Peterson Toscano's A Musing

Some "Ex-Gay" News

These stories seem to come in waves and it is likely we will hear more about "ex-gay" ministries in the gay press the next few weeks.

Love in Action News

Most notable is a press release posted by Mike Airhart at Ex-Gay Watch states that Teenage Participant in Exgay Love In Action/Refuge to Speak Out According to the press release

The teen will tell his story, and answer questions about his traumatic stay at Love In Action, including his eventual escape from Memphis, and the legal battle that awarded him with the promise of never being forced into the program again....

...The teenager will be in Memphis on Friday, February 3 at 3 p.m. in front of the Federal Courthouse, as Love In Action awaits a judge's decision in a “Motion to Dismiss/Preliminary Injunction” hearing - Love In Action International, Inc. v. Phil Bredesen, et al.

Soul Survivors' Web Launch

In Toronto, Canada, former "ex-gay" survivor Darin Squire launched a website for his new organization Soul Survivors which serves as a support group for "anyone who has been burt in any way in the namoe of a religion, spiritual belief or doctrine."

The site offers links/resources as well as survior stories. They also will screen Fish Can't Fly on March 17, 2006.

Lavender Languages

Also, at the Lavender Languages conference next weekend at American University in Washington, DC, Lori Heintzleman from the University of Colorado in Boulder will present a paper, Ex-Why Me’s: How Ex-gays get to be Oppressed.

In addition to presenting Queer 101 on Friday, I will also speak a little about the "ex-gay" movement during a Sunday lunch panel discussion entitled GLBTQ Discourse, Text, and Actions: What Have We Done to Ourselves?. The Washington Blade just published a piece about the conference. (Fish Can't Fly filmmaker, Tom Murray e-mailed to say that he is going to attend part of the conference.)

posted by Peterson Toscano @ 9:19 AM