SPLC INTELLIGENCE=TRUTH REPORT: Myth #10 -- ¨Gay people can choose to leave homosexuality.¨

TENTH MYTH REGARDING GAYS:

¨Gay people can choose to leave homosexuality.¨

THE ARGUMENT:

¨If people are not born gay, as anti-gay activists claim, then it should be possible for individuals to abandon homosexuality. This view is buttressed among religiously motivated anti-gay activists by the idea that homosexual practice is a sin and humans have the free will needed to reject sinful urges.

A number of “ex-gay” religious ministries have sprung up in recent years with the aim of teaching homosexuals to become heterosexuals, and these have become prime purveyors of the claim that gays and lesbians, with the aid of mental therapy and Christian teachings, can “come out of homosexuality.” Exodus International, the largest of these ministries, plainly states, “You don’t have to be gay!” Another, the National Association for Research and Therapy of Homosexuality, describes itself as “a professional, scientific organization that offers hope to those who struggle with unwanted homosexuality.”

THE FACTS:

“Reparative” or sexual reorientation therapy — the pseudo-scientific foundation of the ex-gay movement — has been rejected by all the established and reputable American medical, psychological, psychiatric, and professional counseling organizations. In 2009, for instance, the American Psychological Association adopted a resolution, accompanied by a 138-page report, that repudiated ex-gay therapy. The report concluded that compelling evidence suggested that cases of individuals going from gay to straight were “rare” and that “many individuals continued to experience same-sex sexual attractions” after reparative therapy. The APA resolution added that “there is insufficient evidence to support the use of psychological interventions to change sexual orientation” and asked “mental health professionals to avoid misrepresenting the efficacy of sexual orientation change efforts by promoting or promising change in sexual orientation.” The resolution also affirmed that same-sex sexual and romantic feelings are normal.


Some of the most striking, if anecdotal, evidence of the ineffectiveness of sexual reorientation therapy has been the numerous failures of some of its most ardent advocates. For example, the founder of Exodus International, Michael Bussee, left the organization in 1979 with a fellow male ex-gay counselor because the two had fallen in love. Alan Chambers, current president of Exodus, said in 2007 that with years of therapy, he’s mostly conquered his attraction to men, but then admitted, “By no means would we ever say that change can be sudden or complete." HERE


Evelyn Schlatter is a research fellow at the Southern Poverty Law Center. She is the author of Aryan Cowboys: White Supremacists and the Search for a New Frontier, 1970-2000.

Robert Steinback is deputy editor of the Southern Poverty Law Center's Intelligence Report magazine and Hatewatch blog. Prior to joining SPLC, he worked for 24 years at The Miami Herald as a reporter, editor and columnist.

¨Ever since born-again singer and orange juice pitchwoman Anita Bryant helped kick off the contemporary anti-gay movement more than 30 years ago, hard-line elements of the religious right have been searching for ways to demonize homosexuals — or, at a minimum, to find arguments that will prevent their normalization in society. For the former Florida beauty queen and her Save Our Children group, it was the alleged plans of gays and lesbians to “recruit” in schools that provided the fodder for their crusade. But in addition to hawking that myth, the legions of anti-gay activists who followed have added a panoply of others, ranging from the extremely doubtful claim that homosexuality is a choice, to unalloyed lies like the claims that gays molest children far more than heterosexuals or that hate crime laws will lead to the legalization of bestiality and necrophilia. These fairy tales are important to the anti-gay right because they form the basis of its claim that homosexuality is a social evil that must be suppressed — an opinion rejected by virtually all relevant medical and scientific authorities. They also almost certainly contribute to hate crime violence directed at homosexuals, who are more targeted for such attacks than any other minority in America.¨

Most days throughout this Holiday Season 2010 my blog will present you and yours with the GIFT OF TRUTH AND REAL FACT regarding 10 key myths propagated by the anti-gay movement, along with the truth behind the propaganda. Truth is a big gift and we give thanks to our blog-world-associates Evelyn Schlatter and Robert Steinback. Leonardo Ricardo HERE

· Thanks to Evelyn Schlatter and Robert Steinback
· Thanks to The Child Molestation Research and Prevention Institute
· Thanks to SPLC INTELLIGENCE REPORT/AlterNet
· Thanks to Flickr Photosharing, Moonjazz
· Thanks to The Reverend Dr. Jerry Maneker  HERE
· Thanks to Professor Gregory Herek, University of California, Davis
· Thanks to The American Academy of Pediatrics
· Thanks to The American Psychological Association
· Thanks to The American Psychiatric Association
· Thanks to The Child Welfare League of America
· Thanks to A Christian Voice for Lesbian, Gay, Bi and Transgender, sidebar
· Thanks to National Organization on Male Sexual Victimization
· Thanks to Christine Mueller, professor of history at Reed College
· Thanks to Historian Jon David Wynecken
· Thanks to Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Prevention Act
· Thanks to The Palm Center, University of California at Santa Barbra
· Thanks to Lt. Colonel Victor Fehrenbach
· Thanks to Richard J. Wolitski, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
· Thanks to Flickr Photo Sharing

SPLC INTELLIGENCE=TRUTH REPORT: Myth #9 -- ¨No one is born a homosexual.¨

NINTH MYTH REGARDING GAYS:

¨No one is born a homosexual.¨

THE ARGUMENT:

¨Anti-gay activists keenly oppose the granting of “special” civil rights protections to homosexuals similar to those afforded black Americans and other minorities. But if people are born gay — in the same way people have no choice as to whether they are black or white — discrimination against homosexuals would be vastly more difficult to justify. Thus, anti-gay forces insist that sexual orientation is a behavior that can be changed, not an immutable characteristic.¨

THE FACTS:

Modern science cannot state conclusively what causes sexual orientation, but a great many studies suggest that it is the result of biological and environmental forces, not a personal “choice.” One of the more recent is a 2008 Swedish study of twins (the world’s largest twin study) that appeared in The Archives of Sexual Behavior and concluded that “[h]omosexual behaviour is largely shaped by genetics and random environmental factors.” Dr. Qazi Rahman, study co-author and a leading scientist on human sexual orientation, said: “This study puts cold water on any concerns that we are looking for a single ‘gay gene’ or a single environmental variable which could be used to ‘select out’ homosexuality — the factors which influence sexual orientation are complex. And we are not simply talking about homosexuality here — heterosexual behaviour is also influenced by a mixture of genetic and environmental factors.”

The American Psychological Association (APA) acknowledges that despite much research into the possible genetic, hormonal, social and cultural influences on sexual orientation, no evidence has emerged that would allow scientists to pinpoint the precise causes of sexual orientation. Still, the APA concludes that “most people experience little or no sense of choice about their sexual orientation.”In October 2010, Kansas State University family studies professor Walter Schumm said he was about to release a study showing that gay parents produced far more gay children than heterosexual parents. He told a reporter that he was “trying to prove [homosexuality is] not 100% genetic.” But critics suggested that his data did not prove that, and, in any event, virtually no scientists have suggested that homosexuality is caused only by genes. HERE

¨Ever since born-again singer and orange juice pitchwoman Anita Bryant helped kick off the contemporary anti-gay movement more than 30 years ago, hard-line elements of the religious right have been searching for ways to demonize homosexuals — or, at a minimum, to find arguments that will prevent their normalization in society. For the former Florida beauty queen and her Save Our Children group, it was the alleged plans of gays and lesbians to “recruit” in schools that provided the fodder for their crusade. But in addition to hawking that myth, the legions of anti-gay activists who followed have added a panoply of others, ranging from the extremely doubtful claim that homosexuality is a choice, to unalloyed lies like the claims that gays molest children far more than heterosexuals or that hate crime laws will lead to the legalization of bestiality and necrophilia. These fairy tales are important to the anti-gay right because they form the basis of its claim that homosexuality is a social evil that must be suppressed — an opinion rejected by virtually all relevant medical and scientific authorities. They also almost certainly contribute to hate crime violence directed at homosexuals, who are more targeted for such attacks than any other minority in America.¨

Most days throughout this Holiday Season 2010 my blog will present you and yours with the GIFT OF TRUTH AND REAL FACT regarding 10 key myths propagated by the anti-gay movement, along with the truth behind the propaganda. Truth is a big gift and we give thanks to our blog-world-associates Evelyn Schlatter and Robert Steinback. Leonardo Ricardo HERE

· Thanks to Evelyn Schlatter and Robert Steinback
· Thanks to The Child Molestation Research and Prevention Institute
· Thanks to SPLC INTELLIGENCE REPORT/AlterNet
· Thanks to Flickr Photosharing, Moonjazz
· Thanks to The Reverend Dr. Jerry Maneker  HERE
· Thanks to Professor Gregory Herek, University of California, Davis
· Thanks to The American Academy of Pediatrics
· Thanks to The American Psychological Association
· Thanks to The American Psychiatric Association
· Thanks to The Child Welfare League of America
· Thanks to A Christian Voice for Lesbian, Gay, Bi and Transgender, sidebar
· Thanks to National Organization on Male Sexual Victimization
· Thanks to Christine Mueller, professor of history at Reed College
· Thanks to Historian Jon David Wynecken
· Thanks to Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Prevention Act
· Thanks to The Palm Center, University of California at Santa Barbra
· Thanks to Lt. Colonel Victor Fehrenbach
· Thanks to Richard J. Wolitski, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
· Thanks to Flickr Photo Sharing, alicemariedesign

SPLC INTELLIGENCE=TRUTH REPORT: Myth #4 -- ¨Homosexuals don’t live nearly as long as heterosexuals.¨



10 Hateful Anti-Gay Myths Debunked

FOURTH MYTH REGARDING GAYS:

¨Homosexuals don’t live nearly as long as heterosexuals.¨

THE ARGUMENT:
 
Anti-gay organizations want to promote heterosexuality as the healthier “choice.” Furthermore, the purportedly shorter life spans and poorer physical and mental health of homosexuals are often offered as reasons why gays and lesbians shouldn’t be allowed to adopt or foster children.
 
THE FACTS:

This falsehood can be traced directly to the discredited research of Paul Cameron and his Family Research Institute, specifically a 1994 paper he co-wrote entitled, “The Lifespan of Homosexuals.” Using obituaries collected from gay newspapers, he and his two co-authors concluded that gay men died, on average, at 43, compared to an average life expectancy at the time of around 73 for all U.S. men. On the basis of the same obituaries, Cameron also claimed that gay men are 18 times more likely to die in car accidents than heterosexuals, 22 times more likely to die of heart attacks than whites, and 11 times more likely than blacks to die of the same cause. He also concluded that lesbians are 487 times more likely to die of murder, suicide, or accidents than straight women.

Remarkably, these claims have become staples of the anti-gay right and have frequently made their way into far more mainstream venues. For example, William Bennett, education secretary under President Reagan, used Cameron’s statistics in a 1997 interview he gave to ABC News’ “This Week.”

However, like virtually all of his “research,” Cameron’s methodology is egregiously flawed — most obviously because the sample he selected (the data from the obits) was not remotely statistically representative of the homosexual population as a whole. Even Nicholas Eberstadt, a demographer at the conservative American Enterprise Institute, has called Cameron’s methods “just ridiculous.”  HERE

Ever since born-again singer and orange juice pitchwoman Anita Bryant helped kick off the contemporary anti-gay movement more than 30 years ago, hard-line elements of the religious right have been searching for ways to demonize homosexuals — or, at a minimum, to find arguments that will prevent their normalization in society. For the former Florida beauty queen and her Save Our Children group, it was the alleged plans of gays and lesbians to “recruit” in schools that provided the fodder for their crusade. But in addition to hawking that myth, the legions of anti-gay activists who followed have added a panoply of others, ranging from the extremely doubtful claim that homosexuality is a choice, to unalloyed lies like the claims that gays molest children far more than heterosexuals or that hate crime laws will lead to the legalization of bestiality and necrophilia. These fairy tales are important to the anti-gay right because they form the basis of its claim that homosexuality is a social evil that must be suppressed — an opinion rejected by virtually all relevant medical and scientific authorities. They also almost certainly contribute to hate crime violence directed at homosexuals, who are more targeted for such attacks than any other minority in America.¨


Most days throughout this Holiday Season 2010 my blog will present you and yours with the GIFT OF TRUTH AND THE REAL FACTS regarding 10 key myths propagated by the anti-gay movement, along with the truth behind the propaganda. Truth is a big gift and we give thanks to our blog-world-associates Evelyn Schlatter and Robert Steinback. Leonardo Ricardo HERE

· Thanks to Evelyn Schlatter and Robert Steinback
· Thanks to The Child Molestation Research and Prevention Institute
· Thanks to SPLC INTELLIGENCE REPORT/AlterNet
· Thanks to Flickr Photosharing, Moonjazz
· Thanks to The Reverend Dr. Jerry Maneker  HERE
· Thanks to Professor Gregory Herek, University of California, Davis
· Thanks to The American Academy of Pediatrics
· Thanks to The American Psychological Association
· Thanks to The American Psychiatric Association
· Thanks to The Child Welfare League of America
· Thanks to A Christian Voice for Lesbian, Gay, Bi and Transgender, sidebar
· Thanks to National Organization on Male Sexual Victimization

SPLC INTELLIGENCE REPORT: Myth #2 -- ¨Same-sex parents harm children¨

10 Hateful Anti-Gay Myths Debunked

¨Ever since born-again singer and orange juice pitchwoman Anita Bryant helped kick off the contemporary anti-gay movement more than 30 years ago, hard-line elements of the religious right have been searching for ways to demonize homosexuals — or, at a minimum, to find arguments that will prevent their normalization in society. For the former Florida beauty queen and her Save Our Children group, it was the alleged plans of gays and lesbians to “recruit” in schools that provided the fodder for their crusade. But in addition to hawking that myth, the legions of anti-gay activists who followed have added a panoply of others, ranging from the extremely doubtful claim that homosexuality is a choice, to unalloyed lies like the claims that gays molest children far more than heterosexuals or that hate crime laws will lead to the legalization of bestiality and necrophilia. These fairy tales are important to the anti-gay right because they form the basis of its claim that homosexuality is a social evil that must be suppressed — an opinion rejected by virtually all relevant medical and scientific authorities. They also almost certainly contribute to hate crime violence directed at homosexuals, who are more targeted for such attacks than any other minority in America. What follows are 10 key myths propagated by the anti-gay movement, along with the truth behind the propagda.¨


SECOND MYTH REGARDING GAYS:

¨Same-sex parents harm children.¨

THE ARGUMENT: Most hard-line anti-gay organizations are heavily invested, from both a religious and a political standpoint, in promoting the traditional nuclear family as the sole framework for the healthy upbringing of children. They maintain a reflexive belief that same-sex parenting must be harmful to children — although the exact nature of that supposed harm varies widely.

THE FACTS: No legitimate research has demonstrated that same-sex couples are any more or any less harmful to children than heterosexual couples.

The American Academy of Pediatrics in a 2002 policy statement declared: “A growing body of scientific literature demonstrates that children who grow up with one or two gay and/or lesbian parents fare as well in emotional, cognitive, social, and sexual functioning as do children whose parents are heterosexual.” That policy statement was reaffirmed in 2009.

The American Psychological Association found that “same-sex couples are remarkably similar to heterosexual couples, and that parenting effectiveness and the adjustment, development and psychological well-being of children is unrelated to parental sexual orientation.” 

Similarly, the Child Welfare League of America’s official position with regard to same-sex parents is that “lesbian, gay, and bisexual parents are as well-suited to raise children as their heterosexual counterparts.” HERE

Most days throughout this Holiday Season my blog will present you and yours with the GIFT OF TRUTH AND THE REAL FACTS regarding 10 key myths propagated by the anti-gay movement, along with the truth behind the propaganda. Truth is a big gift and we give thanks to our blog-world-associates Evelyn Schlatter and Robert Steinback. Leonardo Ricardo

· Thanks to Evelyn Schlatter and Robert Steinback
· Thanks to The Child Molestation Research and Prevention Institute
· Thanks to SPLC INTELLIGENCE REPORT/AlterNet
· Thanks to Flickr Photosharing, Moonjazz
· Thanks to The Reverend Dr. Jerry Maneker  HERE
· Thanks to Professor Gregory Herek, University of California, Davis
· Thanks to The American Academy of Pediatrics
· Thanks to The American Psychological Association
· Thanks to The Child Welfare League of America
· Thanks to A Christian Voice for Lesbian, Gay, Bi and Transgender, sidebar

SPLC INTELLIGENCE REPORT: MYTH #1 -- ¨Homosexuals molest children at far higher rates than heterosexuals¨

10 Hateful Anti-Gay Myths Debunked

SPLC INTELLIGENCE REPORT/AlterNet
By Evelyn Schlatter and Robert Steinback

¨Ever since born-again singer and orange juice pitchwoman Anita Bryant helped kick off the contemporary anti-gay movement more than 30 years ago, hard-line elements of the religious right have been searching for ways to demonize homosexuals — or, at a minimum, to find arguments that will prevent their normalization in society. For the former Florida beauty queen and her Save Our Children group, it was the alleged plans of gays and lesbians to “recruit” in schools that provided the fodder for their crusade. But in addition to hawking that myth, the legions of anti-gay activists who followed have added a panoply of others, ranging from the extremely doubtful claim that homosexuality is a choice, to unalloyed lies like the claims that gays molest children far more than heterosexuals or that hate crime laws will lead to the legalization of bestiality and necrophilia. These fairy tales are important to the anti-gay right because they form the basis of its claim that homosexuality is a social evil that must be suppressed — an opinion rejected by virtually all relevant medical and scientific authorities. They also almost certainly contribute to hate crime violence directed at homosexuals, who are more targeted for such attacks than any other minority in America. What follows are 10 key myths propagated by the anti-gay movement, along with the truth behind the propaganda.¨

FIRST MYTH REGARDING GAYS:

¨Homosexuals molest children at far higher rates than heterosexuals.¨

THE ARGUMENT: Depicting gay men as a threat to children may be the single most potent weapon for stoking public fears about homosexuality — and for winning elections and referenda, as Anita Bryant found out during her successful 1977 campaign to overturn a Dade County, Fla., ordinance barring discrimination against gay people. Discredited psychologist Paul Cameron, the most ubiquitous purveyor of anti-gay junk science, has been a major promoter of this myth. Despite having been debunked repeatedly and very publicly, Cameron’s work is still widely relied upon by anti-gay organizations, although many no longer quote him by name.

THE FACTS: According to the American Psychological Association, “homosexual men are not more likely to sexually abuse children than heterosexual men are.” Gregory Herek, a professor at the University of California, Davis, who is one of the nation’s leading researchers on prejudice against sexual minorities, reviewed a series of studies and found no evidence that gay men molest children at higher rates than heterosexual men.

Anti-gay activists who make that claim allege that all men who molest male children should be seen as homosexual. But research by A. Nicholas Groth, a pioneer in the field of sexual abuse of children, shows that is not so. Groth found that there are two types of child molesters: fixated and regressive. The fixated child molester — the stereotypical pedophile — cannot be considered homosexual or heterosexual because “he often finds adults of either sex repulsive” and often molests children of both sexes. Regressive child molesters are generally attracted to other adults, but may “regress” to focusing on children when confronted with stressful situations. Groth found that the majority of regressed offenders were heterosexual in their adult relationships.

The Child Molestation Research and Prevention Institute notes that 90% of child molesters target children in their network of family and friends. Most child molesters, therefore, are not gay people lingering outside schools waiting to snatch children from the playground, as much religious-right rhetoric suggests.¨ HERE

Most days throughout this Holiday Season my blog will present you and yours with the GIFT OF TRUTH AND THE REAL FACTS regarding 10 key myths propagated by the anti-gay movement, along with the truth behind the propaganda. 

Truth is a big gift and we give thanks to our blog-world-associates Evelyn Schlatter and Robert Steinback.  Leonardo Ricardo 

·  Thanks to Evelyn Schlatter and Robert Steinback
·  Thanks to The Child Molestation Research and Prevention Institute
·  Thanks to  SPLC INTELLIGENCE REPORT/AlterNet
·  Thanks to Flickr Photosharing,  Moonjazz
·  Thanks to The Reverend Dr. Jerry Maneker  HERE
·  Thanks to Professor Gregory Herek, University of California, Davis
·  Thanks to  A Christian Voice for Lesbian, Gay, Bi and Transgender, sidebar