Ex-Gay Watch

In 2007, the National Association for the Research and Therapy of Homosexuality (NARTH) posted an article by Dean Byrd on their website.  It seemed written to give the impression that noted geneticist Dr. Francis Collins agreed with both the idea that homosexuality did not have a genetic cause and that it could be changed or prevented.  To be sure, NARTH believes all this, but it did not sound like something with which Dr. Collins would agree.  Collins has a reputation for being a brilliant and reasonable scientist, passionate about the truth.

A careful reading of Byrd’s article revealed some select comments from Collin’s book conflated with Byrd’s pontifications and information from other sources.  We decided it best to contact Collins with our concerns to find out what he really thought.  All this along with Collins’ response is detailed in our subsequent post where Collins essentially agreed with our assessment and then some (read the article for details).

Since then, we have had to recall, re-emphasize and defend that exchange as various groups and individuals repeated the distorted notion of Byrd’s article.  Collins was contacted again and reconfirmed his original position.  Then early this year NARTH resurrected the issue after receiving copies of this writer’s email exchanges with Collins via a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request.  While they claimed they had made the request themselves, we now know that the information was forwarded to them from the anti-gay Citizens for a Responsible Curriculum who had made the original FOIA request.

In their most recent post, NARTH accused this writer of flattering Collins with “adulation and praise,” and misrepresenting NARTH and Byrd’s article. They announced their discovery of the email exchange as a find, even though the entire thing has been posted on XGW since 2008 for all to see.  Read our response to this if you care to get up to speed on the matter.

We decided to take a page from their book and request any correspondence between NARTH and Collins.  In response, we received a copy of a letter (PDF) sent to him by NARTH President Julie Hamilton sometime after they received the FOIA material from CRC.  In it, Collins is treated more like a doddering old man than the head of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).  Even though we sent a link to the original article with our email to Collins, and it is clear from his reply that he read it, Hamilton encloses a copy noting “Although Warren Throckmorton [see this post to see where he comes in] and David Roberts led you to believe otherwise, your statements were not misrepresented by NARTH.”  No, Dr. Collins, regardless of what you think, you do agree with us — sheer arrogance.

Hamilton continues to reassure Collins that what he said he saw in the article is not there.  One can almost visualize her speaking slowly to help him understand, the supposition being that if Collins didn’t agree with NARTH, he must certainly have just not understood.  There seems no way for them to comprehend that he really does think they misrepresented him.  Hamilton goes on to lecture Collins in the NARTH mantra of change, trying to plead the case that NARTH is a professional organization and not at all anti-gay.

At the end, Hamilton does what she accused yours truly of, she flatters Collins with her own brand of adulation and praise:

I hope you receive this letter with the sincerity with which it was written.  Your book, The Language of God, has brought joy to many religious professionals, demonstrating that science and faith tradition are not inherently incompatible.  As an evangelical Christian, I testify to God’s love, and it is His love that many of us who provide professional care to those who are distressed by unwanted homosexual attractions find central to our motivation to help.

It should be noted that our FOIA request parameters were broad and yet no reply from Collins to NARTH was included.  In other words, while Collins responded not once but three times to our requests, he did not reply to NARTH’s one and only letter.  That says a lot.

Letter from NARTH to Dr. Francis Collins (PDF)

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?

During the years from 2005 to 2007, IRS records show Exodus designated over $1 million for “various education programs and publications that explain how to change sexual orientation…”

Exodus International Form 990 for year 2007

This period begins several years into Alan Chambers’ tenure as Exodus President, and covers what might be called their pinnacle.  While those of us who study Exodus may not find this particularly startling, we must remember that they have vehemently denied ever having this as their goal.  To have an official record stating those intentions is important.

Of course, Exodus’ history is littered with evidence of their emphasis on change.  Their motto, Change is Possible, has been plastered on billboards across the country.  They have routinely claimed a 30% to 50% success rate in changing from homosexual to heterosexual (a laughable figure), and even paid $100,000 for a study intended to substantiate that figure.  To this day the Exodus bookstore features books on reparative therapy by Joseph Nicolosi and others which promote pseudo-scientific theories on causation and conversion of homosexuality.

Exodus representatives repeatedly deny the idea that they seek to bring sexual orientation change to anyone.  In a symphony of semantics, they deflect responsibility for most anything they do.  In a particularly sarcastic article written in 2009 when Exodus could still afford professional PR people like Julie Neils, she wrote:

If I had a dollar for every time I’ve heard the words, “Exodus International” and “religious group that claims to cure gays” in a sentence I’d be rich . . . and in Tahiti right now.

Exodus International Form 990 for year 2006

Exodus also makes a big deal of the claim that they only exist to help those who seek them out — those “400,000 phone calls and emails” we are always hearing about.  Until 2006, Exodus put the following expense claim on the same form to the IRS:

Missions and outreach projects allow Exodus to reach individuals not actively seeking help who may be open to change.

Again, hardly a surprise to those familiar with Exodus but basically we have here evidence of their intent — ironically enough — to recruit those not “actively seeking” their help in the first place.  This directly contradicts their own claims, but Exodus has a way with words that enables them to say one thing and mean another.

Perhaps equally significant is the fact that this verbiage has been removed in years since.  Clearly Exodus still does these things yet they don’t wish to make that fact so obvious as they once did.  What kind of message does all this double-talk send?  Perhaps it is just this kind of mixed-message that sends churches like Willow Creek in the other direction.

Supporting Documents

Exodus Form 990 — 2005

Exodus Form 990 — 2006

Exodus Form 990 — 2007

Last weekend saw the latest Love Won Out conference, the ex-gay roadshow which was once sponsored by Focus on the Family (with Exodus as partners) but is now completely run by Exodus International.  The latest locale was Sugarland, Texas (outside Houston) — firmly in the Bible Belt and where one might expect more than the usual number of sympathetic participants.

According to he Houston Chronicle, however, that doesn’t seem to have been the case.  They report 450 in attendance, for what we believe is the lowest figure yet — certainly in recent years.  That’s less than half the numbers reported in it’s heyday of just a few years ago.  Remember also that most attendees are repeat visitors, part of a small core who use the conferences to visit socially.  Even in such a venue, however, some ministries maintain rather strict requirements.  Living Hope Ministries, an Exodus affiliate in Arlington, Texas, (and old stomping ground of former Exodus VP Randy Thomas) requires their attendees to mark out the last names on their name tags lest they be tempted to contact each other by means not sanctioned by the group.

There would seem little doubt that Exodus is in decline.  Recent months and years have seen their pleas for funds become more dire, their staff and benefits cut, significant ministry partners disassociate, and now their main recruiting tool attract fewer attendees.  Some time ago they began combining the figures for their member groups with their stagnant church affiliates, perhaps to give the impression that they have grown (or at least not shrunk).  Their church affiliate network, which then VP Randy Thomas predicted would have 10,000 members by 2010 never got past about 100.

Exodus still has a presence and can do damage to those who mistake them for a safe harbor.  And they continue to export their untruths to countries less equipped to provide an informed opposition. Unfortunately, we have already witnessed what kind of fire can start from those sparks.

Our local team joins this excellent effort, so I just had to post it.  Thanks guys!

According to the IRS, the tax-exempt status of Americans for Truth About Homosexuality (AFTAH) was revoked on 5/10/2010 (PDF). The reason for this action is listed by the reporting organization Guidestar as a “failure to file a Form 990, 990-EZ, 990-N, or 990-PF for 3 consecutive years.”  These forms are required of legitimate non-profit organizations for review by the IRS and the public.

While the current incarnation of AFTAH appears to have been active since 2006, we found only one form 990-EZ on file — for the year 2009 (PDF).  In this, total receipts are listed as $110.000, out of which Peter LaBarbera received a salary of $75,000.  For perspective, this is approximately the same salary plus benefits claimed by Exodus president Alan Chambers.  Exodus lists eleven employees and a million dollar budget.

According to the IRS documentation on revocations (PDF), AFTAH can no longer be considered a 501(c)3 tax-exempt organization, and there is no process for appeal.  Donations made to them before 6/10/2011 are still deductible by donors, though any income after revocation may be taxed and require filing of a federal return.  LaBarbera appears to have been aware of all this, as the donations section of the AFTAH website no longer claims tax-exempt status:

Before Revocation

After Revocation

However, the footer of the “About” page still claims donations are tax-deductible:

"About" page footer

AFTAH is one of a handful of anti-gay organizations classified by the venerable civil rights organization Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) as a hate group.  According to the SPLC, this is due to LaBarbera’s intense marketing of untruths which paint gays and lesbians in a false and negative light (eg. promoting the claims of the discredited Paul Cameron, claims of a disproportionate incidence of pedophilia in gays, and Scott Lively’s assertion that gays headed the Nazi party, etc).

Thousands of organizations exist which claim that homosexuality is a sin or otherwise immoral, only eighteen are listed as true hate groups by the SPLC.  AFTAH is one of them.

Edited 9:33 am to include AFTAH footer.

Alan continues to find new ways to avoid saying anything of consequence — especially the truth. Can anyone decode the double-speak into answers he does not want to give?

There has been a lot of buzz lately about an apparent collaboration between charity minded Tom’s Shoes and the virulently anti-gay Focus on the Family.  It appears that the average Tom’s Shoes customer finds FoTF’s work against equal rights for LGBTs offensive and many of them let Toms’ founder, Blake Mycoskie, know about it.  This prompted the following clarification and apology.  FoTF then countered with their own response.

“It’s perplexing to think that the same voices who champion ‘equal rights for all’ seem so intent on limiting our opportunities to help children in need through wonderful programs like TOMS,” he said. “How distressing that Christians seem to be the only ones not tolerated in our culture of tolerance.”

Daly agreed.

“This is an unfortunate statement about the culture we live in, when an organization like ours is deemed unfit to help children in need simply because we hold to biblical beliefs about marriage and family,” Daly added. “It’s also a chilling statement about the future of the culture we live in. We have to wonder: What will someone decide we’re unfit to do next?”

I noticed the CitizenLink response after reading a Tweet by Exodus President Alan Chambers:

Free #Slurpee day at 7/11. Apparently, it is also cave in on what you believe day @TomsShoes cc: @BlakeMycoskie

The response from FoTF is basically the usual “mean old gay activists made them change their minds” with the addition of “all we wanted to do is help the children.”  Let’s pretend for a moment that a truck just came by and shoveled in all the B.S. and carried it away.

What we have left is a lame attempt by FoTF to launder some of their considerably soiled reputation by drawing from the generally positive reputation of another.  They were just using shoeless children in Africa as the detergent.  It’s disgusting and it’s wrong.

If FoTF had really wanted to help shoe these children, they had other avenues to consider.  Knowing how toxic their organization is, and the likely effect it would have on the effort, they could have done all this in secret, behind the scenes.  Isn’t there something in the Bible about not doing your good deeds in public so people can see you?

Since Toms gives away a free pair of shoes to these kids for each one purchased, why couldn’t FoTF have simply sent out one of those famous direct mailings, the ones they routinely use to scare grandmothers into thinking the world will soon end because gays this or that. Instead, just ask their followers to buy shoes from Toms.  Nice, simple, effective and no grandstanding.

Or here is a thought, they could have taken just a fraction of the millions and millions of dollars of donated funds they have used to denigrate LGBTs, to lobby against their civil rights, and prevent their marriages, and just given that to Toms to send an entire boatload of shoes to needy kids.

If all you want to do is help the kids, then why all the fanfare, Mr. Daily?  You’ve spent decades and hundreds of millions of dollars of other people’s money to make that bed, now there is nothing left for you to do but lie in it.

There is no tolerance for the intolerant.

New Yorkers Celebrate Marriage Equality - Voice of America

In a major victory for gay rights, the New York Sate Senate voted 33 to 29 to approve same-sex marriage in the state, becoming the sixth state to do so.  The debate lasted for days and followed a previous attempt in 2009 which fell through at the last moment.  Governor Cuomo, who had promised to pass this legislation during his election campaign, signed the bill before midnight.  Same-sex marriages can begin in 30 days.

The deciding vote was cast by Republican Stephen Saland who had voted no last time.  He credits this change to a “change of heart” and a desire “to do the right thing.”  Bravo, Mr. Saland.  Anti-gay forces will most certainly be brought to bare in order to defeat his re-election.

It was certainly a wonderful surprise to wake up to this news rather than the gut punch of Prop 8.  And we understand that New York has no residency requirement, so they should expect a great boost in tourism dollars in the months and years to come as gay couples travel to the Empire State to tie the knot and experience the wonders of that great city.

We at XGW would like to send congratulations and our appreciation to those who worked tirelessly against some truly vile opposition to make this happen.  Well done!

Read more at the Voice of America.

Another major US based ministry has cut ties with Exodus International, the largest organization which claims to help people “leave homosexuality.”  An event earlier this year caused us to check the Exodus affiliate listing to see if mega-church Willow Creek of Barrington Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, was still listed there.  They had been an Exodus affiliate for years but were indeed no longer listed.

Willow Creek Church

A question to Alan Chambers concerning their affiliation with Willow Creek received no response, so we contacted Susan DeLay, Media Relations Manager for Willow Creek.  The following concise response came through Scott Vaudrey of their Elder Response Team:

After a recent review of our affiliations we determined that, moving into the future, we no longer intend to be affiliated with Exodus International.

Willow Creek is an interdenominational, Evangelical Christian mega-church with satellite campuses throughout the country.  With a 24,000 member congregation, it is the third largest church in the US and has been called the “most influential church in America” according to a poll of pastors over the past few years.

A church with such success and respect tends to be a bellwether for the Christian Church in general, certainly in this country.  The trend of major ministries disassociating themselves from Exodus may indeed be on the increase.  Combined with what appear to be dismal economic times for them, Exodus may have an increasingly rough road ahead.

This certainly is a contrast to the heady predictions of just a few years ago.  In 2008, Exodus predicted they would have 10,000 churches in their network by 2010 — ambitious to say the least.  Their current enrollment of approximately 135 falls somewhat short of that goal.

Taken with the odd departure of Exodus Vice President Randy Thomas and the lateral promotion of Jeff Buchanan to fill his position, one could say the Exodus message is ringing untrue with an increasing number of the faithful.  Of course, Exodus will likely see this as “straying from the Biblical truth” or an attempt to “tickle the ears of the sinful” but then that’s always the case, isn’t it?