Exodus Affiliate’s Charitable Status Rejected In New Zealand

Wayne Besen August 30, 2010

In New Zealand, an Exodus Global Alliance affiliate has been declined charitable status. The Charities Commission made its wise decision saying that Exodus does not serve any “public benefit” because homosexuality is not considered a mental disorder and did not need curing.

Most organizations that apply to the commission are accepted, so far nearly 25,000, but increasingly they are later dumped with 978 rejected this year so far.

In our view, Exodus should also have its tax-exempt status removed in the United States, because the group is practicing fake therapy that damages its clients. As in New Zealand, Exodus has no public benefit in the United Sates and thus should not be given tax breaks that make it easier for the organization to destroy lives.

About the Author

Wayne Besen is the Founding Executive Director of Truth Wins Out and author of “Anything But Straight: Unmasking the Scandals and Lies Behind the Ex-Gay Myth” (Haworth, 2003). In 2010, Besen was awarded the “Visionary Award” at the Out Music Awards for organizing the American Prayer Hour, an event which shined a spotlight on the role American evangelicals played in the introduction of Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality Bill.

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8 Comments

William August 30, 2010 at 12:19 pm -

Excellent news. Cheers me up no end.
John August 30, 2010 at 3:29 pm -

It is also essentially a political organization, not a religious organization.
Paul Mc August 31, 2010 at 8:18 am -

An important precedent, a refutation of the views of bodies such as Exodus that dress themselves up as ‘professional’ and adopt a serious, academic tone (Narth) with a veneer of the language of professional and academic worlds. i.e. fraud
Neal August 31, 2010 at 8:55 am -

Great to hear. I’ve been to New Zealand 22 times and have worked and traveled there extensively. The Kiwis are about 30 to 50 years ahead of us–very progressive and fair minded, even though their cities look like cities in England from the early 20th century. This news comes as no surprise. New Zealand has a nearly 100 percent adult literacy rate and their people are well informed and think critically and independently. They are not about to be told by some goofballs from overseas that being gay is an illness.
Truth Wins Out - Late Friday Random Ten [Magnetic Fields edition] September 4, 2010 at 3:17 pm -

[...] Tea Party is basically funded by two brothers, and one other guy. Exodus got kicked to the curb in New Zealand. Bryan Fischer’s Crusade Against the Anus continued apace. Focus on the Family [...]
Truth Wins Out - Help Stop Exodus’ Abuse of Charitable Tax Status September 7, 2010 at 9:24 pm -

[...] Exodus Global Alliance lost its application for charitable tax-exempt status in New Zealand, the blog Slap Upside the Head noticed that Exodus also enjoys fraudulent misuse of this status in [...]
Ian Sherwood September 9, 2010 at 4:50 pm -

I have sent in a letter into Canada Revenue Agency to have it removed.
Craig Young December 3, 2010 at 1:40 am -

I understand Canadian LGBT groups have now followed suit and appealed to their regulatory equivalent. Good luck, folks!