I understand why some gay youths might be too afraid to identify themselves and stand by their values. I’m already disappointed that “Zach” has no last name. Without such accountability, there is no assurance of honesty or integrity. If someone is going to make an allegation against others, then ideally they should be willing to associate themselves publicly with their accusation. The accused gay people have little effective defense because they don’t know who their accuser is. Certain exgay and religious-right activists use this same unfair tactic of launching accusations against gay people and groups from behind a veil of anonymity. You are asking us to grant anonymity to potential accusers against exgay ministries. You don’t explain how censorship of a pseudonym or blog link protects anyone.ģ. You seem to be asking us to censor the mere first name or pseudonym of someone whose blog remains public and widely referenced. However, you seem to be asking for a number of dangerous things:ġ. I am always willing to act to protect gay people from harassment. It is a crusading kind of mentality and addiction that many Christian organizations just have not been able to get into recovery from. They lost their culture and were forced to become Christians, etc. Thank heaven Little Tree had grandparents who shielded him from the toxic effects of the world around him and taught him to love himself, his culture, spirituality and to have a love and respect for nature but his other Cherokee friends were not so fortunate as he was.
If you want to see an awesome movie about what Regan DuCasse wrote about rent or buy the video/DVD called The Education of Little Tree. Authentic Christians take Christ at His word in loving people unconditionally and always respecting and upholding a person’s agency. True Christians do not do these kinds of things. These so-called “Christians” (the kind of Christians that FOTF and Dobson are about) just keep repeating the same mistakes they have made over the centuries. I also am very glad Regan DuCasse wrote a note regarding the Native American children back in the early 20th century who were forced to learn the white man’s way and not allowed to speak their native language or have anything to do with their native culture. Don’t they understand that freedom of thought and choice is one of the greatest gifts of God? Do they know that they offend God horribly when they do this? It is an outright mockery before God to rob the agency of any of God’s children and that is what Love in Action is doing and it is clearly un-Christian and not at all what I know Christ’s gospel is all about. It is so sickening to see the extremist Evangelical zealots enforcing these kinds of programs of denial forcing denial on the young and unsuspecting. This kind of cultic mind control and brain washing needs national media attention. (Thanks to Royi for the initial tip)Ī blog has been set up here by a group calling itself the Queer Action Coalition and features day by day accounts of protests at Love Won Out’s headquarters.Ī local news broadcast (windows media) can be found here. I would appreciate it if XGW readers kept me updated on any developments as you all peruse the blogosphere. His MySpace profile indicates he last logged in on the 5th. In conclusion, Zach was scheduled to be shipped off on June 6th. Frankly don’t see how this kind of suppression of genuinely productive thought can lead to positive healing no matter what your goal. For a program that pretends to stress honesty and authenticity they sure discourage independent thought and discussion both with one’s self and family. However it appears journals can only to be used to keep a “moral inventory” of sexual temptations. A participant is to be honest, authentic and real but… family visits are to be glossed over and superficial? Many people use journaling as a method of self reflection and thought. No discussing therapeutic issues at home. Several selected rules read:Ībsolutely no journaling or keeping a diary outside of the MI* process unless directed or approved by staff. Program rules of genuine concern to me is a clear double standard when it came to encouraging honesty, self-examination and reflection in patients. There are of course several comical rules forbidding any clothing from Abercrombie and Fitch and dining at places like TGI Fridays (because there is a bar attached to the restaurant). On his blog Zach posts program rules given to parents that aren’t supposed to be seen by patients. How do we know all this? Zach has been writing about it on his blog found here on. A 16 year old named Zach in Bartlett, Tennessee recently came out to his parents who reacted by announcing they are sending him to an ex-gay live-in program called Love In Action, the same cult like program Peterson Toscano survived.