable RRRW purveyors of propaganda, that is. I can always count on them to react in a very specific manner to certain things, and again they’ve performed right on cue.

Yesterday there was to be a symposium at the American Psychiatric Association’s convention in Washington featuring Dr. Warren Throckmorton and Episcopal Bishop Gene Robinson. The symposium was canceled when Bishop Robinson pulled out, believing that it would be used as a public relations gimmick for Focus on the Family.

Well, it certainly has turned into a public relations gimmick. WorldNutDaily plays, under a headline reading ‘Gays’ shut down discussion of faith (italics and quotes theirs), the ever predictable religious persecution card. Right, we all know how their “discussions” go. Chock full of half-truths and non-truths. Anybody who dares to question them, bring out actual facts or declare a differing opinion is impugning their “deeply held religious beliefs”.

Peter LaBarbera, of Americans for Truth, said the reaction to a plan to talk “shows the intellectual shallowness of the gay side.”

“They’re afraid of a debate,” he said, noting it wouldn’t be correct to “paint Warren Throckmorton as the religious right.”

“The gay activists don’t want to admit ex-gays exist, when they clearly do,” he said.

The attack was launched by the Gay City News publication, which on April 24 denigrated Throckmorton as “a psychologist without state board certification and an advocate for ’sexual identity therapy’,” and quoted opponents calling him a “spin doctor of the ex-gay myth.”

Throckmorton openly admitted he doesn’t have a license in PA, which is where he practices. He is an advocate for sexual identity therapy and he makes false claims about the efficacy and safety of ex-gay “therapy”. How is anything that Gay City News published an “attack”?

“Bishop Robinson provided the following explanation,” Throckmorton wrote. “‘Conservatives, particularly Focus on the Family, were going to use this event to draw credibility to the so-called reparative therapy movement,’ Robinson told the Blade. ‘It became clear to me in the last couple of weeks that just my showing up and letting this event happen … lends credibility to that so-called therapy.’”

However, Throckmorton said there were problems with that statement.

“This is quite troubling and not at all accurate. Since no one on the panel planned to speak about reparative therapy, it is clear to me that the bishop was misinformed,” Throckmorton said. “The symposium was approved by the APA in October of 2007 and nothing has changed in the descriptions, personnel or intent of the symposium since then. The meeting is not going to endorse reparative approaches, or advocate for any change in APA policy.”

That dodge might be semi-believable if not for this article on April 18th which clearly links the symposium to Focus on the Family’s Love Won Out ex-gay road show. Does Throckmorton think everybody is as gullible as his fans are?

Scasta had described the panel as a “balanced discussion about religion and how it influences therapy.” He’s a former APA president and a “gay” psychiatrist.

“We wanted to talk rationally, calmly and respectfully to each other, but the external forces made it into a divisive debate it never intended to be.”

Anybody who insists on putting gay in quotation marks every time they print it, while not doing the same for words like religious, shows they had no intention whatsoever of having a fair and balanced discussion. Once again the true nature shows through even where the intent is to deceive.

Bishop Robinson did the right thing pulling out of this symposium. There was never a chance of it being anything but a platform for the RRRW to push their ex-gay agenda, then claim persecution when it was refuted with truth.

 

Though they really aren’t so small in reality. I’m talking about new books. I just received two from Amazon.com Now I have new stuff to read (not that I didn’t already have a huge pile of books lying around as it was, but humor me here).

 

By Wayne Besen of Truth Wins Out.

 

By Herman Mehta, of The Friendly Atheist

 
Now to brew nice cup of tea (White Peony, perhaps) and curl up for some great reading. I’ll be back to exposing the RRRW Agenda later.

 

The video of our protest against the Love Won Out symposium is now up at YouTube and Wayne Besen’s site, and it looks fabulous!

 

While Wayne Besen gets wired for sound, Kevin Nguyen asks the burning question: “When did you choose heterosexuality?”

Today was certainly an exciting and productive day. We gathered outside the Abundant Life Christian Fellowship in Mountain View, CA, at 11am with our signs and began our vigil. Originally our group numbered about 10 people and over time grew to approximately 22. Traffic on Leghorn St. was fairly constant so we got a good deal of attention and while some people showed obvious consternation over our presence many honked their horns in support.

Not long after our arrival some participants of Love Won Out began filing out of the church. One young woman approached our group and initiated a conversation. We discovered that she was lesbian and celibate. She explained while she wasn’t actively pursuing change she felt that celibacy was what made her feel most spiritually fulfilled. The more she spoke, however, I had to wonder–as did others in our group–if she was telling us this to convince us or herself.

Three brave attendees walk the gauntlet. We reassure them that contrary to what they’ve heard, Teh Gay isn’t really contagious.

At a later point a young man came by our group and became engaged in conversation with Wayne, David and a few others. He insisted that he was very pleased with what he was hearing in the symposium and was not hearing any of the negative things that are known to be said in such conferences. For example, he denied hearing that women become lesbians because they have been raped, or that men “turn” gay because they were molested or had poor relationships with their fathers. Despite his insistence that he was enjoying the symposium, however, I was pleasantly surprised to see him later at the panel discussion (details on that below). He’d apparently decided to skip the rest of the symposium and join us for some facts instead of propaganda.

During the vigil Wayne Besen conducted video interviews me Sapphocrat (my better half) and several of the other participants for Truth Wins Out. A reporter for the San Jose Mercury News also interviewed several individuals so look for a story about the event, likely in tomorrow’s edition. Finally, two women from In The Life stopped by for their own interviews so some of our group just may end up on their wonderful program!

“In the Life” interviews David Nahmod.

During the symposium’s lunch break two guys approached us at a brisk pace. While at first I thought they might be coming to confront us, it turned out they were there to comment on what was happening inside. They were from a gay Christian organization, one explained, and they were attending the symposium so they could expose what actually goes on inside. To our delight they’ll be blogging their experiences (they were taking copious notes) and putting up videos on YouTube as soon as possible.

At the ready to fend off Teh Gays. (Guess the boss is the one in the sharkskin suit.)

Shortly before 1pm we broke and moved on to the Billy DeFrank Center for the panel discussion on the “Ex-Gay” industry. The discussion was well attended with an audience of about 25. The panel consisted of, in alphabetical order:

Reverend Sky Anderson, Minister of Community Life, Metropolitan Community Church of San Jose.
Wayne Besen, Executive Director, Truth Wins Out.org.
Gloria Nieto, President, Silicon Valley LGBT Democratic Club.
Robert Elster, Ex-Gay Survivor.
Aejaie Sellers, Executive Director, Billy DeFrank LGBT Community Center.

After introductions by Aejaie Sellers, Wayne Besen opened with a brief history of the Ex-Gay industry. The first Ex-Gay ministries began right here in San Rafael, California and at first the LGBT community didn’t pay them much attention because they weren’t seen as a significant threat. Then in 1998 things changed as the RRRW figured out that if they could convince people that being gay was a casual choice, “like what to have for dinner”, then they could push through anti-gay legislation. LGBTs then became the “cultural landing for the culture wars”. ( This handy timeline by Jeremy Townsley provides much more detail about the rise of the Ex-Gay industry. )

Left to right: Rev. Sky Anderson, Wayne Besen, Robert Elster, Aejaie Sellers

Robert Elster then took the floor and described his experiences as an Ex-Gay Survivor. He stated that “God called us to be homosexuals”. Robert participated in both Love in Action and Homosexuals Anonymous, two well-known Ex-Gay programs some 20 years ago. Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT) was one of the more severe options suggested to Robert to eradicate his same-sex attractions. (Mind you this was well after homosexuality was removed from the DSM. ) During his time with the programs he was constantly assured that if he would only try to be straight he could be straight, and it was even implied that if he were to marry a woman that would make him straight. So out of desperation he married a woman thinking that would “cure” him. After several years and the birth of his two children he decided to stop deceiving himself, his wife and everybody else and admit the truth. He was still gay and always had been. Sadly it took a protracted legal battle for him to be allowed any contact with his children, for the usual prejudices against LGBT people were in play, and at the time of this post he’d just recently won his case.

Wayne commented that Robert’s story was typical of Ex-Gay Survivors. He then summarized the experience of being an Ex-Gay stating, “How can we be anything when we spend all of our time trying not to be something?” Wayne then offered the floor to Reverend Sky Anderson.

Rev. Sky stated that he is often contacted by churches that are supportive of the LGBT community and need advice on how to deal with the animosity they face from others for their support. Sadly doing the right thing often comes with a price tag attached. He went on to say that the Ex-Gay movement, particularly in its early stages, was reminiscent of the Briggs Initiative and Propositions A&B. Specifically that they started out quietly…”with a whisper”. He further stated that “seeing an Ex-Gay movement here opens old wounds”. He feels that it is “only the beginning of something that is going to be much bigger”.

Wayne observed that the Ex-Gay movement seems to be winding down. This is the second event he’s seen for which there were no billboards announcing it. Perhaps, he said, “the message isn’t resonating (with the general public) as much anymore and they’re just speaking to the choir”. Youth, in general, are not as responsive to the radical, anti-gay message as are older individuals. “For every one person converted are they turning off five others?”

Left to right: Gloria Nieto, Rev. Sky Anderson, Wayne Besen

Gloria Nieto then explained that the greatest force behind Ecumenicals (in politics) was Karl Rove. Now that he’s no longer there as their “architect” the GOP is rather without a rudder. “There is no roadmap for them right now.” The anti-gay movement in the Latino community went from Rove to “higher-profile evangelicals” such as Ruben Diaz who has one foot in the political camp and one in the religious. Gloria then asked the important question, “How do you know what is going on in Spanish-speaking communities if you don’t speak Spanish?”. One answer is Blabbeando, who monitors a variety of Spanish-language blogs.

Robert asked Wayne about the “statistics” (or lack thereof) provided by Joseph Nicolosi. Wayne replied that when pressed, Nicolosi replied that he “didn’t have time” to get the requested statistics (but that he sure had time to cash his clients’ checks). Then Wayne went on to say that NARTH/Exodus “experts” typically cover themselves by quoting one another for their vague statistics.

Aejaie then commented that Ex-Gay “therapy” is “more manipulative than therapeutic”. Wayne explained that they’re always looking for a reason for gayness. Lesbians were molested as children. Gay men were too close to their mothers or not close enough to their fathers. For transgender people it’s all of the above taken to the extreme. The “therapy” techniques range from the bizarre to the downright abusive. Women are given “makeup seminars” and discouraged from playing sports. Men are taken out to play touch football and have nude massages for non-sexual male bonding (!). Participants are encouraged to develop (non-sexual) friendships with straight people of the same gender under the premise that this will make them straight. Rev. Sky Anderson noted that some programs have utilized ECT and even electrodes on mens’ penises as means of attempting to rid them of same-sex desires.

Then Aejaie asked the panel members to suggest the top three things LGBT people can do to fight the Ex-Gay movement. Gloria Nieto said, “Keep talking to politicians. Tell the truth about who we are.” Reverend Anderson stated, “First, we’ve got a lot of work to do between the trans community and the gay community.” Then he added, “Stand with whoever is oppressed”.

Wayne feels there are three major areas we could be doing better.
1- Money; we’re “out-financed”
2- Outreach; Truth Wins Out has a staff of two and a small budget. By comparison Exodus International and Focus on the Family have dozens of staff and billions of dollars (particularly when you account for the more than 120 affiliate ministries of Exodus International). FotF is the #1 program in Zimbabwe, for example, which means they’re spreading their lies to a market we have no chance of even reaching yet. We’re sadly outmatched in this department.
3- “We could use a lawsuit against these guys”. Not against the ministries, because of course they’re protected under Freedom of Religion. But against the so-called “therapists” who inflict the damage on program participants. Even a few of these suits could begin the real downfall of the Ex-Gay industry.

Robert added his own list:
1- “Bloom where you’re planted.” , e.g., your own church– work from within whatever community you belong to
2 - Youth. Robert wants to pass own story to them so they will never become complacent
3 - We need to find peace & harmony w/in ourselves and stop beating up each other within our own community

Aejaie added, then, that we need to engage the entire community, not just the LGBT community, in our efforts to thwart the Ex-Gay industry. She then opened the floor to questions from the audience.

So that’s about it for now. I anticipate video and local stories being available soon and I’ll provide them when I can. Until then…

 

As I posted previously, Truth Wins Out is in the San Jose area for a number of events to fight the “Ex-Gay” industry. My SO and I attended the press conference earlier today at the Billy DeFrank Center and met Wayne Besen, Aejaie Sellers and others who have put this event together.

On Saturday at 11am there will be a prayer vigil outside the Abundant Life Christian Fellowship in Mountain View, which is where the Love Won Out symposium is being held. Here is a Google Map of the church location for handy reference. At 1pm there will be a panel discussion on the “Ex-Gay” industry at the Billy DeFrank Center in San Jose. Directions to the center are available here.

We would love to see you there, be you LGBT, ally, faithful, faithless or any combination thereof!

 

Here’s the scoop, sorry for the late notice. I just got notice that there will be a number of events in San Jose to educate people on the dangers of the “Ex-Gay” industry and to protest the Love Won Out symposium. While this is short notice, particularly for the Thursday events, all who can attend are encouraged to do so.

 

What: TruthWinsOut.org Executive Director Wayne Besen will travel to San Jose this week to help educate people about the dangers of the ex-gay industry. Besen will join a group of local organizations at a press conference on Thursday, in an effort to ensure accurate information reaches the public and those attending the Love Won Out conference. Besen is also the author of “Anything But Straight: Unmasking the Scandals and Lies Behind the Ex-Gay Myth.”

“It’s tragic that most of the people attending Love Won Out are parents who are looking for answers in the wrong place,” said TruthWinsOut.org’s Executive Director Wayne Besen. “We are speaking out to stop these parents from being exploited and we hope to dispel myths and misconceptions so they can learn to love and accept their gay children.”

Where: The Billy DeFrank GLBT Community Center
938 The Alameda
(West of the HP Pavilion Arena, between Race St and Hwy 87)

When: Thursday, April 10
11 AM

Who: Aejaie Sellers, DeFrank Center’s CEO/Executive Director

Bill Roth, Catholic Democrats of California

Gloria Nieto, Santa Clara County LGBT Democrats

Wayne Besen, Executive Director, TruthWinsOut.org

Rev. Michael Ellard, Metropolitan Community Church of San Jose

Saturday Activities: On Saturday, April 12, a prayer vigil will take place at 11 AM, in front of the church hosting Love Won Out - Abundant Life Christian Fellowship, 2440 Leghorn Street, Mountain View. Also on Saturday, the DeFrank Center will host a panel discussion on the ex-gay industry at 1:00pm (938 The Alameda, San Jose). Joining Sellers and Besen will be Rev. Michael Ellard (Metropolitan Community Church of San Jose), Bill Roth (Catholic Democrats of California), Gloria Nieto (Santa Clara County LGBT Democrats) and ex-gay survivors.

Love Won Out is a quarterly ex-gay symposium sponsored by Focus on the Family. John Paulk, an ex-gay leader who was on the cover of Newsweek and appeared on Oprah, 60 Minutes and Good Morning America, originally ran the program. Love Won Out suffered a major setback after Paulk was photographed in a Washington, DC gay bar by Besen.

TruthWinsOut.org is a non-profit organization that counters right wing propaganda, exposes the “ex-gay” myth and educates America about gay life.

 

I’d love to see you there!

 

This is certainly good news in the fight against the anti-gay agenda.

Ex-Gay Watch Founder Michael Airhart
To Blog Daily On Site

NEW YORK – TruthWinsOut.org (TWO) launched its innovative new website today, enhancing its ability to fight the ex-gay myth and right wing propaganda. The site will be a leading educational resource and an all-encompassing look at the dangerous world of conversion therapy. For years, the ex-gay industry had dominated the flow of information on this topic. With this site, our movement has finally surpassed our opponents and we now have the means to counter ex-gay lies and reach vulnerable people with messages of truth and hope.

“TruthWinsOut.org is a one-stop-shop for information on the ex-gay myth and an action center for those who want to fight back against this insidious industry,” said TWO’s Executive Director Wayne Besen. “We believe this site will help people come out, keep families together and even save lives. This is a great day for those who have long wanted to stop the spread of ex-gay misinformation and help people escape the ex-gay trap.”

Michael Airhart, who founded Ex-Gay Watch in 2002, will publish daily on TWO’s blog, offering his penetrating insights and a deep understanding of this topic. Airhart formerly worked as senior business editor for McClatchy-Tribune news wires in Washington. In 2005 he became a director for a leading blog syndication company. He also co-founded Men Can Stop Rape in 1997.

“The ex-gay industry has declared war against GLBT people as it has become enmeshed with the far right,” said Michael Airhart. “By joining with TruthWinsOut.org, I am answering a personal calling to defend individual liberties, religious freedom, constitutional rights, family unity — and sexual strugglers — against exploitation by divisive, intolerant and dishonest extremists.”

TWO’s website will include an extensive and unprecedented video catalogue of “ex-gay” survivors and sexual orientation experts. The videos and website highlight an active and robust year, where TWO will challenge the “ex-gay” industry across America.

To make this dream a reality, TWO has relied on the contributions of generous foundations and individuals. On behalf of the people TWO has already helped and will assist in the future, we would like to thank the Arcus Foundation, Gill Foundation, William A. Kerr Foundation and John Sweet, Andrew Tobias, VanAmeringen Foundation, Jonathan D. Lewis Foundation, Weston Milliken and the Liberty Hill Foundation, Bill Cohen and the Haworth Press, Mitchell Gold, Linda Ketner, Karen Ferguson, Richard Nolan and Bob Pingpank, Worth Ross and Clint Trout.

We would also like to honor those whose smaller donations have been so crucial to our success. And, we give special thanks to our talented webmaster and Internet guru Phillip Perry, Davyd Dixon for leading on this project, Joel Lawson for his strategic public relations advice, Lisa Fels for her ongoing support and Paul Schappaugh, our dedicated IT specialist and database manager.

“This was a team effort and I thank everyone who has invested in TruthWinsOut.org and who labored intensively to create this beacon of illumination,” said Besen. “With continued support, we can build on this achievement and aggressively combat the predatory and well-funded ex-gay industry.”

Additionally, TWO is using its new website to call for volunteers nationally to come forward and help us in cities where we will counter ‘ex-gay’ rallies. In 2008, it is also a major priority for the organization to videotape the testimonials of lesbian and minority survivors. If the so-called ‘ex-gay’ ministries have harmed you, please contact TWO and tell your important story.

TruthWinsOut.org is a non-profit organization that counters right wing propaganda, exposes the “ex-gay” myth and educates America about gay life. For more information, visit Truth Wins Out .

I look forward to this new resource in the ongoing fight against the “Ex-Gay” movement. Kudos to Wayne Besen and Michael Airhart!

Normally the “Ex-Gay” industry is no laughing matter. But this is one of those exceptions.