The Daily Agenda for Saturday, May 25
The Daily Agenda for Friday, May 24
Boy Scouts of America Votes To Allow Gay Members, Retains Ban On Gay Leaders
Nevada House votes to reverse marriage ban
The Daily Agenda for Thursday, May 23
It's Not the Principle, It's the Prejudice
Congratulations Mitch!
Gay Couples Excluded from Immigration Bill Markup
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
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Our post asking whether popular televangelist Joyce Meyer supported Uganda’s proposed Anti-Homosexualty Bill inspired Michael Jones to follow up with a post at Change.org asking the same thing. I had written to Rev. Meyer’s ministries three tmies, and Michael also wrote seeking a statement. Michael now sends word that he has an answer. Here’s the statement:
Craig L. Adams
April 12th, 2010 | LINK
Very interesting. Thanks for posting this, Jim.
RCM
April 12th, 2010 | LINK
Oh good, I don’t have to bury my Joyce Meyer books…I do hope her ministry and staff will be alright in Uganda after she has had the bottle to make her opinion so clear.
Grant
April 12th, 2010 | LINK
Although it obviously took a little coaxing to get this statement, it seems nearly pitch-perfect. It should serve as yet another nail in the coffin of this grievous bill.
Fergie
April 12th, 2010 | LINK
Even after using the dreaded “lifestyle choices” verbiage in her statement, I still have to give credit where credit is due. The Meyers Ministries statement is encouraging and totally works for me. I wish some of the other evangelicals and faith leaders hiding behind this issue had been so reasonable and clear.
My only question is, where was this statement posted/published? Did it make it to the bills proponents in Uganda?
Just curious.
penguinsaur
April 12th, 2010 | LINK
I do hope her ministry and staff will be alright in Uganda after she has had the bottle to make her opinion so clear.
This assumes a significant amount of people in Uganda actually see this statement which was only released after being sent a petition by angry Americans.
Call me cynical but I wonder just how much airtime these denouncements of the bill are getting in the country where it’s actually being debated.
Joyce Meyer denounces Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality Bill — Warren Throckmorton
April 12th, 2010 | LINK
[...] Boxturtlebulletin Share and Enjoy: These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and [...]
Zoe Nicholson
April 12th, 2010 | LINK
All I want is balance. I want society to build and sustain both organizations and opportunities to embrace all expressions of humanity.
Thank you Joyce for not wanting to kill us. I had something a bit more in mind.
majii
April 12th, 2010 | LINK
God is about love, and anyone who says otherwise is not a Christian no matter what comes out of their mouths. Huckabee, Palin, Cucinnelli, and all of the talking heads use hate to deny others their rights to live as they choose. I must say that I often wonder why they have such an obsession about what others’ do in their bedrooms. It makes no sense since they will not be involved. I am African American and heterosexual, and I have always supported and will continue to support full rights for LGBTQ persons because I spent the first 18 years in America under segregation, and I have lived 57 years in this country and have had to constantly deal with some people who still don’t consider me to be equal to them. This is the reason I support the right of all people to live their lives the way they would like to.
Sigh
April 12th, 2010 | LINK
She still leaves plenty of wiggle room for homophobes.
“lifestyle choices” — I thought this was 2010, not 1985.
Who I am is not a “lifestyle choice.”
Right Wing Round-Up « The Fifth Column
April 12th, 2010 | LINK
[...] Jim Burroway: Joyce Meyers: Uganda’s Anti-Gay Bill “Profoundly Offensive, Dangerous, and Disturbing Attack”. [...]
anteros
April 12th, 2010 | LINK
omg! i’d just about given up on joyce meyer ministries…
it’s a good statement.
thanks Jim! and thanks too, to everybody who did something to prompt this statement.
Equestrian Charged with HIV Related Offense, Wanda Sykes Takes on the Catholic Church, Stevens, the Only Protestant on the Supreme Court, and more.. » DailyQueerNews.com
April 13th, 2010 | LINK
[...] Joyce Meyers: Uganda’s Anti-Gay Bill “Profoundly Offensive, Dangerous, and Disturbing Attack.” Read more [...]
Stefano A
April 13th, 2010 | LINK
penguinsaur:
Again you’ve nailed it!
While I admit I was pleased to reader her statement (setting aside the unfortunate use of “lifestyle choice”), I couldn’t help but wonder what impact her statement might actually have.
I could find no public release on the Joyce Meyer Ministries web site in which this position was publicly proclaimed.
It’s one thing to send a private correspondence (e-mail) that gets blogged about, and quite another to place the statement up front on their web site (or make statements in broadcasts) to stating the position.
Like you, I couldn’t help but wonder how far this news would reach, or if it even would make it into Uganda.
By her closing remark:
I couldn’t help but parse this to nuance no intention at all to present this statement to the Ugandan public.
Maurice Lacunza
April 13th, 2010 | LINK
The following quote reveals Joyce Meyer’s true color: “…our motivation and intent is not to interfere with Uganda’s political agenda or internal affairs.”
I wrote Joyce a letter two years ago asking for clarification about her stand on homosexuals. After a banter of emails, none of which clarified her position, she finally had the staffer send me the usual love the sinner/hate the sin letter.
Joyce is anti-gay. Don’t be deceived by her politics.
Priya Lynn
April 13th, 2010 | LINK
I think Maurice is right. Joyce gives away her anti-gay position with this statement: “As a global society, we do not have to agree, endorse or condone the lifestyle choices of others.”.
She then says “However, history has taught us that we equally cannot and should not excuse those who would hide behind religion or misuse God’s word to justify bigotry and persecution.” which is ironic given that she is hiding behind religion herself to justify bigotry and persecution.
Maurice Lacunza
April 13th, 2010 | LINK
Thanks Priya. I wrote a little song about it. It goes like this:
Irony and Gayery, live together in perfect buggery, side by side they saddle in a homo-rectory!
RCM
April 13th, 2010 | LINK
I personally approve of her not supporting the bill, even if she does believe that gay is a “lifestyle choice”. Thinking gay is a choice might be ignorant and misguided, but she is not backing the destruction or even criminalization of those she is ignorant and misguided about. She is not advocating murder in the name of God, I regard that as good. Not wonderfully revolutionarily fantastic, just good.
Priya Lynn
April 13th, 2010 | LINK
RCM, what she’s in essence saying is “Gays are evil, but that’s no justification for killing them.”. It takes a lot of steam out of your opposition when you start with “we do not have to agree, endorse or condone the lifestyle choices of others.”, its a contradictory message.
RCM
April 14th, 2010 | LINK
Thank you Priya Lynn, but I do think it is a good thing that she at least thinks it is wrong to kill people for it. The way I see it, if people who think gay=evil just don’t kill (or torture, or in any other way aggressively punish) everyone who disagrees, then the rest of us might find some way of convincing them to see sense.
If what she said turns out to be popular with the far right/Christian Fundamentalist factions, then I’ll decide I misunderstood, and use her books for compost.
Emilio
April 19th, 2010 | LINK
Well, this is something at least! I had been wondering for ages what Joyce’s stand on homosexuality was and couldn’t find anything on the net. I grew up with her teaching and even though one of my friends dismissively calls her “a housewife preacher”, I love the way she teaches. Even though she is being very dispomatic with the above statement, I believe the time is coming when she will have to really “come out of the closet” about her position and speak more clearly to her gay audience. It is a bit ironic, though, that her ministry should extend to afflicted people thousands of miles away (which is great) yet the not any less pulpable afflictions of many gay people under their nose should remain unnoticed…
Oooops…..we meant you to cure them …..not kill them | Gay Ambassador
July 6th, 2011 | LINK
[...] “I oppose the criminalization of homosexuality.” Pentecostal preacher Joyce Meyer issued a statement saying “It is increasingly evident that the proposed “Anti-Homosexuality Bill” introduced in [...]
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