Wednesday, September 14, 2005

Loving Actions Overthrow Love in Action

If you haven't heard it yet, Love in Action, once considered the Cadilac of "ex-gay" ministries, may very well be forced to shut down this week. B., a dear friend and a very clever lad (who wishes to remain anonymous), has kept on top of the Tennessee state investigation into the LIA program and told me this weekend that there had been movement in the case. Morgan Fox followed up and got the skinny on what is happening. You can read about it here.

Talking yesterday with Morgan about the protests the Queer Action Coalition led this summer, I felt hope and joy. Young people, many of them teens, stood up for what was right and against what was wrong, and as a result of their actions and the actions of bloggers like EJ, the plights of teens and adults in the Love in Action "ex-gay" boot camp became an international news story and LIA became the subject of two state of TN investigations.

At the bottom of each of his regular e-mails, Dr. Arnold Drake, former national president of PFLAG, includes a Margaret Mead quote that always strikes me and comforts me.
"Never doubt that a small group of committed persons can change the world. As a matter of fact, it is the only thing that ever has."

7 Comments:

At 4:09 AM , Blogger Willie Hewes said...

Heh heh heh...

Give-em time, those bureacrats, and they'll come through. Thanks Peterson, this is excellent news.

 
At 7:44 AM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

Very inspiring stuff :-)

I love that Margaret Mead quote as well. I used to include it at the bottom of my correspondence. That and a quote from Audre Lorde: "Your silence will not protect you." I love that one because it can be interpreted so many ways.

So what's up with you? What are you doing this fall? How many trips do you have planned? Are you a boxer or briefs man?

 
At 4:25 PM , Blogger Mark said...

Good news, Peterson.

Mark

 
At 7:59 PM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

UPDATE ON THE INVESTIGATION

A lawyer for Love In Action contacted the State of TN late yesterday claiming to have recieved their letter that day, and thereby requested to still recieve the one week time span in order to apply for licensing, or cease operation. It appears that information will be made available about their decision next friday.

 
At 12:39 PM , Blogger Peterson Toscano said...

Thanks for the update Morgan. I just spoke with John Cloud at Time Magazine. He just completed a long story about LGBTQ teens that includes lots of interviews with teens who have been involved in Exodus. It will be a cover story that should be a cover story.

 
At 3:45 PM , Blogger Jennifer said...

What excellent news to hear right before heading to England for your performances. Hopefully you're staying with some nice people in the Oxfordshire/Birmingham area, maybe even Friends. I am holding you in the light.

 
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