Arizona group to put marriage back on ballot
Exodus International Issues Apology, Hints At Further Developments Tonight
Ex-Gay Leader Sentenced For Criminal Sexual Assault of Male Clients
Andrew Comiskey Doesn't Believe In Apologies
Murkowski makes three
Massachusetts GOP Senate Candidate goes to Pride
The Daily Agenda for Wednesday, June 19
Another Exodus Conference Is Upon Us. Let's Review.
Featured Reports
What Are Little Boys Made Of?
In this original BTB Investigation, we unveil the tragic story of Kirk Murphy, a four-year-old boy who was treated for “cross-gender disturbance” in 1970 by a young grad student by the name of George Rekers. This story is a stark reminder that there are severe and damaging consequences when therapists try to ensure that boys will be boys.
Slouching Towards Kampala: Uganda’s Deadly Embrace of Hate
When we first reported on three American anti-gay activists traveling to Kampala for a three-day conference, we had no idea that it would be the first report of a long string of events leading to a proposal to institute the death penalty for LGBT people. But that is exactly what happened. In this report, we review our collection of more than 500 posts to tell the story of one nation’s embrace of hatred toward gay people. This report will be updated continuously as events continue to unfold. Check here for the latest updates.
David Benkof: Behind the Mask
At first glance, David Benkof appears to be a young gay man who believes that same-sex marriage will damage the institution of marriage, that there are better options for gay couples than marriage, that the community should join him in prioritizing other more pressing issues, and that the marriage discussion is harming the efforts of gay couples in red states to get recognition for their unions. He also claims that he’s a gay columnist, that he speaks for an influential collection of gay thinkers, and that he is part of the gay and lesbian community and that he shares our goals and dreams. But none of that is true.
“Repeat After Me”: The Reparative Therapy Echo Chamber
The April 2008 edition of the pay-to-publish vanity journal Psychological Reports featured a new report from NARTH. Written by NARTH president A. Dean Byrd, past president Joseph Nicolosi, and Richard W. Potts, the report carries the unwieldy but self-descriptive title, “Clients perceptions of how reorientation therapy and self-help can promote changes in sexual orientation.” While the title describes what the authors meant to show — how clients describe the benefits of reparative therapy — the report itself actually illustrates something very different: the ex-gay movement’s remarkable ability to instill an almost robot-like parroting of ex-gay rhetoric among their clients.
Testing the Premise: Is MRSA The New Gay Plague?
The Toronto Star said that a new study “discover[ed] a new strain” of a super-bug “hitting gay men.” Headlines in Britain screamed, “Flesh-eating bug strikes San Francisco’s gay community,” and anti-gay extremists across America spread the alarm that gays were introducing another plague into “the general population.” But there was a small problem with all of this: None of it is true!
Paul Cameron’s World
In 2005, the Southern Poverty Law Center wrote that “[Paul] Cameron’s ‘science’ echoes Nazi Germany.” What the SPLC didn”t know was Cameron doesn’t just “echo” Nazi Germany. He quoted extensively from one of the Final Solution’s architects. This puts his fascination with quarantines, mandatory tattoos, and extermination being a “plausible idea” in a whole new and deeply disturbing light.
From the Inside: Focus on the Family’s “Love Won Out”
On February 10, I attended an all-day “Love Won Out” ex-gay conference in Phoenix, put on by Focus on the Family and Exodus International. In this series of reports, I talk about what I learned there: the people who go to these conferences, the things that they hear, and what this all means for them, their families and for the rest of us.
Prologue: Why I Went To “Love Won Out”
Part 1: What’s Love Got To Do With It?
Part 2: Parents Struggle With “No Exceptions”
Part 3: A Whole New Dialect
Part 4: It Depends On How The Meaning of the Word "Change" Changes
Part 5: A Candid Explanation For "Change"
The Heterosexual Agenda: Exposing The Myths
At last, the truth can now be told.
Using the same research methods employed by most anti-gay political pressure groups, we examine the statistics and the case studies that dispel many of the myths about heterosexuality. Download your copy today!
And don't miss our companion report, How To Write An Anti-Gay Tract In Fifteen Easy Steps.
Testing The Premise: Are Gays A Threat To Our Children?
Anti-gay activists often charge that gay men and women pose a threat to children. In this report, we explore the supposed connection between homosexuality and child sexual abuse, the conclusions reached by the most knowledgeable professionals in the field, and how anti-gay activists continue to ignore their findings. This has tremendous consequences, not just for gay men and women, but more importantly for the safety of all our children.
Straight From The Source: What the “Dutch Study” Really Says About Gay Couples
Anti-gay activists often cite the “Dutch Study” to claim that gay unions last only about 1½ years and that the these men have an average of eight additional partners per year outside of their steady relationship. In this report, we will take you step by step into the study to see whether the claims are true.
The FRC’s Briefs Are Showing
Tony Perkins’ Family Research Council submitted an Amicus Brief to the Maryland Court of Appeals as that court prepared to consider the issue of gay marriage. We examine just one small section of that brief to reveal the junk science and fraudulent claims of the Family “Research” Council.
Review: The Gay Report
When Karla Jay and Allan Young published The Gay Report in 1979, it quickly a favorite source of statistics for many anti-gay extremists. But before you accepts these statistic at face value, you should examine the inner workings of this survey very carefully. What you learn might surprise you.
Daniel Fetty Doesn’t Count
The FBI’s annual Hate Crime Statistics aren’t as complete as they ought to be, and their report for 2004 was no exception. In fact, their most recent report has quite a few glaring holes. Holes big enough for Daniel Fetty to fall through.
News, analysis and fact-checking of anti-gay rhetoric
Posts 
Posts via daily email:
Eric
April 4th, 2008 | LINK
what does this mean for gay roommate matching services?
Emily K
April 4th, 2008 | LINK
I think people have every right to know the sexual orientation of their potential roommate. That’s ALWAYS something I discuss to make sure it’s not uncomfortable for them. It’s easy for someone to jump to the conclusion that a homophobe would screen out gay candidates and be a bigot – but hell, why would a gay person WANT to live with a homophobe?? And I especially agree with women being uncomfortable living with straight men, being a woman myself. Maybe racists and bigots would be better off screening those they despise from potential roommates. Those they despise would be better off without them.
David
April 4th, 2008 | LINK
Ah, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals…The most reversed circuit court of them all.
Their ruling does demonstrate the absurdity of not taking non-discrimination matters one issue at a time.
It also points out the problems of applying non-discrimination rules to private individuals as opposed to government agencies.
Michael
April 4th, 2008 | LINK
After reading the linked article, I don’t think this decision will cause any long term trouble for gays interested in avoiding homophobic roommates. Apparently, while it is illegal for the site to demand information such as race, sex, and orientation, there is no legal problem with allowing a user to volunteer that information within their public profile. Therefore avoiding anti-gay types should be as simple as listing one’s orientation in their profile.
That said, I never would have imagined a judge applying anti-discrimination laws to an area of life as private as residency. Seriously, if a girl wants to live with another girl or a straight guy wants to live with another straight guy is that really such a problem? Has our freedom of association really fallen so far such that we can’t be discriminating even when choosing with whom we should live? This judge is nuts.
Stefano
April 4th, 2008 | LINK
Michael, that was my understanding of the new ruling as well. The court did not see a problem with volunteered information. The problem was that roommate.com required the information. There continues to be no problem if in your volunteered information, or in your personal screenings of possible matches you volunteer or ask the information. It just can’t be required information by a business offering a finders service.
Stefano
April 4th, 2008 | LINK
BTW:
I’m not sure how to interpret this. So you’re saying that any private business should be allowed to discriminate against groups of people? Because the court ruling had nothing to do with the decisions of private individuals, it only dealth with business entities. In that respect, they were following the same application of law they would use for racial or religious anti-discrimination measures. In fact, the same measures people are asking to be written into law with the Employment and Housing non-discrimination bills that are being passed.
Stefano
April 4th, 2008 | LINK
Oh. Only one other comment.
It seems like a very simple “fix” to me for roommate.com and other services that allow users to search for “personal attributes”.
Simply make that information an opt in or out option rather than a requirement on the part of the entity running the service, in this case roommate.com. Much like opt in or out options to receive advertisements via email when you register with an online service.
Jason D
April 5th, 2008 | LINK
what about online dating services? They require some of that information in order to post a profile. This is all very interesting.
Stefano
April 5th, 2008 | LINK
Jason D:
That was what I was wondering. Why the court would rule this way with regard to roommate.com, yet did not rule against E-Harmony for refusing to take ads from gays. I don’t really remember, but I thought someone had tried to sue e-harmony but lost.
Ephilei
April 5th, 2008 | LINK
Stefano:
There’s no law against refusing clients for advertising based on what they are advertising. Box Turtle should get to say they don’t want Exodus advertising on their site. Housing is different – it’s a primary need like food and clothing.
This was a good ruling. While this particular situation isn’t hurting anyone, there could be equivalent services that do. Say a website like this expanded into letting landlords peruse people’s profiles who you don’t have a reason to tell them your sexual orientation.
Sexual orientation, like gender identity, race, or religion, can be volunteered. Being trans, I would definitely volunteer my gender identity to a prospective roommate (I have before). All the site has to do is change their profile from “required” to “optional” and there’s no problem.
Stefano
April 5th, 2008 | LINK
I’m not sure about the details of that as to where the lines are drawn. For example, printing companies have been sued by the ACLU for refusing to print fliers for the KKK. “Christian” printing companies have been sued for refusing to do business with gay clients.
I do think there is a distinction drawn between that and private entities such as Box Turtle or media companies, for example, having it within their right to refuse advertisers.
I’m not attempting to dispute any points here, just acknowledging my ignorance on the subject.
Yes. I agree with this completely.
The court was clear in making the distinction
“Not only does Roommate ask these questions, Roommate makes answering the discriminatory questions a condition of doing business.”
“Where it is very clear that the Web site directly participates in developing the alleged illegality — as it is clear here with respect to Roommate’s questions, answers and the resulting profile pages — immunity will be lost.”
A Roommates.com section allowing users to add additional comments of their choosing is immune from liability as outlined in the 1996 Communications Decency Act, the San Francisco-based court found.
Stefano
April 5th, 2008 | LINK
Maybe you can clarify this further…
The distinction here, as I see it, between something like Box Turtle, or something like a TV outlet or magazine, etc., refusing advertisements contrasted with e-Harmony, is that neither Box Turtle nor the TV outlooks or magazines, etc., provided service is advertisment, their product or direct service is something different that may or may not be suplementally supported by advertisers.
E-harmonie’s service technically is not advertising. The service provided is “couple’s matching” for a lack of a better way of putting it.
Now, arguably, the form that service takes could be be said to be an “advertisement”, but then that line of argument could also have been made for Roommate.
So I’m still unclear on what distinguishes the two.
Joel
April 5th, 2008 | LINK
What they should really ask is:
Are you a homophobe?
Are you racist?
Associate with the KKK?
DO you discriminate against any religion?
I wonder.. if asking if their gay, unconstitutional or disciminatory, then asking the questions above, the same?
David
April 5th, 2008 | LINK
Stefano,
The Court clearly ignored the reason for asking these questions in the first place: the preferences of the renter.
Stefano
April 5th, 2008 | LINK
David:
The court ruling has no effect on volunteered information. The renter or the person looking for a roommate can still state their preferences. Roommate can just no longer be required to provide the information in order to do business with Roommate.
All Roommate has to do is make the information optional and still provide the user search options for that or any other “personal attribute” that’s voluntarily provided.
David
April 6th, 2008 | LINK
Stefano,
That justs makes my point.
Roommate wasn’t refusing to do business with anyone because of race, sex, etc. It was simply providing a particular service: matching people with a roommate of the type they want.
The Court’s ruling ignores this distinction.
stefano
April 6th, 2008 | LINK
This is the distinction I see:
Roommate: “because it requires users to provide information about gender, sexual orientation and whether they have children, and then uses the information to screen people for matches.”
Roommate was doing the screening and matching.
With the voluntary information, the users would be doing the searching and screening.
I’m not saying that Roommate in practice was being discriminatory. But that I understand how the court reached its decision.
I wouldn’t expect this to actually go to trial unless there was plausible cause that discrimination was occuring.
But I don’t think the court was looking at this as just a single entities practices, but the bigger picture.
In practice, if the information is made voluntary, I still don’t see that impacting the function of the service much on the side of users.
stefano
April 6th, 2008 | LINK
“I wouldn’t expect this to actually go to trial unless there was plausible cause that discrimination was occuring.”
Let me try to clarify this a bit more.
The court wasn’t ruling that Roomates *was* being discriminatory.
Basically, the outcome of the court decision was a ruling that entities such as Roommates could be held liable, that is such sites would loose their immunity.
This opens the door for when such entities are being discriminatory in practice they can now be prosecuted, whereas prior to the ruling the could not.
stefano
April 6th, 2008 | LINK
Afterthought…
“With the voluntary information, the users would be doing the searching and screening.”
I’m not even sure this would be necessary. I can foresee one of two things regarding this:
1. Roomate continues to provide the same type of matching they did previously, only the matching will be done via a combination of allowed required info (e.g., perhaps, income, location, number of bedrooms; i.e. non personal attributes) in combination with the voluntary info supplied by users… OR
2. Roomate does a first level match for those who sign up with then, then users do a second level search within those matchs to refine for personal attribution preferences.
I would exect the first scenario to be the more likely one.
David
April 7th, 2008 | LINK
This case is the result of overreaching by the Fair Housing Councils of the San Fernando Valley and San Diego. Apparently they have too much time on their hands.
These councils clearly have no respect for freedom of association: “They claimed that allowing member to search and filter by such things as sex or orientation was facilitated them in discrimination.”
So what? We have a perfect right to discriminate in choosing roommates!
Timothy Kincaid
April 7th, 2008 | LINK
Guys,
Some clarification.
I’ve not used Roommate.com but I am familiar with a similar product. The service did not do the matching, it only provides listings which users can search. And as I understand it, Roommate.com does not do matching either.
They allowed customers to use that field as a search variable such that Joe Renter could search for listing only of gay men, only of straight women, or various combinations, as well as other variables such as price, size, location, etc. It would then provide those members that fit the search criteria.
The court, if I understand correctly, found the discrimination to be occuring by the end user but objected to the rental service facilitating the customer’s discrimination.
If a potential roommate eliminated choices because they have children, the court can’t control that. But it can blame Roommate.com for making it easy.
As for going to court, that’s what this ruling determined: that it can go to trial.
stefano
April 7th, 2008 | LINK
Hmmmm. Ok. Maybe I misread something. I was under the impression that Roommates themselves provided a first level match from using required information that users could then refine with further searches.
I did catch the further clarifying reasonings of the court regarding an entity’s indirect contributions by *requiring* said information as a term of doing business with them.
Yes. I’d agree with this. That the ruling made a decision that such entities were not immune from prosecution.
I’m unsure, however, if Roommates will actually be taken to court unless their is plausible evidence that there was discrimination. That’s why I spent so much time mentioning “solutions” Roomates could take to avoid that regarding Roommates no longer *requiring* such info, but making it voluntary.
I also think caution needs to be used in not conflating the free association rights of individual citizens with the business practices of a business entity.
Leave A Comment