Not content with waiting for the Ohio legislature to pass a statewide ban on LGBT “Reparative Therapy”. Today the city of Cincinnati, OH in a 7-2 vote, banned the dangerous practice that many experts have called torture to be performed within its city limits.
Openly gay City Counselor Chris Seelbach posted on his Facebook page.
Almost a year ago, Leelah Alcorn asked us to make her death mean something. I think she might think we helped do just that today.
Cincinnati City Council, in a 7-2 vote, just BANNED LGBT “Conversion Therapy” in the City of Cincinnati.
No longer will LGBT people, under 18, have to suffer the incredible damage that comes with medical professionals trying to change their sexual orientation, gender identity or expression.
The conversation before the vote was perhaps the most meaningful and touching I’ve ever been apart of during my time on Council.
Support and comments from Vice-Mayor David Mann, Council members Kevin Flynn, Christopher Smitherman, Wendell Young, Yvette Simpson & PG Sittenfeld were incredibly moving.
The votes against the ban, by Councilmembers Amy Murray & Charlie Winburn, were votes against keeping LGBT young people safe. And (to) feel shameful.
But, lets celebrate our victory and the victory for so many young people in Cincinnati.
The passage makes Cincinnati the first major U.S. city to ban reparative or conversion therapy. The Movement Advancement Project, an LGBT organization in Denver that tracks legislation nationwide on reparative therapy, has no record of a city passing an ordinance that would ban the practice.
City Councilor Charles Winburn who voted against the ban is the former employee and current member of the anti-gay, anti-woman’s choice, “religious” group the Citizens for Community Valueswhich is officially affiliated with the Family Research Council and the American Family Association both nationally recognized hate groups.
Now who says country music can’t be sexy. Damn sexy. At least the appeal of how sexy country music can be now that fast up and comer Steve Grand is now that he is being proclaimed the first openly gay male country singer. Though the music genre has not been too specifically associated with much anti-gay sentiment it is however apparent in the southern influenced good ol boy aesthetic mindset that being gay is not something country music does so often it at all.
Hopefully that is about to change very soon as Grand is getting a lot of attention, and not just for his looks (which if we’re being honest ar more than enough). The smooth, sultry tunes combined with a modern, authentic storytelling is grabbing a lot of attention. His latest All American Boy is becoming an overnight heat with music lovers (and hard, highly toned, muscles bulging body enthusiasts) wanting more.
And if you are not into the music or the incredible body (I don’t see why you wouldn’t want to see more) then maybe you should listen to more of his backstory. Grand recently shared more about his past and the obstacles he faced after he went “ex-gay” reparative therapy that claims it can cure homosexuality (it doesn’t) after coming out to his family. Here’s more:
But Grand tells ABC’s Good Morning America even more painful was trying to accept himself and be accepted by his parents.
‘I felt like there was no way I would ever make them proud,’ he said, barely holding back tears. ‘I felt like I was a constant disappointment.’
That is why he agreed, as a teen, to go into therapy to see if he could be cured of his gayness.
‘I was so consumed by the voices I grew up hearing, like the voices of my parents telling me I need to change — and I was in straight therapy for five years,’ he tells The Backlot.com in an interview posted today.
He explains: ‘Essentially I was just seeing a therapist, a clinical psychologist. I don’t want to bash my therapist even though I’ve come to really believe that homosexuality is not a bad thing, or sinful, and not something that God wants you to rid yourself of, because I still have a lot of respect for him. He was a good man.’[…..]
‘Some of [this therapy] was actually helpful — I was able to talk to someone, he was so compassionate, and he really believed in me. We just ended up having a completely different perspective.’
Grand has a compelling story that some artists don’t reveal about themselves in the decades long span that we hear their music. It’s real and authentic and something we can all learn and gain perspective from. And we can see how incredibly attractive this man is. And best of all he’s just starting.
So that means we have more of this
And this
And this to look forward to! Good luck Grand! We look forward to hearing (and seeing) more of you in the future.
The state of New York is following the steps of several states that have taken steps to discussing a ban the reparative or ex-gay aversion therapy that says it can “cure” homosexuality for anyone under the age of 18. Here’s more:
Two New York lawmakers are introducing legislation to ban gay conversion therapy for minors, the practice of trying to “cure” people of being gay or lesbian. The bill is modeled after a similar ban in California that was signed into law last year, but has been temporarily blocked pending areview by the federal courts.
Despite the unresolved legal challenge, two New York state lawmakers from New York City, Sen. Michael Gianaris and Sen. Deborah Glick, both progressive Democrats, said the time was right to propose a ban.
“There are often challenges to any manner of legislation that is protecting of the LGBT community and you can’t sit on your hands and wait until things get resolved somewhere else,” said Glick, who became the first openly gay legislator in New York in 1990.
California has already signed a law banning ex-gay therapy for minors that is now being challenged in court. During their investigation of the potential side effects of the therapy, the task force assigned by California found several potentially life threatening issues that may arise due to this therapy:
The task force concluded that sexual orientation change efforts can pose critical health risks to lesbian, gay, and bisexual people, including confusion, depression, guilt, helplessness, hopelessness, shame, social withdrawal, suicidality, substance abuse, stress, disappointment, self-blame, decreased self-esteem and authenticity to others, increased self-hatred, hostility and blame toward parents, feelings of anger and betrayal, loss of friends and potential romantic partners, problems in sexual and emotional intimacy, sexual dysfunction, high-risk sexual behaviors, a feeling of being dehumanized and untrue to self, a loss of faith, and a sense of having wasted time and resources.
Hopefully more states will take measures to ban this therapy for minors. There is still no sufficient evidence of any benefits of this therapy and to insist that homosexuality is something that needs to be fixed is appalling.
The United Nations recently met to discuss the affects conversion therapy. Also known as ex gay therapy, representatives from advocate groups, as well as religious leaders, and mental health professionals met to discuss the legitimacy of such practices that have faced a lot of recent media scrutiny. These representatives discussed their knowledge on the controversial measure as well as their own personal experiences with being a member of the LGBT community.
The topics of this meeting included the Uganda “Kill The Gays” bill as well as the studies that have shown the negative affects of said therapy. There was even a discussion of the noticeable doubt of the leaders that do support the barbaric mode of behavior modification. Especially when these leaders noted that the therapy does not “cure” homosexuality but does suppress urges. These leaders and organizations like Exodus always have a religious theme that claim that we can be saved through prayer.
You may remember the numerous reports I’ve done where I pointed out the side effects found by California task force when they introduced then passed a measure banning ex gay therapy for minors. The numerous mental health issues that arise are enough reason why this archaic and secular based approach needs to be outlawed:
The task force concluded that sexual orientation change efforts can pose critical health risks to lesbian, gay, and bisexual people, including confusion, depression, guilt, helplessness, hopelessness, shame, social withdrawal, suicidality, substance abuse, stress, disappointment, self-blame, decreased self-esteem and authenticity to others, increased self-hatred, hostility and blame toward parents, feelings of anger and betrayal, loss of friends and potential romantic partners, problems in sexual and emotional intimacy, sexual dysfunction, high-risk sexual behaviors, a feeling of being dehumanized and untrue to self, a loss of faith, and a sense of having wasted time and resources.
So does this mean that these discussion by world leaders will lead to some sort of ban on the practices? Maybe. We’ve seen states like California ban the measure (even though that law is on hold) along with half a dozen other states looking to enact similar statutes. But at least more people are talking about it. Even the noted failure of people like Dr. Oz making a show of this controversial therapy, the more we talk about it, the more likely we are to see how harmful these type of reparative therapies are. And then that could lead to such practices being permanently banned. It’s progress.
There aren’t many things that I will vehemently speak out against with such passion but gay cure reparative therapy is always one that I will have extreme prejudice against. You can call it bias for the fact that I am a gay man who fully and completely am at peace with my sexuality and love how that has shaped who I am today. I do not perceive being gay as a sin or some abnormality from the norm of society. It is just a part of who I am.
I also acknowledge that not everyone who is LGBTQIA has come to this peace of mind. That for some, they unfortunately still struggle daily with their sexuality. This is for a multitude of reasons; because of fear of rejection from loved ones, religious Dogmas, job security, fear of hate, violence, and discrimination on a plethora of mediums, or just not yet comfortable with it yet.
Acceptance is a process before, during, and after coming out. So I understand the questioning of those not yet out on whether being gay is right but sincerely hope they reach the peaceful resolution that I as well as millions of others have come to know. And undoubtedly, the multitude of both internal and external pressures to suppress homosexuality leads someone to partake in such drastic and ineffective measures like altering one’s way of life to reflect that pressure. Again, it is a process.
I emphatically and wholeheartedly understand that. But I was deeply disturbed and quite frankly irate by Dr. Oz’s show yesterday in which he had guests that alleged to be proof that the therapy is a success. The guests that were proponents to the rogue approach to “curing gay” have every right to feel the way they feel even though I strongly disagree with it. My issue, at least for this article, is not with them. My issue here is with Dr. Oz who, as a licensed medical professional, failed to provide satiable and very credible evidence of the harmful effects the therapy can cause it’s participants.
You see, quite often in these sessions that are, to me, detrimental forms of brainwashing but quite often the process is labeled as “re-programming”. Participants are asked to employ several subjective and potentially harmful acts that incredulously ask you to treat homosexuality like it’s an addiction.
This “addiction” is seen as harmful to oneself or to others and and owning one’s sexuality to me is quite the opposite. Participants are informed that they will have to fight against their natural mental state of being attracted to the same sex, forever. And if that isn’t horrifying enough, stories like this one or this one are further evidence of why these therapies and overall ideologies are dangerous.
And the fact that many of these so called therapies have a religious connotation to them is another reason that I flat out condemn the practice. Groups like National Association for Research & Therapy of Homosexuality that condone reparative therapy actually glorify their religious affiliations. To me, it implies that the therapy won’t work if you’re not what groups perceive to be their norm. That the only way you can know peace of mind is by their law and their doctrine which makes the entire program that much more insidious.
And to note that this is after the state of California banned this therapy for minors after their task force discovered the potentially harmful side effects of engaging in this practice:
The task force concluded that sexual orientation change efforts can pose critical health risks to lesbian, gay, and bisexual people, including confusion, depression, guilt, helplessness, hopelessness, shame, social withdrawal, suicidality, substance abuse, stress, disappointment, self-blame, decreased self-esteem and authenticity to others, increased self-hatred, hostility and blame toward parents, feelings of anger and betrayal, loss of friends and potential romantic partners, problems in sexual and emotional intimacy, sexual dysfunction, high-risk sexual behaviors, a feeling of being dehumanized and untrue to self, a loss of faith, and a sense of having wasted time and resources.
Yet it seemed that Dr. Oz glazed over this issue during his daytime talk show and decided only later to issue a statement on why this therapy is s0 harmful
I agree with the established medical consensus. I have not found enough published data supporting positive results with gay reparative therapy, and I have concerns about the potentially dangerous effects when the therapy fails, especially when minors are forced into treatments.
Dr. Oz is referencing to the long held stance that the American Medical Association, American Psychiatric Association, American Counselling Association, American Academy of Pediatrics that have noted the potential harm. So again I ask, why not say this from the beginning Dr. Oz? As a medical professional, I feel it is not only imperatively but also ethically your duty to clearly provide the facts of what gay reparative therapies can induce. Even a short reiteration of the APA’s stance would’ve been sufficient:
“The American Psychiatric Association opposes any psychiatric treatment, such as “reparative” or “conversion” therapy, which is based upon the assumption that homosexuality per se is a mental disorder, or based upon a prior assumption that the patient should change his/ her homosexual orientation.”
And even though Dr. Oz agrees with medical professionals after the fact, the presentation on the matter during his show conveys something different. This could say to the audience who may generally be uninformed and this is their first time they’ve had opportunity to hear pertinent information on the matter that the therapy only hear inaccurate information.
What’s even more unsettling is that it appears the show was only done for the sensationalism and leaves a unfavorable impression on those that know either through experience or study of these harmful effects. Reparative therapy is not some panacea or new age healing and in fact is quite the opposite. I implore Dr. Oz to think of that the next time he journeys onto such a controversial topic.
In more restore your faith in humanity news, Pennsylvania State Representative Babette Josephs (D-Philadelphia) has submitted a measure banning conversion therapy also widely known as “gay cure” therapy for minors. Josephs stated that the therapy should be banned because homosexuality is not considered wrong by mental health organizations:
“No reputable mainstream mental health association considers being gay, lesbian or bisexual a disease or mental illness. Yet, that is exactly the premise behind this kind of therapy – a wrong assumption that homosexuality is a mental disorder that can be ‘corrected,”
“As homosexuality is not a disorder, so attempts to ‘convert’ the sexual orientation of anyone, particularly a minor, threatens the individual’s short- and long-term health and well-being.”
“The very concept of ‘correcting’ homosexuality is dehumanizing and contrary to conventional societal norms. The fact that minors are forcefully subjected to this therapy that is not based in any scientific fact is unacceptable. Pennsylvania’s children deserve better,”
This is the second state in the United States’ history to put such legislation through to be decided in state government. California being the first state to do so and recently the measure was passed and signed into California State Law by Governor Jerry Brown. During the initial research of the reparative therapy, California ‘s task force found an enormous amount of adverse side effects to this therapy:
The task force concluded that sexual orientation change efforts can pose critical health risks to lesbian, gay, and bisexual people, including confusion, depression, guilt, helplessness, hopelessness, shame, social withdrawal, suicidality, substance abuse, stress, disappointment, self-blame, decreased self-esteem and authenticity to others, increased self-hatred, hostility and blame toward parents, feelings of anger and betrayal, loss of friends and potential romantic partners, problems in sexual and emotional intimacy, sexual dysfunction, high-risk sexual behaviors, a feeling of being dehumanized and untrue to self, a loss of faith, and a sense of having wasted time and resources.
A petition to show support for the bill has already started.
ABC’s “What Would You Do?” with John Quinones set the senarion and posed the question on Friday night: What happens if you drop off a gay teen with a “reparative therapist” he’s never met before in the middle of a public place to “talk”?
Alan Osmond, best known for his years as one of the Osmond Family singers. (The one with the z~mutton chops) and who now currently serves on the high council of the Orem Suncrest Stake in Orem, Utah for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has penned an anti-gay article for the Mormon website The Family, which is run by “The Osmond Network LLC” and is linked to byt the “Official Osmond Family Website”
In his article, which is so misinformed, ill written and LDS cultlike you expect kool-aid to be served alongside of it, Osmond states that being gay is not genetic and that reperative therapy does work. He also goes on to quote LDS President Gordon B. Hinckley who has said in the past “Prophets of God have repeatedly taught through the ages that practices of homosexual relations, fornication, and adultery are grievous sins. Sexual relations outside the bonds of marriage are forbidden by the Lord. We affirm those teachings.”
From Osmonds article (I have not proofed it or changed anything. This is verbatim )
First, it is important to understand that homosexuality is not innate and unchangeable. Research has NOT proved that homosexuality is genetic. Even more important, many researchers whose studies have been used to support a biological model forhomosexuality have determined that their work has been MISINTERPRETED. What is clear is that homosexuality results from an interaction of social, biological, and psychological factors. These factors may include temperament, personality traits, sexual abuse, familial factors, and treatment by one’s peers.
Developmental factors aside, can individuals diminish homosexual attraction and make changes in their lives? Yes. There is substantial evidence, both historical and current, to indicate this is the case. Jeffrey Satinover, M.D., a former Fellow atYale Universityand a graduate of MIT and Harvard, concludes:
“The fact that not all methods of treating those who struggle with homosexual attraction are successful, and that no method is successful for everyone, has been distorted by activists into the claim that no method is helpful for anyone. … The simple truth is that, like most methods in psychiatry and psychotherapy, the treatment of homosexuality has evolved out of eighty years of clinical experience, demonstrating approximately the same degree of success as, for example, the psychotherapy of depression.” Other researchers note treatment success rates that exceed 50 percent, which is similar to the success rates for treating other difficulties.
Now if Alan Osmond wants to be a hardcore homophobic Morom bigot no matter how offensive it is thats up to him.
But whats beyond offensive is the fact that the Osmond Family which is still after all these years one of the most famous Mormon families in the world, and who and has hundreds of thousands of fans, link to and supports these homophobic lies and misinformation.
