While recently investigating two articles about or by PFOX, Ex-Gay Watch sought to determine if Richard Cohen remained president of the organization. Cohen is most well known for touch or “holding” therapy as well as having patients emotionally strike pillows with a tennis raquet. After demonstrating these techniques in a string of circus-like mainstream (and not so mainstream) media appearances, Cohen’s name disappeared from PFOX’s website rather unceremoniously.
Ex-Gay Watch emailed Regina Griggs, PFOX’s executive director nearly two weeks ago and more recently Warren Throckmorton seeking an explanation. Throckmorton responded: (printed here with permission)
I decided to stop working with PFOX for one main reason: Richard Cohen’s media appearances (CNN, Jimmie Kimmel and Howard Stern). I like Regina and others with PFOX so I did not make the decision easily. He is not now on the board which I suspect is a delayed fall out of his decisions to demonstrate his techniques publicly. Nothing has changed as far as my relationship with them however.
Mugshot above is of Cohen with one of several Howard Stern Show staffers using indecent exposure to mock same-gender attraction. Photo from The Howard Stern Show rundown, September 15, 2005 (NSFW).
My eyes hurt!
Don’t know what Warren’s full email to you said, but this has also been covered at his blog (from about 6 months ago). [Here] and [Here] as example from May 2006, with a rather illuminating return to topic in August 2006.
Readers may also be interested in the comments by Alan Chambers, as those simply do not match up with facts of Exodus’ continued relationship with Cohen. (Also of interest are those comments by Ed Hurst, one of those with Exodus in ye olde days.)
Warren’s words about having split because of the “media appearances” and PFOX’s own “delayed fall out” in response to the publicity are all well and good….
… but as those exchanges at Warren’s blog seem to indicate — Warren Throckmorton and PFOX and Exodus were already aware of Cohen and his “therapeutic techniques” long before the media appearances. Warren was given a pre-publication copy of Cohen’s book, as example in 1999/2000 (he started, but also said he decided not to read it through.)
A most fascinating question — as yet unanswered with any clarity — is why, therefore, they were ever involved with Cohen in the first place? More than being simply involved, Cohen was actually lauded and given positions of authority.
Would they STILL be associated with Cohen… if Cohen hadn’t gone public and embarrassed them so much?
And therein lies one of the basic concerns so many of us have about the public face of ex-gay: the issues about honesty and informed consent, and the basic unwillingness to properly govern their own. Bad therapy, and weird therapists, need not to be demonstrated on CNN before it is ripe for rejection.
I just want to give a great big hug to grandale and this post. Especially for typing:
Bad therapy, and weird therapists, need not to be demonstrated on CNN before it is ripe for rejection.
oh..oops…that would be considered “holding” therapy would it not? Well then, at least reading grandale’s posts are therapeutic for me.
“Mugshot above is of Cohen with one of several Howard Stern Show staffers using indecent exposure to mock same-gender attraction.”
So let’s go after the Howard Stern show?! If I recall, that “staffer” was in fact gay, and if this is anti-gay mockery then lets all protest San Francisco’s Folsom Street Fair, not to mention what goes on at just about any big city pride parade these days.
I support the work you do at Ex-gay watch, but really, come on and loosen up a bit.
Alrighty then….they didn’t like the appearances Cohen was making. Or the publicity his therapies received?
This from groups of people , PFOX, CWA, Exodus, who ADVERTISE for themselves what they are and they make claims about their influence and effectiveness, but all of a sudden television exposure isn’t right for them?
This doesn’t pass the smell test gang.
This is why I wanted to get the FTC involved in the ex gay INDUSTRY.
That’s what it is, after all isn’t it?
The have products they claim work. They have techniques they say are effective and they have results they say have helped or cured, ‘many many thousands, hundreds of thousands.’
They say that a group shot of people is ‘living proof’ that such an industry is the best thing that can happen to gay people ‘struggling’ with homosexuality.
You’d think these people would run towards every single opportunity to have their techniques, methods, materials and results televised, scrutinized and analyzed by everyone.
After all, things that work so well are something to crow about, eh?
Is this about crowing…or eating crow?
Richard Cohen has been acting bizarre in public for quite a while now. Anyone at PFOX who has every met him would be fully aware of how strange and inappropriate he can be. Why was this decision made now? I am not aware of anything earth shattering that he did recently. It makes me wonder very much if there was something significant that did occur recently that we just don’t know about yet.