Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays (PFOX) is teaming up with various anti-gay legal groups to intimidate GLBT campus organizations in high schools, colleges and universities. They are threatening to sue if these organizations don’t distribute the bizarre theories of Richard Cohen.

It is hard to believe, but Cohen is the former President of PFOX. They still promote his books and training sessions. And, if you ask for a speaker – they will likely send you Mr. Cohen – who was expelled for life from the American Counseling Association. If PFOX tries to get into your school, simply show administrators this clip of Cohen from the documentary, “Chasing the Devil.” It is clear, based on this clip – and his record – that disseminating PFOX’s material may put students at risk. Any responsible school that protects its students will not allow PFOX near its campus.

Addendum: PFOX last summer was accused by two different scientific research teams of distorting their research.

The Magic Theatre has offered to host First Sprout Theatre for a week-long workshop in mid-August that will culminate in three shows over the weekend of August 15-17, 2008 at the Magic Theatre Northside Space, Fort Mason Center, Building D.

August 15th – 8pm
August 16th – 8pm
August 17th – 2:30 pm

Tickets are ten dollars, cash only at the door of the Magic Theatre’s Northside Space. Every show is two for the price of one. Please email: firstsprout@gmail.com, to reserve seats for any of the three performances.

For more information please visit: www.magictheatre.org
Or any email questions to firstsprout@gmail.com or kevloha@yahoo.com

(Alan Chambers, Left)

In typical fashion, Exodus and Focus on the Family are fooling future victims with false advertising, pie-in-the-sky promises and semantic games. In hyping the Asheville event, Focus on the Family wrote an article that claimed the following:

** For 33 years, Exodus has been spreading a message of hope and freedom to a world impacted by homosexuality.

I would agree that Exodus is spreading a message of hope. Indeed, the entire organization is all about “messages” – even if their slick words conflict with the dark reality experienced by most of the people who will attend the group’ conference. The sad truth is, anyone can offer “messages” – but are these messages backed by substance or simply empty promises that will cause needless pain and suffering? The statistic-free Exodus refuses to show whether its rhetoric matches reality – because it doesn’t. In my view, the Exodus message machine borders on consumer fraud.

** Exodus President Alan Chambers said, “There is a biblical alternative, that we can find freedom from homosexuality.”

Once again, Chambers is word-smithing to make it appear as if Exodus is offering a magical cure. Chambers pathologically denies this, but wide-eyed, new conference-goers will surely see Chambers’ words as offering a new life as a heterosexual. After all, “freedom from homosexuality” implies that the alternative is heterosexuality. Anyone who says otherwise is flat out lying and exploiting people.

** Jeff Johnston, gender issues analyst at Focus on the Family, attended his first Exodus conference more than 20 years ago. It helped him gain victory over homosexuality, and he said he wants that message of freedom to spread. “You have some churches saying, “Homosexuality is OK; that’ how God made people,’ ” he said. “Exodus is proclaiming (the) truth and helping people find freedom.”

Johnston is also guilty of manipulating words to make conference attendees believe they will become straight – which they won’t. He is saying that people will “find freedom” and the text supports this by saying that Exodus helped him “gain victory.” For the vast majority of people paying their hard earned money in Asheville, victory means an opposite-sex spouse that they are actually attracted to. It means that when they are at the gym and see an attractive person of the same-sex, they will feel nothing sexual.

Exodus cannot promise such a transformation, and is thus immorally preying on people by offering promises they can’t deliver. Why doesn’t Exodus simply tell people the truth. Here are few honest slogans:

1) “Marry someone you aren’t attracted to and learn to have sex with them!” (Alan Chambers, Instructor)

2) “Improve your acting skills by playing straight! Free Haircuts!” (Melissa Fryrear, Instructor)

3) “Learn the Joys of Lifetime loneliness and Celibacy!” (Randy Thomas, Instructor)

Until Exodus is honest with people, they are nothing more than immoral sleaze merchants who peddle snake oil to the highest bidder. They ought to be ashamed. And, yes, Alan, Jeff and Randy – I’m talking directly to you.

(Cry Baby: Throckmorton, Whines To Right Wing Rags)

Still fuming from the American Psychiatric Association’s cancellation of the “Quack Panel” he was scheduled to appear on this week, notorious “ex-gay” therapist Warren Throckmorton continued on his vindictive warpath. All week, he has done the rounds, whining and playing victim, with fawning right wing rags – apparently the only media that will listen to his bizarre ideas.

Throckmorton’s latest stop on his “Sour Grapes Media Tour” is an interview with World Net Daily – a publication best known for publishing a kooky article that claims that eating soy products might turn children gay.

“‘Weird Nut Daily’ and Warren Throckmorton are two peas in a pod, so it was entirely expected that they would join hands to do a hatchet job on TruthWinsOut.org,” said Besen. “It is time for Throckmorton to preserve his remaining dignity by ending his ‘Sour Grapes Tour’ and moving on. The Quack panel did not happen because the more people learned about Throckmorton, the more uneasy they became with giving him a platform that might appear to legitimize his outlandish and archaic views on sexuality” (Read More)