Ex-Gay Group Seeking Influence in Schools
Wednesday July 14, 2004
Desperate to turn the tide against public school programs that teach tolerance for gays, the Christian Right seems to be adopting a new strategy. Instead of simply opposing such programs, they are seeking to have ex-gay material about gays who have been “cured” included as well. Educators don’t seem very interested.
Sarah Junk writes for CNSNews
"We want everyone who knows that gays exist to know that ex-gays exist," said Jeralee Smith, chairwoman of the Ex-Gay Educators Caucus. "There should not be just one side put forth with public dollars."
"It's harder to be an ex-gay than to be gay," said Chad Thompson, president of Inqueery, an organization dedicated to addressing the perspective of former homosexuals in high schools and colleges.
For the past two years, former homosexuals have asked the NEA to add "ex-gays" to any discussion of sexual orientation already included in resolutions and policies and to promote non-discrimination policies that support "ex-gays." However, the NEA's representative assembly refused to consider the matter, declaring it too offensive for discussion.
"We believe people need to be who they are and to change who you are is to destroy yourself as a person," said Thomas Carroll, a member of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Caucus. Carroll likened the "ex-gay" perspective to creationism and said it is "ridiculous" to discuss "ex-gay" issues as part of classroom discussions about sexual orientation.
Christian Right advocates will go to any length to discredit the idea that there might be something natural and normal about homosexuality. For them, the mere presence of homosexuals turns their moral and social world topsy-turvy, challenging a variety of deeply-held beliefs on issues like gender roles and sexuality. The time and money invested against homosexuality in society is not done merely because they are bothered by the idea of gay sex; it is, rather, because they fear that the normalization of gays and gay couples will put a stake through the heart of their dream to frame America as a Christian land.
To that, I say: “Let’s keep hammering away.”
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Comments
It’s predictable that you would say that it’s just the Christian right. There are Hindus, Buddhists, Muslims, Jews & atheists who believe that homo & lesbian sexual activities are medically bad.
Homosexual groups push their sexual activity like a religion, only tolerating views which support their sexual activities but censor those who believe that the behavior must be changed to straight or celibate, even if orientation doesn’t change.
We invite ex-smokers to our schools. We must also allow recovered homosexuals-people who changed to striaght or celibate sexual activities.
1 thing I must incidentally mention, they must make it a crime to perform sex change operations. Sex change operations & the hormone injections break down the body & incr. risk for certain cancers.
If some1 suffers from G.I.D., they must be given counseling only to overcome it, not mutilations. We must fight against Drs. who perform sex change surgeries. They must also abolish plastic surgeries unless 1 has been a cancer, burn or accident victim.
Are any of them trying to get false information from so-called “ex-gay” groups introduced into schools? No. Therefore, they aren’t relevant.
Can you support this claim?
Homosexuality isn’t like smoking, so this is an irrelevant and false comparison to make. Homosexuality isn’t something a person “recovers” from.
Why?
Why?
Hi Austin:
To start with, I’m NOT A CHRISTIAN. There are also Confucianists, Taoists & Shintoists who are against H&L activities. China, N.Korea & India have laws against homo & lesbian activities & in China & N.Korea, religions are suppressed-atheism is the rule. Although Hinduism is neutral on homosexuality, India as of 2004 has laws against H&L activities, so it’s not just the Catholics.
I believe in the Just Crusade. Abolishing sex change surgeries is a just crusade & is synonymous to abolishing Aztec & Inca human sacrifices. The hormone injections from sex change surgeries incr. risk of breast cancer. It’s wasting science. I’m not a Libertarian. If some1 has GID, give them counseling only to overcome it & not mutilating surgeries.
What’s contradictory about what you write is that you support free will for those who engage in H&L activities, yet your hostile to free will when it comes to those who want to help them change to straight or celibate.
Now people will do as they see fit. If 2 willing & knowing adults engage in H&L activities then that’s what they’ll do. However, the Just Crusade is to treat H&L activities like smoking & that society must help them quit their sex lives-change it to straight or celibate-even if orientation doesn’t change.
Homosexual groups do push H&L activities like a religion because they censor those with differing views. In 1 case in Chicago, an elderly woman of 51 named Mary Stachowicz was murdered by a homosexual man after she did the right thing by advising him to have sex with women instead of men. The media gave little coverage to her murder.
I didn’t say you were.
You didn’t address what I said: unless other religious groups are involved with getting so-called “ex-gay” material into schools, it’s not relevant to bring them up in this piece.
Irrelevant and a false contrast, since atheism isn’t the absence of religion.
So? The fact that you think sex change operations are like Aztec human sacrifices isn’t a good reason to make them a crime. I don’t think that the analogy even a good one, since a sex change operation doesn’t have as its goal the death of a human being, but the analogy is irrelevant anyway.
Free will is an irrelevant red herring. I don’t argue against the existence of so-called “ex-gay’ groups, I’m arguing against presenting unscientific factually incorrect information in schools.
Please support this claim and analogy.
Why?
Please support this claim. Please also note that you are condemning religion with this and, therefore, also the religious ex-gay groups.
what on earth is wrong with you people? you can’t pray away homosexuality any more than you can pray away red hair and green eyes. this attitude is very demoralizing to our young people who look to “us” for guidance!!!!!!! we need to reach out to these youngsters who are “different”, and let them know that they are LOVED for the wonderful human beings that they are!!! GET IT? I am a 68 year old grandmother, and i am angered every day for the horrible way we treat our fellow human beings in the name of religion!!!!!!!ust as loved
I have only recently begun to understand my homosexuality. I have never murdered anyone, lured children to do any sexual act in public or private, nor committed any civil wrong except to go to movies that show only adult content. Of course, I have slept with both men and women. I love men. Why does this make me an aberration? I don’t believe in (a) God(s) that would condemn me to eternal perdition for expressing my love with my body to another. Other practices of the homosexual lifestyle must be brought into conformity with the majority culture and society. I am for some kind of rule of law. Thank you.
There is a huge problem that religious bigots have to come to terms with; either homosexuality is learnt, which is what they believe, or it is natural.
Overwhelming evidence suggests the latter, and is shown to not only be a natural biological state, but a genetic one.
This means that “the behavior must be changed to straight” is possible but goes against nature and their God as he created them as they are.
That is why they can not accept gays and lesbians as being natural; to do so would make their God flawed (in their eyes) and they would have to reinvent Him yet again.