As reported yesterday, Good Morning America had a segment on Zach’s story this morning. It had many features similar to the CNN story, yet many strikingly different.
GMA featured Zach, and had a voice actor readingly directly from the MySpace blog while the words scrolled across the screen. They had a clip from Zach’s father stating his beliefs about homosexuality, and quoted Rev. Smid regarding the Refuge program. They also had Dr. Drescher on the program, but allowed him to speak about the dangers associated with reparative therapy camps, and noted that the APA condemns reparative therapy.
The end of the segment included a debate between CNN-featuree Brandon Tidwell and Refuge graduate Gerard Wellman regarding the effectiveness or dangerousness of the program. Before the debate began, it was noted that Gerard is on the payroll at Refuge.
Brandon had a lot more to say in the live TV broadcast than he did on the edited CNN segment; his first statements regarding the program were that it “breaks you down, and destroys your identity.” He also stated outright regarding the Refuge program, “Yes, absolutely it’s wrong.” When questioned about Rev. Smid’s claimed 65% success rate, he explained that Love in Action does not have the research to back up their statistics.
Gerard, on the other hand, repeated a number of talking points regarding the Refuge program, including the “hundreds of thousands of people like me” statistic. He explained clearly that Refuge does not change one’s attractions, but puts “guard rails” on their behavior. Gerard repeated almost verbatim from Smid’s previous comments that “…there are no guards, no locked doors, nobody is forced to be there.” In reply, Brandon noted that leaving the program would have a vast number of negative consequences for teens from their parents and community, and that “You can’t just pick up and leave any time you want!”
An accompnying article on ABC’s web site gives a little more background from two other graduates, Melissa Fryrear and Peter Toscano, and mentions the initial investigation into the Refuge program.
ABC stated that Zach is to be released tomorrow.
I’m getting real tired of the ‘lie often repeated enough to be taken for the truth’ technique of ex gay conversion supporters.
No proof, no way to substantiate their claims and no licensing or techniques that are supported by legitimate peer bodies.
Evasiveness is another technique and I’m going back to the Williams Project with my original idea about a class action suit against such places and people.
Being taken to COURT would really make the sparks fly.
With no proof that their conversion is even NECESSARY or warranted, then they’d get slayed in court.
There is no way in hell that the assertion that one mUST be heterosexual has to be a COMMERCIAL enterprise.
That’s like asserting that plastic surgery is compulsary because some people might not be happy with a body part that’s just different, but not disfiguring or painful…except and unless one’s family rejected them, they were forced from a job or was assaulted for the natural state of that body part.
We don’t have compulsary plastic surgery in this society, we ESPECIALLY don’t have compulsory RELIGIOUS teaching in this country and we recognize human rights in this country.
Drug addiction, sexual irresponsibility and sociopathy plague heterosexuals too.
Heterosexuals are the ones bothered by gay people and one’s gay orientation isn’t at the expense of what heterosexuals can do with their lives.
So it must be un Constitutional that any groups support that heteros can do what they want to gay people at the expense of gay people.
It compromises human rights and equal protections.
That is to say, gay people must be protected from detrimental speech because the law doesn’t protect insult, slander, fighting words, threat and provocation.
Even if it sets a new legal precedent, so be it.
Gay people have the right to survive, and acknowleging what you are isn’t a threat to heterosexuals and THEIR freedoms and protections.
Gay people shouldn’t be forced into silence and dishonesty.
That’s a compromise to THEIR free speech, and it shouldn’t result in being forced into a conversion camp if you are underage and under the protection of your parents.
I wonder what threats (if any) were used to make Zach comply. It’s hard to make a kid clean up their room or remember to use their seat belts.
I’m calling up Brad Sears of the Williams Project at UCLA Law School and working my paper through once again.
The footage of LIA they show in their setup piece was actually filmed about five years ago before they had a teen program. 20/20 did a piece about the program (one they claim they want to follow-up).
BBC2 currently sits on hours of footage from this past January when David Akinsanya, a reporter, spent four days with a film crew at the program. He was suppose to spend two weeks but could only handle four days. I don’t know why John Smid let them film these sessions, but he did.
Shaken by seeing youth in sessions with adults, David spoke to Wayne Besen and me about what was going on and in particular about a 16-year old lesbian held in the program against her will by her parents.
I’ve been telling US media about the BBC2 footage in hopes that it will be shown here. The producer of the BBC documentary, Sad To Be Gay, told me they initally cut most of the US portions of the piece because David left the program so soon. But from the description on their site, and in light of recent events, they may have changed their minds and will actually show some of what went on in LIA.
I don’t know if the exchange between Tidwell and Wellman can be termed a “debate”. It was more of a controlled conversation between the two of them and Diane Sawyer. They never really got to interact with each other. (Which as a graduate of LIA I can understand. We were strongly encouraged to avoid any practicing homosexuals. Wellman is just working his program.)
According to the link: https://www.sundayherald.com/51122
“Sad to be Gay” runs on BBC2 on 9Aug2005 at 2100 London Time.
I hope they do focus on the stuff from LIA tonight: it would make a useful counterpoint to the well managed image LIA likes to portray. Do we know why David could only manage 4 days at LIA?