Ex-Gay Watch

A former youth pastor from Iowa has been charged with 60 sexual offences against teenage boys, some as young as 14.

Brent Girouex, 31, of Council Bluffs, told police he had sex with the young men to cure their homosexuality, according to the Wisconsin Gazette. He claimed that ejaculation was the key to ridding them of sexually impure thoughts.

At least eight men have accused Girouex of molesting them. He is now out on bail of $30,000.

(HT: Evan at Truth Wins Out).

Scott Lively made a small splash by deciding to open a Christian-themed coffee house in Springfield, Massachusetts called “Holy Grounds.” People wondered aloud if this was a “new leaf” being turned over, but Lively made known that he would continue to serve as a conference speaker on the topic of homosexuality.

Now, it turns out that the man who advises parents to keep their children away from gays has himself employed a child molester to manage his establishment. Michael J. Frediani, 38, was arrested for failing to register as a level 2 sex offender in Springfield. He lived in an apartment above Lively’s shop.

In New York, Frediani was convicted of sexual abuse in the first degree and aggravated sexual abuse in the second degree in 1996.

The charge relates to an arrest by police in Canandaigua, N.Y., in 1995 in which the victim was an 11-year-old girl. The description of the offense was “deviate sexual intercourse.”

He was sentenced to two to four years in state prison, serving at the Midstate Correctional Facility from September of 1996 to February of 1999, according to Carole Weaver, a spokeswoman for the state’s Division of Parole.

Local authorities expressed concern that the business was becoming a haven for truant teens, as well.

Lively is of course the co-author of the infamous book “The Pink Swastika,” in which he falsely claims the Holocaust was perpetrated by a Nazi Party infiltrated by hyper-masculine homosexuals. Its claims have been consistently debunked, and Lively has become well-associated with outright hatred of gay people. His group “Abiding Truth Ministries” has been on the SPLC anti-gay hate group list for several years, and recently played a key role in the introduction of Uganda’s “Kill The Gays” bill.

Lively’s response to Frediani’s arrest?

Frediani had told Lively that he had a “rough past before he became a Christian,” Lively said, adding that he did not know any specifics and that he saw no need for a criminal background check.

“That’s the beauty of the salvation of Christ,” Lively said. “When you come to Jesus Christ, and you accept his forgiveness for your sins, then you are forgiven by Him and enter a new life. It doesn’t surprise me that he had a rough past, that he has a criminal record.”

An anti-gay pastor with a congregation of over 25,000 has been accused of sexually abusing three male teenagers. According to the allegations, Bishop Eddie Long, a fierce critic of same-sex marriage, coerced three young men, aged between 17 and 19 at the time, into sexual activity.

Maurice Robinson and Anthony Flagg, now 20 and 21, filed a lawsuit Tuesday, sayings the bishop talked them into sexual massages and “oral sodomy” by telling them it was part of their spiritual development. According to this transcript from CNN, the relationships began with a “ceremony,” during which jewellery was exchanged and a covenant was made for Bishop Long to be the boys’ “spiritual father.” The third man, Jamal Parris, now 23, filed a lawsuit on Wednesday.

The Southern Poverty Law Center has described the bishop as “one of the most virulently homophobic black leaders in the religiously based anti-gay movement.”

Long’s New Birth Missionary Baptist Church, in Atlanta, Georgia, runs an ex-gay “Out of the Wilderness” program offering counseling for gays “who desire healing and deliverance through the Word of God.” In 2006, the church hosted a “sexual orientation and reorientation” conference featuring DL Foster, a Pentecostal preacher so radically homophobic, even Ex-Gay Watch rarely bothers to comment on him these days.

If the accusations are true, Bishop Eddie Long would not be the first outspoken Christian homophobe to harbour gay desires or act on them in private–but that these allegations involve not just homosexual activity and hypocrisy, but abuse of power and assault of vulnerable adolescents, makes them particularly despicable.

Bishop Long has denied the accusations and has announced a press conference on Thursday.

It hasn’t been an easy year for JONAH. First, their co-founder Arthur “Abba” Goldberg was outed as a convicted felon. Then, a scandal broke about how two young Orthodox Jewish men were engaged in bizarre, naked therapy wherein it was reported a much older man, Alan Downing, instructed them to touch their genitals in front of a mirror while he watched. This scandal led to an awkward (though ironically more accurate) name change, “Jews Offering New Alternatives to Healing.”

Now a statement has been signed by many Orthodox rabbis confirming their support for gay people, including their “religious right to reject” ex-gay therapy. But their hastily applied band-aid hardly covers a thing. As was noted in a previous article, JONAH’s web page title still reads “Homosexuality” instead of “Healing.” And the dozens of references to the old name have yet to be edited in the articles on the site. But the biggest proof that JONAH hasn’t even changed superficially is the continued support for the bizarre therapy that led to the Downing scandal in the first place.

According to JONAH’s website, “Many who struggle with SSA experience touch deprivation, an issue often overlooked in therapy.” That’s why point number 10 of their FAQ endorses the practice that other ex-gay organizations have long shunned. At the Exodus and NARTH websites, damning references will disappear within hours of exposure on a gay-supportive blog. In the case of disgraced “sexual reorientation life coach” Richard Cohen, statements may even appear opposing the use of “touch therapy.” But JONAH is obviously not on the ball, and they clearly lack the self-awareness to recoop their image, even superficially.

JONAH can’t even prove “change is possible” in their own website content.

Truth Wins Out’s Wayne Besen has challenged Alan Downing to take a lie detector test following claims that he engaged in sexual misconduct with two male clients:

In light of his public denial, Truth Wins Out offered to pay for both a polygraph and a No Lie MRI for Downing, so he can prove his alleged innocence. … We believe that Alan Downing is not telling the truth and that his brain would light up like a Menorah if he took a No Lie MRI.

I’m not convinced either lie detector test is the way to go. No evidence exists that the polygraph is reliable, and investigations into the validity of MRI (or fMRI) method of lie detection, despite having generally positive results, are still at an early stage.

Of course,  Besen’s motivation is equally or mostly to get the allegations out in the open, which is fair enough. But if Downing is guilty of this unsavory sexual abuse, a court–not a machine–will do the work of proving it.

Two men have accused Alan Downing, a life coach with Richard Cohen’s ex-gay International Healing Foundation, of using sexually inappropriate therapy techniques, according to Truth Wins Out.

On separate occasions, Downing allegedly asked Ben Unger and Chaim Levin to undress in front of a mirror and fondle their genitals while he watched, saying this would help them affirm their masculinity.

Downing is a close associate of JONAH, the Jewish ex-gay organization whose leader Arthur Abba Goldberg was exposed as a convicted Wall Street felon earlier this year. He has also run courses and retreats for the controversial Mankind Project., and worked with the gay-to-straight outreach People Can Change and its affiliate Journey into Manhood.

Downing is ex-gay, but admits he is still attracted to men, according to TWO.

First Goldberg, then George Rekers, and now Downing–they’re falling fast this year.

See also Wayne Besen’s follow-up editorial at Huffington Post: Ex-Gay Therapy Is Scandalous.

Dr George Rekers has resigned from the board of the National Association for Research and Therapy of Homosexuality (NARTH), following allegations that he received nude, erotic massages from a male prostitute.

Rekers, who has been an anti-gay activist for decades, took a 10-day European vacation with Jo-Vanni Roman (at first identified only as “Lucien”), a gay escort who says they met through the explicit website Rentboy.com. Rekers faced humiliation in the media after denying the accusations, claiming he he hired Roman to help carry his luggage while he recovered from surgery. He said he only found out Roman was an escort partway through the trip, and responded by evangelizing him and warning him against homosexuality.

Stepping down from NARTH, Rekers wrote:

I am immediately resigning my membership in NARTH to allow myself the time necessary to fight the false media reports that have been made against me. With the assistance of a defamation attorney, I will fight these false reports because I have not engaged in any homosexual behavior whatsoever. I am not gay and never have been.

NARTH responded:

NARTH has accepted Dr. Rekers’ resignation and would hope that the legal process will sufficiently clarify the questions that have arisen in this unfortunate situation. We express our sincere sympathy to all individuals, regardless of their perspective, who have been injured by these events. We also wish to reiterate our traditional position that these personal controversies do not change the scientific data, nor do they detract from the important work of NARTH. NARTH continues to support scientific research, and to value client autonomy, client self-determination and client diversity.

Earlier this week, there were premature reports of some websites and organizations (Focus on the Family’s Family Research Council, for example, which Rekers co-founded) deleting mentions of Rekers from their history. Today, Dr Warren Throckmorton reports that the purge has begun.

Joe Jervis from the blog Joe.My.God has posted an excellent and refreshingly candid interview he conducted by phone with Jo-Vanni Roman (Lucien), the 20 year old male escort who accompanied anti-gay activist George Rekers to Europe recently. In that interview, Jo-Vanni mentions that he would be taping an interview for “that gay reporter on TV.” Wayne Besen of Truth Wins Out (TWO) has confirmed that he will also be on CNN’s 360 with Anderson Cooper tonight.

A transcript of a conversation Rekers reportedly had with Jo-Vanni shortly after the story broke has been posted on the Miami New Times site. Both it and the Jervis interview add to the details. Jo-Vanni seems to be naive but bright and lacking in guile. In contrast, Rekers seems wrapped in layers of hypocritical deception, making conflicting statements and lashing out. The irony has not escaped notice.

Tonight’s interview is probably must-see for anyone who ends up reading here. Feel free to discuss your reactions and observations on this thread after.

The gay escort at the center of the George Rekers scandal says Rekers paid him for nude massages.

On Tuesday, the Miami New Times reported that Dr George Rekers, a long-time anti-gay, ex-gay Religious Right activist and scholar, had taken a vacation with a 20-year-old male prostitute he had met through the sexually explicit website Rentboy.com.

Rekers first claimed “Lucien” was a travel assistant, employed to help him lifting luggage, following recent back surgery. He later added the incredulous story that he was evangelizing Lucien in an attempt to persuade him against homosexuality.

Lucien said there was no sex between them, but he has now admitted there was sexual contact, and told Miami New Times that Rekers paid him for daily body rubs during the European vacation:

Rekers allegedly named his favorite maneuver the “long stroke” – a complicated caress “across his penis, thigh … and his anus over the butt cheeks,” as the escort puts it. “Rekers liked to be rubbed down there,” he says.

Dr George Rekers was co-founder of the Family Research Council, a board member of NARTH, and Distinguished Professor Emeritus Professor at the University of South Carolina School of Medicine. The latter disassociated itself from Rekers today by removing his profile from its website. Expect other organizations to follow suit.

Meanwhile, Exodus International President Alan Chambers has written about the situation, calling out the “gay community” for throwing stones at Rekers and for failing to extend any “compassion or care” to Lucien, whom he invites to call Exodus.

Sure, the coverage has been tacky at times, and frankly, I didn’t see a lot of concern for Lucien in some of the reports I read. But Alan’s own attempt to use Lucien as an opportunity to smear gays for offering “counterfeit” community, promote Exodus and its message, and exalt the virtues of his own compassion is hardly much classier – and very transparent.

While the titillating details of the events surrounding anti-gay activist Dr George Rekers’ recent overseas trip with a male escort continue to spread at an incredible rate, there are some errors multiplying just as quickly.

While we fully expect from past experience that conservative sites now referencing Rekers will start to disassociate themselves at some point, there is no evidence that this has happened yet. Contrary to recent reports which are being duplicated with the fast pace of reporting on this story, it does not appear that the Family Research Counsel (FRC) has made any recent edits to their site concerning Rekers.

At some point in the past, perhaps as far back as 2007, the FRC restructured it’s web site. The page describing their origins was changed to eliminate a couple of academics, Armand Nicholoi Jr. of Harvard University and George Rekers of the University of South Carolina. It now focuses more on conservative political figures such as Gerald P. Regier, Department of Health and Human Services in the Reagan administration.

The verbiage concerning Rekers and Nicholoi was moved to their FAQ where it remains (in the answer to the second question). However, even the May 1 Google cache of the page in question shows that it is the same as it was before the Miami New Times story broke.

Again, a silent purge of Rekers from conservative sites would be typical, but it should be noted for the record that this hasn’t yet happened. It’s easy to make mistakes on such a quickly developing bombshell as this — we have all done it — but all the more reason to be especially careful not to cloud the serious facts with false information.