Truth Wins Out’s research team revealed today that an alleged split in July 2009 between Exodus International and Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays (PFOX) may only be cosmetic. While PFOX is no longer listed as an Exodus referral agency on Exodus’ website, the groups appear heavily enmeshed.

TWO has found that nearly one-quarter (22-percent) of PFOX chapters are actually Exodus member ministries. The cross-over ministries include:

Wisconsin’s Reclamation Ministries, South Carolina’s New Song Ministries, Oklahoma’s First Stone Ministries, New Mexico’s LifeMor ministries, Missouri and Illinois’ Pure Heart Ministries, and Florida’s Family Ties Ministries.

“Despite their public divorce, Exodus and PFOX appear to be very much in bed together,” said Wayne Besen, Executive Director of Truth Wins Out.”These groups should be honest and admit the true extent of their working relationship.”

There is one other possibility. PFOX may be falsely listing Exodus ministries as PFOX chapters in order to mislead the public into thinking the organization is larger than it actually is.

In July 2009, Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays (PFOX) broke away from Exodus International – or perhaps it was the other way around. The details remain murky. They were supposedly split over strategy, with PFOX couching its bizarre arguments in civil rights language.

For example, they want “ex-gays” to be included in laws that protect people from discrimination based on sexual orientation. Exodus, simply wants gay people not to be covered by such laws. There was also Exodus’ concern over PFOX’s judgment in placing quack “therapist” Richard Cohen on television.

African violence against the LGBT community is partially the result of American anti-gay and “ex-gay” activists stirring the pot in countries such as Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda. We all know that Exodus International’s board member Don Schmierer was at a Spring 2009 conference in Kampala that helped lead to the notorious Anti-Homosexuality Bill.

However, Truth Wins Out’s research team revealed today that another American “ex-gay” organization, Homosexuals Anonymous, had a conference in Kenya in November 2009. It was led by Doug McIntyre, HA’s Director. According to the organization’s October 2009 newsletter:

On November 3, 2009 the Director of HAFS will begin a visit to the beautiful country of Kenya.  We have been invited to begin a new work for the HA program and educate the members of a two thousand member church so that they can begin to reclaim the lost youth of the area. An invitation has been extended to teach in  15 local schools and participate in a leadership training program for nearly 200 pastors and church leaders.

While it remains unclear what happened at this particular HA event, a disturbing patten has seemingly developed. Ex-gay activists appear in African countries right before spasms of violence and persecution erupt.

Is this a mere coincidence or is the groundwork being laid for attacks on LGBT people? Are American ex-gays being used as a means to justify terror tactics and horror against innocent people? Do American “ex-gay” activists allow dangerous regimes and frothing mobs to rationalize violence by claiming, “these people deserve what they get because they can change?”

Truth Wins Out left a message this morning for HA to obtain more information on the group’s role in Kenya. They have yet to return our call.

The BBC reports that Kenyan police have released five people arrested for planning a “gay wedding” north of Mombasa, saying there was no evidence to prosecute them. But police spokesman Martha Mutegi told the BBC the men had been advised to leave the area for their own safety and to avoid angering the local community.

There are, however, those who dispute the BBC report. They claim that a gay wedding never actually took place and that the event was a fabrication in order for anti-forces to incite mob violence.

Homosexuality is illegal in Kenya and punishable by up to 14 years in jail. A BBC reporter in Mombasa says police began a crackdown on the gay community last week following anti-gay protests.

Perhaps it is time that American ex-gay activists stay home and stop creating mischief overseas. (Here is a glimpse of the type of false and destructive message that was brought to Kenya)

By Patrick McAlvey

Prior to August 2009 I had probably told the story of my experience with ex-gay therapy to a total of 50 people.  When it came up with friends I would share some of the details of how Mike Jones, an ex-gay “therapist” in Lansing, MI had robbed me of years of self-esteem and confidence with his lies and predatory practices.  It wasn’t something I was overly eager to bring up – it’s not necessarily polite, feel-good conversation and I felt more than a bit embarrassed I had fallen for the ex-gay lies in the first place.

Since going public with my story last summer with the help of Truth Wins Out, things have changed.  Thousands of people have now seen the video in which I tell my story and the man who performed my “therapy” has seen his Board of Directors dissolve and Exodus International remove their affiliation.

In early February I had the opportunity to travel to Des Moines, Iowa and share my story with over 100 strangers – including a State Senator sitting front-and-center.  A group called First Friday Breakfast Club invited me to Des Moines to speak at their monthly meeting.  As part of the trip I also spoke with 25 students at Iowa State University at an event hosted by the LGBTA Alliance and the Office of LGBT Student Services.

I was overwhelmed with the support and kindness with which I was received at both events.  But I was also shocked at the number of people who were unaware the ex-gay industry is still alive and actively victimizing the most vulnerable members of the LGBT community.  Since sharing my story publicly it has become evident that many people, including many LGBT folks, aren’t aware of the activity and dangers of the ex-gay industry.

It is more important than ever the LGBT community at-large understands the real threat the ex-gay industry represents to all of us.  The US ex-gay industry’s connection to the Ugandan “Kill the Gays Bill” is a stark example of the danger these groups represent.  They use the “fact” that sexual orientation can and should be changed to deny basic rights and to actively discriminate against LGBT folks.

In addition the ex-gay industry spreads false and defamatory lies that all gay men are addicted to drugs, alcohol and random sex and that it is impossible to be gay and happy and/or gay and religious.  This is what I was led to believe and these false characterizations certainly perpetuate homophobia and discrimination experienced by gay men in particular.

And most obviously, the ex-gay industry continues to rob vulnerable and scared people of their dignity, self-esteem and identity.  While in Iowa I got to meet several other survivors of ex-gay therapy and was touched to hear their stories.  It was inspiring to meet other survivors who are also finding healing and strength by sharing their experiences and fighting to prevent others from similar abuses.  I’m glad to be healing and fighting beside them.

Dear Friends:

If you are like me, you believe that fighting religious extremism and anti-gay bigotry is vitally important to achieving equality.

I proudly support Truth Wins Out (TWO) because this no-nonsense organization consistently shines a bright spotlight on our foes, debunks their harmful lies, punctures their dangerous myths and ensures that Americans know the truth about the lives of LGBT people.

This is why I am personally offering Truth Wins Out a matching $5,000 grant. This means, for every tax-deductible dollar you donate, I will match it up to $5 K. Please take advantage of this wonderful opportunity to support a non-profit organization that I strongly endorse and deeply believe in.

I was inspired to invest in Truth Wins Out after the group’s Executive Director, Wayne Besen, created the American Prayer Hour (APH). This amazing effort was an alternative to the National Prayer Breakfast, which is hosted by The Family, a secretive fundamentalist group linked to Uganda’s notorious Anti-Homosexuality Bill.

Exposing The Family, and their National Prayer Breakfast, matters to each and every one of us. The Family is a virulently anti-gay group made up of powerful and influential lawmakers that harm our families. A snapshot of the membership includes: Sens. Sam Brownback (R-Kan.), James Inhofe (R-Okla.), Tom Coburn (R-Okla), Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Mike Enzi (R-WY), Mark Pryor (R-AK), Bill Nelson (D-Fla.), John Ensign (R-NV). Key House members include: Reps. Zach Wamp (R-Tenn) Frank Wolf (R-Va.), Mike McIntyre (D-N.C.), Heath Shuler (D-NC), Bart Stupak (D-MI) and Joe Pitts (R-PA).

Working diligently, Besen helped bring together more than a dozen organizations to fight back. This coalition created APH events in more than twenty cities, on the same day (Feb. 4) as The National Prayer Breakfast. The result of this extraordinary effort was an avalanche of international attention to The Family’s role in Uganda’s “Kill the Gays” bill. This included stories in The New York Times and MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow Show. President Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton both condemned the bill at The National Prayer Breakfast!

As a businessman, I am thoroughly impressed with how much Truth Wins Out has accomplished with its modest resources. Just imagine how much TWO could achieve with the funding it deserves.

This is an organization that is innovative in its advocacy and consistently presents fresh ideas. More importantly, they follow through — turning these cutting-edge ideas into reality.  When you invest in Truth Wins Out, you get a big vision, but also tangible results.

I hope you will join me in offering your steadfast support for Truth Wins Out. Please make a tax-deductible contribution today.

Sincerely,

Mitchell Gold
Co-Founder and CEO, Mitchell Gold + Bob Williams

Truth Wins Out

33 West 19th Street, 4th Floor
New York, NY 10011

Wall Street Felon known as ‘Abba Dabba Do’ Reemerges As ‘Cure’ Gays Guru

A Truth Wins Out (TWO) and South Florida Gay News (SFGN) investigation revealed today that a Wall Street criminal mastermind who was convicted in 1987 of “fraud of spectacular scope” has secretly reinvented himself as a moral leader who “cures” gay and lesbian people. Known as “Abba Dabba Do” in the financial world, Arthur Abba Goldberg was sentenced to 18 months in jail for bilking poor communities with complicated bond schemes and served six months in prison.

“We have long considered Arthur Goldberg a con-artist, but our investigation shows he is also an ex-con,” said Wayne Besen, Executive Director of Truth Wins Out. ”His diabolical past mirrors his dishonest present-day work with the ex-gay industry. Whether it was shady deals on Wall Street or shading the truth on gay issues, Goldberg is someone who lacks credibility and can’t be trusted.”

“Mr. Goldberg’s silence today about his illegal conduct yesterday is a clear indicator that 18 months in prison 20 years ago has not inhibited his willingness to deceive others in order to advance himself today,” said SFGN Publisher Norm Kent. “You free yourself by admitting your wrongs, not erasing them. Goldberg is hardly in a position to be advocating how gay men and women should be authentic with their own lives when he is a fraud with his.”

Upon completing his parole, Goldberg dropped his conspicuous middle name, Abba, and co-founded Jews Offering New Alternatives to Homosexuality (JONAH) in 1999. He is currently the president of Positive Alternatives to Homosexuality (PATH), an umbrella group for “ex-gay” referrals and the Executive Secretary of the notorious National Association for Research and Therapy of Homosexuality (NARTH). He is also the President of Congregation Mount Sinai, a temple in Jersey City and a Principal for the International Center for Gender Affirming Processes (CGAP). Goldberg is a key ex-gay industry insider and viewed as an architect of its strategy and message machine, says TWO and SFGN.

In 1989, Goldberg plead guilty in federal court in California and Illinois to three counts of wire and mail fraud, and conspiracy to defraud the United States. The accusations he admitted to include his participation as the engineer of a phony bond and investment scheme, which netted his Wall Street investment firm nearly $11 million in illegal fees.

The U.S. Attorney who handled the case at the time, K. William O’Connor, told the court at his sentencing that Goldberg’s crime was “a fraud of spectacular scope.”

The SEC banned Goldberg and his firm from ever selling securities again. In addition to his prison term, Goldberg was disbarred in both New Jersey and Connecticut. Despite that, he lists himself as a Doctor of Laws today on the website of NARTH.

Additionally, Goldberg is the author of “Light in the Closet” (Red Heifer Press), which promises to “explode the gay gene mystique, offering hope, compassion, direction and vitally needed information to gay strugglers, their families, friends, and surrounding community.” JONAH also plays a key role in supplying clients for Journey into Manhood Weekend, an ex-gay boot camp, where participants are taken deep into the woods to supposedly discover their masculinity. Goldberg is not gay, but has an openly gay son who reportedly lives in the New York City area.

“We conducted an investigation into Goldberg’s dark history to shine a little light in his own closet; to tell the world the truth about who Goldberg really is, and how he has never owned up to his sordid and tawdry past.”

Although Goldberg (in The Record 1989) often claims that he has been deeply involved in civil rights issues, his case revealed a deep insensitivity to minorities. An October 1, 1989 story in the Philadelphia Inquirer reveals that Goldberg jokingly described a bond issue the firm had underwritten in Guam as “selling bonds to the cannibals.”  He also sought out poor minority communities, such as East Saint Louis, as targets for his conspiracies.

“Simply by concealing his middle name and omitting his dirty deeds from his biography, Goldberg was able to mask his past as a mini-Madoff,” said Besen. “The real Arthur Abba Goldberg is an unsavory character who lacks the credibility and integrity to portray himself as an expert on gay and lesbian issues.”

In an interview, one of Goldberg’s former clients suggests that his past moral deficiencies are reflected in his current work. He says that Goldberg is manipulative and exploits those who are despondent and desperate to conform, so they can fit in and be accepted by their friends and family members.

“Arthur Goldberg takes advantage of the vulnerability of religious Jews by promising them the opportunity to heal from their homosexuality and be able to live a life within the community they grew up in and fulfill the expectations they had of themselves and of their families,” the former client told TWO and SFGN. “When speaking to Arthur Goldberg, he uses false statistics of changing hundreds and thousands of men and women and other such numbers as an 80% success rate, which is misleading and false.”

Based in Fort Lauderdale, South Florida Gay News is the premier information source for the region’s gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community.

(Research team: Wayne Besen, Norm Kent, Michael Hamar,
 Jerry Wong) 
 (Read More)

A new study found that gay men may be predisposed to nurture their nieces and nephews as a way of helping to ensure their own genes get passed down to the next generation.

But scientists have been puzzled about how these genes are perpetuated, since gay males are less likely to reproduce than straight males. Basically, why haven’t gay people gone extinct?

One idea is called the “kin selection hypothesis.” Perhaps gay men are biologically predisposed to help raise the offspring of their siblings and other relatives.

“Maybe what’s happening is they’re helping their kin reproduce more by just being altruistic towards kin,” said evolutionary psychologist Paul Vasey of the University of Lethbridge in Canada. “Kin therefore pass on more of the genes which they would share with their homosexual relatives.” (Read More)

As if we had not suffered enough inclement weather, citizens of Lynchburg, Virginia and South Bend, Indiana will get “ex-gay” snow jobs this weekend.

In Lynchburg there will be a conference on Friday, “the Consequences of Same-Gender Attraction.” The hate-fest will feature Exodus International’s President Alan Chambers, (pictured) who is using this opportunity as a warm-up act for an April trip to Belfast, Ireland.

Hasn’t Chambers’ irresponsible outfit caused enough problems already in places like Uganda? How this man wakes up in the morning and can look in the mirror without feeling deep shame, (not counting the shame he internalizes over his sexuality) I’ll never know. It takes a special type of human being, one with out a conscience, to consistently lie to himself and others.

I’d like to remind the good folks of Lynchburg, that last time Liberty University tried the ex-gay thing, it didn’t go so well. Their “pray away the gay” poster boy was a man named Michael Johnston. He now lives in a sex addiction facility in Kentucky, following a slew of bareback orgies with men. Here’s the mini-movie:

On Saturday, the Liberty University Law Review will host a legal symposium entitled “Homosexual Rights and First Amendment Freedoms: Can They Truly Coexist?”

Of course they can co-exist, unless your religious beliefs and practice are defined exclusively by violent anti-gay animus. If you believe the First Amendment allows you to harass, intimidate, torment and physically abuse LGBT people then there is a conflict. Other than that, there’s no problem.

So, why all the fear-mongering?

It seems quite obvious that in states with laws that protect citizens based on sexual orientation, people are still free to pray any way they wish. But, reality has never been the Religious Right’s cup of tea.

If you are fortunate enough to be around at 1:30pm on Saturday, you will catch a panel featuring arch-homophobes Robert Knight (pictured) and Elaine Donnelly, “Hire Them and Don’t Fire Them: How Homosexual Rights and Privileges Have Eroded Employers’ Rights and Destroyed Religious Freedom.” (Read More)

Harold Ford Jr., a former Tennessee congressman and MSNBC commentator rejected the “ex-gay” myth in Maureen Dowd’s New York Times column:

On his embrace of gay marriage, he observed: “There were pastors in my Tennessee district who said you can minister to someone and change their sexual orientation. I just never accepted that. I’m a heterosexual. I don’t know what anyone can say to me to make me sexually be with a man.”

Ford is considering a primary challenge against Sen. Kristen Gillibrand (D-NY). While representing Tennessee, Ford had clashed with the LGBT community on several occasions. According to the Gay City News:

While his two votes backing an amendment to the US Constitution that defined marriage as “only the union of a man and a woman” and effectively barred any state or federal constitutional claim to marriage for same-sex couples might be enough to cost him gay support, earlier votes cast by Harold Ford in the House may further alienate gay and lesbian voters.

Since moving to New York, Ford has changed his stance on marriage equality. Some would call this a cynical move (same for Gillibrand who grew more liberal when she left her conservative New York district to become a U.S. Senator). Still, it was nice to hear Ford explicitly reject the false premise that people can pray away the gay.

Truth Wins Out praised President Barack Obama today for his bold speech at the National Prayer Breakfast condemning Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality Bill. The bill would imprison, hunt down and even execute gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people. The bill also threatens imprisonment for those who do not turn in their LGBT friends and family members to authorities.

In his speech, Obama said:

“We may disagree about gay marriage, but surely we can agree that it is unconscionable to target gays and lesbians for who they are — whether it’s here in the United States or, as Hillary mentioned, more extremely in odious laws that are being proposed most recently in Uganda.”

The President’s words were particularly powerful in the setting of this breakfast, which is hosted by the fundamentalist group known as The Family. This secretive organization is directly linked to the “Kill the Gays” bill in Uganda. The bill’s sponsor, David Bahati, is a key member of The Family.

“We applaud President Obama for having the courage to confront those responsible for the heinous anti-gay bill in Uganda,” said Wayne Besen, Executive Director of Truth Wins Out. “We hope that the President’s laudable stand makes it clear to Family members in the United States and Uganda that the world is watching. Religion can no longer be used to justify bigotry, intolerance and persecution anywhere on the face of the earth.”

Besen is the coordinator of The American Prayer Hour, which is an alternative to the National Prayer Breakfast. Fifteen national organization’s launched the Prayer Hour this week to shine a spotlight on The Family’s nefarious role in Uganda on the week of their annual National Prayer Breakfast.  There are American Prayer Hour events in 20 cities across the nation.

“The easy and safe course would have been for President Obama to remain silent,” said TWO’s Besen. “Instead, he walked into The Family’s house and held them accountable for their actions in Uganda. It was a huge victory for human rights and the president’s actions were courageous and honorable.”

Truth Wins Out is a New York City-based non-profit organization that fights religious extremism and the ex-gay industry.

By Laurie Goodstein

For more than 50 years, the National Prayer Breakfast has served as a prime networking event in Washington, bringing together the president, members of Congress, foreign diplomats and thousands of religious, business and military leaders for scrambled eggs and supplication.

Usually, the annual event passes with little notice. But this year, an ethics group in Washington has asked President Obama and Congressional leaders to stay away from the breakfast, on Thursday. Religious and gay rights groups have organized competing prayer events in 17 cities, and protesters are picketing in Washington and Boston.

The objections are focused on the sponsor of the breakfast, a secretive evangelical Christian network called The Fellowship, also known as The Family, and accusations that it has ties to legislation in Uganda that calls for the imprisonment and execution of homosexuals.

The Family has always stayed intentionally in the background, according to those who have written about it. In the last year, however, it was identified as the sponsor of a residence on Capitol Hill that has served as a dormitory and meeting place for a cluster of politicians who ran into ethics problems, including Senator John Ensign, Republican of Nevada, and Gov. Mark Sanford, Republican of South Carolina, both of whom have admitted to adultery.

More recently, it became public that the Family also has close ties to the Ugandan politician who has sponsored the proposed anti-gay legislation.

Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, a government watchdog group, sent a letter this week to the president and Congressional leaders urging them to skip the prayer breakfast. They have also called on C-Span not to televise it this year.

Melanie Sloan, executive director of the ethics group, said: “It is a combination of the intolerance of the organization’s views, and the secrecy surrounding the organization. It doesn’t mean they shouldn’t be allowed to hold their breakfast; of course they should. The question is, Should American officials be lending legitimacy to it, giving their imprimatur by showing up.”

The Family has no identifiable Internet site, no office number and no official spokesman. J. Robert Hunter, a member who has spoken publicly about the group, said that it was unfair to blame the Family for the anti-gay legislation introduced by David Bahati. Mr. Hunter said that about 30 Family members, all Americans, active in Africa recently conveyed their dismay about the legislation to Ugandan politicians, including Mr. Bahati.

Mr. Hunter said the recent controversies had prompted a debate within the group about its lack of transparency. “I and quite a few others are saying we should be much more open,” he said.

Jeff Sharlet, author of “The Family: The Secret Fundamentalism at the Heart of American Power” (Harper Perennial, 2009) said in a telephone interview, “Here’s an organization that, in the past, has not acknowledged its own existence.”

“It’s not a sinister plot. This is their theological stance,” said Mr. Sharlet, who infiltrated the group to do research for his book. “Their leader, Doug Coe, says that the more invisible you can make your organization, the more influence it will have.”

A White House official said that Mr. Obama, like each president since Dwight D. Eisenhower, planned to attend the breakfast. Michelle Obama, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, and other cabinet members will also attend. The president will deliver remarks about “the importance of an openness to compromise,” the official said.

The official also said that the president and the State Department had spoken out strongly against the legislation in Uganda.

The breakfast, which usually features a prominent keynote speaker (past ones have included Bono, Mother Teresa and former Prime Minister Tony Blair of Britain), is only the most visible in several days of gatherings where the Family’s networking takes place in smaller groups. There are separate meetings for African politicians, military leaders, business people and media professionals, to name a few.

Many states also have prayer breakfasts this week, which may appear to be government-sponsored but are also mostly affiliated with the Family.

Liberal members of the clergy and gay rights leaders organized the alternative events in haste this year, calling theirs the American Prayer Hour. The will convene at places like Calvary Baptist Church in Washington; Glendale City Seventh-day Adventist Church in California; the bishop’s chapel of the Episcopal Diocese of Western New York, in Rochester; and Covenant Community Church in Center Point, Ala.

Wayne Besen, executive director of Truth Wins Out, a gay rights group, said he initiated the prayer-hour idea because many religious Americans who attend the breakfasts have no idea about the connection to the Family and the anti-gay legislation.

“They have symbolically taken the mantle of religion,” Mr. Besen said, “and I think it’s time to take it back. And the American Prayer Hour is a step in that direction.”