by Wayne Besen
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Saturday, July 30, 2005
CO-FOUNDER OF MINISTRY THAT RUNS TEEN ‘EX-GAY’ BOOT CAMP SAYS GROUP SHATTERS LIVES AND CAN CAUSE SUICIDE
Love In Action Co-Founder John Evans Unveils Powerful Letter Rebuking ‘Ex-Gay’ Ministries
NEW YORK — Author Wayne Besen released an explosive letter today by Love In Action’s co-founder and former ex-gay John Evans, which rebukes gay conversion groups saying that they “shattered lives”. The group he started has recently made headlines because it runs a boot camp for gay teens called “Refuge” that tries to turn adolescents heterosexual, often against their will.
“In the past 30 years since leaving the ‘ex-gay’ ministry I have seen nothing but shattered lives, depression and even suicide among those connected with the ‘ex-gay’ movement,” Evans writes in his letter to John Smid, Love In Action’s current director. “I challenge Christians to investigate all sides of the issue of being gay and Christian. The Church has been wrong in the past regarding moral issues and I’m sure there will be more before Christ returns.”
Evans, a gay man, founded what may be the first modern ex-gay group in San Rafael, Calif. in 1973, along with a heterosexual preacher Kent Philpott. Evans left his life partner of ten years to start the gay conversion group. He later dropped out after he realized it didn’t work and his best friend committed suicide because he could not turn heterosexual.
“Having the founder of Love In Action step forward to admonish the ministry he started speaks to the utter hopelessness and futility of these groups, not to mention the danger they represent,” said Wayne Besen, Author of Anything But Straight: Unmasking the Scandals and Lies Behind the Ex-Gay Myth (Haworth, 2003). “Most disturbing are the compulsory gay boot camps for teens which are tantamount to child abuse. They should immediately be shut down.”
In May, 16-year old Zach told his fundamentalist Christian parents that he is gay. Horrified by the news, they vowed to fix him by sending him to an “ex-gay” boot camp in Memphis to be reprogrammed. Like a modern day message in a bottle, Zach used his Internet blog to send an SOS.
“I told my parents I was gay,” he wrote. “This didn’t go over very well,” and “They tell me that there is something psychologically wrong with me, and they ‘raised me wrong.’ Today, my mother, father and I had a very long talk in my room, where they let me know I am to apply for a fundamentalist Christian program for gays.”
The next day, Zach threw another bottle into the cyber-sea.
“It’s like boot camp. If I do come out straight, I’ll be so mentally unstable and depressed it won’t matter.”
Besen is a nationally recognized advocate for gay and lesbian rights. He has been a guest on leading news and political talk shows. He made international news when he photographed “ex-gay” poster boy and Love in Action graduate John Paulk cruising a gay bar in Washington, D.C.
FULL TEXT OF LETTER
July 30, 2005
Love In Action
ATTN: John Smid, Director
Memphis, TN
Dear Mr. Smid:
We as born again Christians believe the Bible to be the inspired Word of God. We Basically agree on the fundamentals of salvation. I’ve been a born again Christian for over 50 years and I’ve noticed Christians reading the same scriptural passages, yet arriving at different personal interpretations regarding moral issues. Some of these issues that have divided Christians within recent years have been slavery, women’s rights, the Charismatic movement and other issues, including divorce.
Within my lifetime, I’ve known members of my own family being asked to leave churches they had attended for years over issues of divorce and re-marriage, yet later welcomed back when a different interpretation of scripture was explained.
Today, the subject of homosexuality is being discussed among Christians. Most Christians find the subject too uncomfortable to make a personal investigation, but rely upon the traditional Christian condemnation of homosexuality. There are more scriptures dealing with divorce than homosexuality, yet, today, Christians give each other the freedom of personal interpretation regarding divorce. I’m sure homosexuality will be added to the long list of disagreements among Christians.
In 1973, when I helped organize the “ex-gay” ministry called Love In Action, I admit I had never heard of a different view of homosexuality or made an effort to research the issue. I held to the traditional Christian condemnation that all homosexuality was sinful.
One day, I read a booklet by Dr. Ralph Blair called, “An Evangelical Look At Homosexuality.” I prayed before reading this booklet and was shocked, yet refreshed, because I had never heard such remarks regarding this subject from another Evangelical Christian.
I wrote Ralph Blair that I would like to discuss his views regarding this matter and his return letter informed me he could meet with me at my home in San Rafael, Calif. The night he arrived I invited several of my friends who were also involved with Love in Action to join us. We studied the scriptures dealing with homosexuality. I had struggled most of my life with this matter and I would continue to try to be “ex-gay” if it were God’s will. Over the past 30 years I have studied both sides of this subject and now know it’s not my sexual orientation that’s wrong or sinful. But one should allow the Holy Spirit to guide his or her life whatever one’s sexual orientation. I challenge other Christians to study the scriptures to show yourself approved unto God and don’t be afraid to challenge the traditional condemnation of homosexuality.
The Church has been wrong in the past regarding other issues and I’m sure there will be others before Jesus returns. I know my views regarding homosexuality and being Christian does not agree with most Christians and I’ve been accused of being “deceived and tricked by the Devil.”
God alone knows my heart and Jesus Christ means too much to me to go against the leading of the Holy Spirit as he guides me as a born again Christian. Someday, each of us will stand alone before God to give an account of our lives and I want Him to be satisfied with me.
I just returned from the 25th annual Conference of Evangelicals Concerned, a group of gay Christians who know that it is possible to be both gay and Christian. In the past 30 years since leaving the “ex-gay” ministry I have seen nothing but shattered lives, depression and even suicide among those connected with the “ex-gay” movement.
At the E.C. conference I met gay Christians who have an even closer relationship with Jesus. The Holy Spirit seemed to hover over the entire conference. The closing communion service seemed as if Jesus Himself was there saying, “Come to me all who labor and are laden with the burden of trying to conform to the impossible conclusions of others, and I will give you rest.”
Again, I challenge Christians to investigate all sides of the issue of being gay and Christian. The Church has been wrong in the past regarding moral issues and I’m sure there will be more before Christ returns.
Love in Christ,
John Evans
Original Member of Love In Action, 1973
Wayne Besen welcomes comments at waynebesen.com.
John has also sent Queer Action Coalition letters of support. He wasn’t aware of the Refuge program or the “youth ministries” until a friend of his told him about this case. He is an incredibly powerful ally for the ex-ex-gay movement and seems to be trying to repair the damage he did as founder of LIA. We can only hope that John Smid can do the same one day.
Throckmorton is now claiming on his website that John Evans was not a founder of Love in Action, and quotes a November 23, 2000 edition of San Jose’s Metroactive Features as his source.
But Evans’ statements in Pennington’s book Ex Gays? There Are None and the description in Kent Philpott’s The Third Sex?? suggest that it was Evans who actually suggested an outreach to gay people struggling with their sexuality.
Why is Throckmorton having such trouble researching the history of these ministries when the ministries themselves wrote documents describing their own history? They’re difficult to find, I’ll grant you. Third Sex was taken off the market under threat of a lawsuit by the 6 “success stories” described in it who all discovered they were still gay.
Perhaps that’s the trouble here. Being a failure in the ex-gay movement not only gets you ostracised. You also suddenly cease to exist.
I wonder who keeps supporting Throckmorton. I realize that he’s merely playing a gig.
BTW, what was the name of that “ex-gay” operation in the UK that dissolved a few years ago because the leader figured that “ex-gay” is a crock? I believe is was named Courage, but I’m probably mistaken.
Raj, he is Jeremy Marks.The group still exists, but was booted from Exodus. Rather than stop and consider the now altered views of Marks, despite his previous status (see 1995) as a FOUNDING member of Exodus Global Alliance, Exodus put their fingers in their ears with “I’m not listening to you la la la la la…”.Our 9 year old niece did the same to her sister the other day.
PBCliberalThe history of The Third Sex is even sleazier than that. After the six not-exgays sued to stop publication of the book (basically, because it was a big fat lie) the book was moved to the U.K. where it continued to be printed and promoted by Exodus for many years. It’s still available today, although I haven’t seen it mentioned by Exodus lately.Some may be interested in Philpott’s more recent tome “Are You Being Duped?”. I guess he would be the person to consult on the subject.
Can someone here give me contact information for Mr. Evans?
Warren, why not contact Wayne Besen, contact information at http://www.waynebesen.com. He’s the contact on the above press release
Better yet, why not read his book. Also, I’d suggest you get a copy of The Third Sex? by Kent Philpott. Also, Ex Gays, there are none by Sylvia Pennington. These are out of print, but they are available used and they describe the early days of the ministry.
As we have been discussing on your blog, LIA’s website now lists Frank Worthen as its sole founder. I don’t expect that LIA would do anything but discount me as a partisan, so I appeal to you, as one of the few health professionals and researchers who have their respect, to urge them bring their website into line with their own published history.
Denying its own history is not healthy. Trying to rewrite it to remove its failures and the names of those who were major players in its past who have come to believe its methods harmful or at least ineffective, is an admission that it cannot play fairly in the world of truth and transparency that it claims are the very bases of what it wants to give its clients (or whatever they’re calling them these days.)
It looks like Zach finally logged onto the internet after his stay at LIA.
He sounds brainwashed. Almost scary stepford style brainwashed. He’s also started using standard anti-gay buzzwords like “agenda”.
Broke my heart to read his newest post.
http://www.myspace.com/specialkid