News, analysis and fact-checking of anti-gay rhetoric
Posts 
Posts via daily email:
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.Poland considers partner recognition
Timothy Kincaid
September 4th, 2012
In a bit of a surprise move, Poland’s controlling centrist party, Platforma Obywatelska (Civic Platform), is backing a bill to offer limited partner recognition to same-sex couples: (gay star news)
After several months of discussion, the PO decided last week to put to the vote a draft bill in both chambers of the Polish parliament, the Sejm and Senate.
The proposed draft bill of registered civil partnership is similar the current French Pacte civil de solidarité (PACS).
The bill includes a range of benefits which currently are only granted to married heterosexual couples, including protections and responsibilities, inheritance, pension funds, notary, and medical rights. Joint tax benefits and adoption rights are not included in the bill.
Although PO had opposed previous bills, this one does not offer joint tax benefits, citizenship or adoption, and thus may avoid the members’ greatest objections. Even so, the bill has opposition from within the party (and from some others).
The bill is expected to be supported by the Alliance of the Democratic Left (SLD) whose previous bill was rejected by the PO and right wing parties. The Polish People’s Party (PSL) is not expected to oppose the bill.
The main opposition party, the right-wing conservative ‘Law and justice’ (PiS) party, is expected to strongly oppose the bill.
To pass, it would need support from at least two thirds of PO along with the smaller party and independent legislators.
Poland Selects First Transgender Member of Parliament
Jim Burroway
October 11th, 2011
Transgender Europe has sent out a press release congratulating Anna Grodzka for becoming the first transgender member of Poland’s National Assembly. The press release identifies Grodzka as a member of the Palikot Movement, “a new political party which has come forward with progressive ideas especially on LGBTQI matters during elections.”
Poland’s lower house, the Sejm, has 460 members who are elected to four year terms through a system of proportional representation. In other words, if a party receives more than 5% of the vote, the party names the members of the Sejm according to the number of seats awarded to it. This is not an unusual system for many parliamentary democracies, and is designed to enhance the representation of political minorities.
NARTH Cofounder Exports Ex-Gay Pseudoscience to Poland
Jim Burroway
September 17th, 2011
But will it play in Poznan?
Even before NARTH founder Joseph Nicolosi’s arrival in Poznan to speak at an ex-gay conference organized by the Medical University of Poznan and the Foundation of Health, Education and Psycychotherapy, the planned event had already stoked controversy throughout Poland. Gay activists, alarmed that a major medical university was sponsoring the confab, protested that the American Psychological Association had found no basis (PDF: 816KB/138 pages) for the claims that ex-gay therapy an “cure” homosexuality, which in any case is not an illness. The ensuing negative publicity prompted the embarrassed university to withdraw its support and refuse to allow the conference to proceed on campus. But as of Thursday, when Nicolosi spoke at a news conference in a pub, the conference was still on for Friday and had been moved to a secret location.
Nicolosi used the press conference as an opportunity to spread his pseudoscience to the Polish public:
We don’t use medications, no medications involved. It’s just talking therapy. It’s usually about once a week, and it’s on the average about two years. Some more, some less. It depends on the individual. Much of this therapy is educational. But also we believe that the male homosexual should have a male therapist, and the lesbian should have a female therapist because it brings up issues of the parent that they felt rejected by.
Rzeczpospolitica also summarized Nicolosi’s theories on homoseuality in bullet form (via Google Translate):
- Homosexual behavior bring them temporary relief, in the long run, however, is not enough – to convince the psychologist. – The most common source of their family relationships are prone: over-controlling mother and distant father – explained. Stressing that the so-called. reparative therapy allows only those persons who have a deep inner conviction about the need for change. – A desire that can not be motivated by religion – he added.
According to the American number of patients who were homosexual eradicated by this therapy, reaches one-third.
Gazeta Wyborcza had more details (via Google Translate):
Our customers want to understand the source of his homosexuality. According to studies, the most common cause of homosexuality in men is incomplete family with a dominant mother, no father. Such a man, by seeking male erotic love, trying to find love and acceptance of a lost father. What we do is encourage customers, alluded to heterosexual relationships with men and avoid homosexual desires “- said Nicolosi.
The effectiveness of reparative therapy conducted by Nicolosiego is about 30 percent.
“1 / 3 people do not change, 1 / 3 notes the improvement in their well-being, while others change completely, which does not mean that the latter do not have a homosexual temptations, but I can deal with them” – Nicolosi reserved.
We discussed the “one-third/one-third/one-third” urban legend here. Conference organizers moved the conference to a secret location, claiming they were threatened by gay advocates. LGBT advocate Katarzyna Gajewska denied the charge, saying “I think it’s unfounded. We do not use violent argument.”
Metropolitan Archbishop of Poznan Stanislaw Gadecki wrote a letter to the conference organizers with words of support. “This important project has resulted in the possibility of more effective support for people who want to overcome homosexual tendencies,” he wrote. The Foundation of Health, Education and Psycychotherapy, which organized the conference, is headed by Bogna Bialecka, a psychologist and Catholic publicist
