Ex-Gay Watch

Ex-gay guru Richard Cohen of the International Healing Foundation has published an “apology” to gays and lesbians he has hurt:

“We at IHF wish to offer a sincere, heartfelt apology to everyone in the LGBTQ community,” said IHF founder and director, Richard Cohen. “I apologize and ask forgiveness to those who were hurt by our message.” Cohen, a leading expert in the field of sexual orientation and married father of three, knows first-hand how it feels to be ostracized having lived a gay life.

Beginning today, IHF’s doors are wide open to everyone in the LGBTQ and straight communities. The new mission, “Coming Out Loved,” is the catalyst of true tolerance, real diversity, and equality for all. IHF staff will assist anyone who is conflicted about their sexuality and other challenging issues that arise for many in the gay community.

Could there be a more cynical attempt to jump on the “I’m sorry” bandwagon? If he really understood the gravity of how his message has hurt LGBT people, he certainly wouldn’t be presenting himself as “a leading expert in the field of sexual orientation.” Nor, having said he’s now promoting a message of diversity and tolerance, would Cohen throw in his lot with NARTH, the supposedly professional organization actually made up mostly of anti-gay religionists and activists, not the mental health professionals it says it represents. From Cohen’s press release:

IHF has adopted therapeutic guidelines from the American Psychological Association for members of the lesbian, gay and bisexual communities; American Counseling Association guidelines for the transgender community; and National Association for Research and Therapy of Homosexuality therapeutic guidelines for anyone questioning their sexuality and/or experiencing unwanted SSA.

In 2007, former ex-gay leaders Jeremy Marks, Darlene Bogle and Michael Bussee unambiguously apologized for the harm they had done. Canadian ministry New Direction really did take a new direction when it turned its back on the false promises of Exodus International. More recently, John Smid went further than ever before in acknowledging how badly he had gotten his message wrong, and it was clearly one more important step along a journey he has been making since the events surrounding Love in Action in 2005.

Now Cohen, sensing the tide is against him, emerges from nowhere and rattles off a glib apology, announceing that his organization will embrace everyone, gay and straight. The smell of cold, calculated fakery is nauseatingly potent.

Hat-tip: ThinkProgress.

-Denmark moves closer to legalizing same-sex marriage.

-Morgan Tsvangirai, Prime Minister of Zimbabwe, calls for gay rights to be included in the country’s new constitution.

-Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain once again supports the idea of a federal marriage amendment.

-Progressive Muslim-Americans work to raise their profile.

-The New Hampshire House Judiciary Committee approves a bill to repeal the state’s marriage equality law.

-Three Republican Congressmen participate in an “It Gets Better” video.

-Uganda’s Parliament reopens debate on the Anti-Homosexuality Bill.

-NOM is caught pretending photos from nonrelated political rallies were from its events.

-The Johnson Family Foundation awards $150,000 grants to two LGBT centers for mental health programs.

-Brazil’s Supreme Court rules that a lesbian couple can be legally married.

-An anti-gay assault is captured on video.

-Welsh rugby star Jed Hooper comes out of the closet.

Although the National Association for the Research and Therapy of Homosexuality promotes itself as a professional organization, mental health professionals make up a mere quarter of its 1,000-strong membership.

Dr Warren Throckmorton, a conservative Christian and psychology professor who has become increasingly skeptical of ex-gay “science,” obtained the figures directly from a senior NARTH official:

Actually, according to NARTH’s operations director, David Pruden, only about 250 of NARTH’s approximately 1000 members are mental health professionals. Furthermore, some of those 250 members who have mental health degrees are academics who write about sexuality but do not provide sexual reorientation therapy. Thus, the lion’s share of NARTH’s members consist of lay people, ministers, and activists who have an interest in the materials provided by NARTH but are not scientists or therapists.

Throckmorton observes the sharp contrast with the claims of the Family Research Council (FRC), who last month said NARTH was

primarily composed of psychiatrists, psychologists, and other professional therapists and counselors who offer ‘sexual reorientation therapy’ to help people overcome unwanted same-sex attractions.

-Actor Zachary Quinto comes out of the closet.

-Another gay teen commits suicide following years of bullying.

-Inspired by Zachary Quinto, ABC news anchor Dan Kloeffler comes out of the closet.

-Paul Cameron looks for a new audience for his “research” in Moldova.

-250 gay voters in New York change their party affiliation to support a Republican ally.

-Botswana’s former president calls for decriminalizing homosexuality.

-NOM loses yet another attempt to keep its donor rolls secret.

-Adoptions by gay parents have more than tripled over the last decade, according to Census Bureau estimates.

-Over 900 Methodists sign a covenant challenging the denomination’s stance against same-sex marriage.

-Elisabeth Hasselbeck completes her transition to full supporter of marriage equality.

Image: Google Maps

In 2008, Exodus moved from a modest office that they leased for $2000+ a month to the building above at 190 N Westmonte Dr, Altamonte Springs, Florida, which they purchased at the height of the real estate market bubble for over $1.1 million.  Exodus has an estimated eleven employees working in this two-story office complex, assuming they haven’t quitely let anyone else go.  Presumably this also houses the oft referenced phone that allegedly receives 400,000 calls a year (roughly 45 calls an hour 24/7/365) from people begging to hear about “freedom from homosexuality.”

Image: Google Maps

Unlike NARTH, Focus on the Family, et al, Exodus seems reluctant to let their neighbors know who they are as the only sign marking the building bears the rather nondescript name of the non-profit they created at the time of the purchase, The Worthen Legacy Group (TWLG).  Frank Worthen could be considered one of the founding father’s of the ex-gay movement and was the founder of the infamous Love In Action ex-gay conversion facility.

The Worthen Legacy Group’s 2008 form 990 lists Don Schmierer and his wife as directors, and is actually the only public document we could find which lists Exodus’ new address (though it finally seems to be appearing in searches).  When asked in 2008, Exodus President Alan Chambers refused to provide the location of the new building and all their literature lists their PO Box.  The mission of TWLG is:

To operate for the benefit of, to perform the functions of, or to carry out the purpose of Exodus International North America, Inc.

According to the tax document above, TWLG is a 501(c)(2) Title Holding Company.  While we are not tax experts, the literature indicates that these are used primarily to shield the assets of a 501(c)(3) from liability.  It is possible Exodus was simply following the prudent advice of their tax attorney, or they may consider a future claim of harm by a client a real possibility.  Perhaps others can make more sense of this and comment below.

His position as director of TWLG may partially explain why Exodus was so intent on shielding Schmierer from blame or consequence for his participation in the Uganda “Anti-Homosexuality Conference” of 2009.  Additionally, Schmierer’s LinkedIn profile still has him working as program officer at Fieldstead & Company.  According to their website, “Fieldstead is a private company that manages the assets of the Howard F. Ahmanson, Jr. family.”  Could this be one of Exodus’ funding sources?

The sign does say that space is available — anyone need to lease office space?

-Two gay Republicans enter the race for San Diego Mayor.

-Rev. Scott Anderson becomes the Presbyterian Church’s first officially sanctioned gay minister.

-Legendary gay rights activist Frank Kameny dies at the age of 86.

-Bank of America will begin reimbursing partnered gay employees for the extra taxes they pay on their health insurance.

-The British government announces that it will reduce aid to nations that persecute gays and lesbians.

-The Marine Corps sets up a recruiting booth at a Southern California Pride event.

-The US Supreme Court declines to hear an appeal from a gay couple that wants both father’s names on their son’s birth certificate.

-Anti-gay activists fail to obtain enough signatures to place a repeal of the FAIR Education Act on the November 2012 ballot.

-A pastor is fired from his church for linking to an article about the repeal of DADT.

-62% of New Hampshire residents oppose repealing the state’s marriage equality law, according to a new poll.

-Peterson Toscano encourages former Love In Action director John Smid to reword his apology.

-A male cheerleader is suspended from his Texas high school for kissing a boy.

Image: Exodus International

Exodus International President Alan Chambers has decided, over a year after the launch of the It Gets Better project, that he should support the campaign instead of condemning it.

In May, the ex-gay leader was livid that Toy Story character Woody was being used to promote the message that things get better for bullied teens. We figured out what enraged him so: The message and ministry of Exodus International depends on the opposite message — according to Exodus, it only gets worse until you submit to its religious agenda, renounce your “gay identity” and try to change your sexual orientation. Put simply, as long as gays are oppressed and miserable, Exodus remains in business.

Now, five months on, Chambers has realized he was wrong:

A few months ago I went on record criticizing the “It Gets Better” campaign that has gone viral with an anti-bullying message for LGBT teens. My criticism was over the use of “Woody,” the fictional star from the box office smash Toy Story trilogy. I reacted because I hate when iconic children’s heroes are used to further what I perceive to be adult causes. With further reflection and thought, though, I have to admit that I was wrong to question their marketing strategy without expressing my full support for what is the heart of their campaign – encouraging LGBT teens to choose life.

This slowness is nothing new to Exodus. In March 2009, Exodus board member Don Schmierer participated in a conference that fanned the flames of homophobia in Uganda. An announcement of the Ugandan “Kill the Gays” bill swiftly followed. Yet it was eight months before Alan Chambers weighed in to denounce the bill, a year before Exodus made an official statement and 15 months before Exodus issued a mea culpa taking some responsibility for Schmierer’s role in the conference.

Always too little, too late. If you’re a Christian leader and it takes you a year to realize that executing homosexuals is an idea worth fighting against, or that the lives of kids are more important than your religious agenda, it’s probably time for a radical reassessment of your values.

The former leader of Exodus International’s oldest ministry says you can’t repent of homosexuality — and he now publicly admits he is homosexual himself.

John Smid, who resigned as Executive Director of Love in Action in 2008, has made his strongest statements yet disavowing the message he preached for years as the head of a ministry that promised gays they could change. Writing on the website of his new ministry, Grace Rivers, Smid says being homosexual (he generally uses this rather clinical term rather than “gay”) is an intrinsic part of a person’s being, not a behaviour he can repent from:

One cannot repent of something that is unchangeable. I have gone through a tremendous amount of grief over the many years that I spoke of change, repentance, reorientation and such, when, barring some kind of miracle, none of this can occur with homosexuality.

He also makes a confession you won’t hear from Exodus (except Exodus President Alan Chambers in an off-guarded moment, although he later backtracked) — he’s never met a real ex-gay person:

I also want to reiterate here that the transformation for the vast majority of homosexuals will not include a change of sexual orientation. Actually I’ve never met a man who experienced a change from homosexual to heterosexual.

Smid goes on to address a hypothetical question: Which is worse, two gay men in a 30-year faithful, committed relationship or a heterosexual married five times? He commends the gay couple for an “amazing feat” of faithfulness and sacrifice, and suggests they “could be more faithful in their walk with Christ than the person married five times” (and vice versa). Basically, he seems to say, it doesn’t matter — and Jesus is the judge of the heart.

He also talks about the change in how he defines homosexuality. The Exodus line is that, essentially, homosexuality is a behaviour and an “identity,” both of which must go. Smid now has a different take: Read more…

-A Tennessee pastor and his deacons attack a gay couple to stop them from entering his church.

-New York City gets its first transgender firefighter.

-Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain proclaims that being gay is a choice.

-The Presbyterian Church (USA) prepares to ordain its first openly gay pastor.

-The National Organization for Marriage is less than congratulatory about the birth of Congressman Jared Polis’ son.

-South African investigators look into the recent murders of five gay men.

-A new study suggests that employers are less likely to interview openly gay job candidates.

-British Prime Minister David Cameron clarifies why he supports marriage equality.

The Toronto-based ministry New Direction is controversial. As a former Exodus organization that now aspires to “bridge the gap” between Christians and LGBT people, both Christian and non-Christian, it invites suspicion from both sides.

On Saturday, I was honoured to be a guest at Relevant Engagement, New Direction’s annual fundraiser. Last year, I joined the event via livestream and later blogged about sociologist and evangelical pastor Tony Campolo’s message. This year, the format was different. There was no big-name speaker; instead, Executive Director Wendy Gritter invited a handful of people to join her in comfy armchairs on stage, and she interviewed them about how the work of New Direction had affected their lives.

After hearing those testimonies — in a room full of conservatives and liberals, gays and straights — I knew there was no doubt New Direction was doing good things for the LGBT people who came to it.

Hanan, a once-judgmental mother, bewildered and distraught when her child came out, said she had “learned to be accepting of people who are different than us.” She recalls:

At the first meeting, we were at the parents’ meeting … [and] one of the parents was introducing herself and her son, and she said … she is so grateful that the Lord has a gay child in her family. And I thought that was so odd to me at that time. But right now I’m at that point. I am thankful the Lord has put our son in our family.

Not long ago, Alison was a biological male named Bob. New Direction supported her through her transition. She isn’t a Christian and “may never end up being something anyone would recognize as a Christian, but it’s a moving journey right now, and it’s actually pretty wonderful.” As she left the stage, Wendy congratulated her: “You’re a woman of great courage.”

Sandy came out as lesbian in her twenties and became a Christian in her thirties. Believing her homosexuality was immoral and encouraged by her pastor to believe God could change her sexual orientation, she pursued change through Living Waters and went through years of denial. She became heavily involved in a Pentecostal church and eventually found her “connection to Jesus” was fizzling out, leaving her feeling “suffocated” by the burden of church and religion.

Now in her late forties, and with the support of New Direction, Sandy has returned to a liberating faith and has come to admit that “I’m just as attracted to women as I ever was, and I like guys, but it’s just not the same thing.” She has discovered that she “pushed down this really integral part of me,” and it did her a lot of damage. She is single, but after decades denying her sexuality, she is open to meeting a woman and having a relationship.

A mother learns to love and accept her gay son. A transgender woman finds support and affirmation. A lesbian puts aside denial and learns to be happy how she was created.

I didn’t need convincing that New Direction was doing good things. I’ve corresponded with Wendy for a few years and gotten to know her as a friend since I moved to Ontario a couple of years ago. I’ve never felt less than fully affirmed by Wendy in every aspect of my person, including my sexuality and my spirituality, as much as they both differ from the Christian norm. I hope others will take a look and consider what New Direction is about, however.

Watch the full video of Saturday’s Relevant Engagement 2011 below. The live interviews are at around the 1-hour mark; the broadcast also includes a talk by Wendy, some pre-recorded interviews and some amazing live music (kinda folky) by Canadian singer-songwriter Miranda Stone.

Video streaming by Ustream

Read more about New Direction in the Ex-Gay Watch archives, or visit the official website at www.newdirection.ca.