Press

MEDIA CONTACT:
Pedro Julio Serrano, Communications Coordinator
(Office) 646.358.1479
(Cell) 787.602.5954
pjserrano@theTaskForce.org

WASHINGTON, Aug. 14 — The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force responded to news reports stating that Focus on the Family will be closing down its controversial “Love Won Out” program because of budget troubles. The "Love Won Out" program claimed to “change” the sexual orientation of gay people. At its recent annual convention, the American Psychological Association (APA) adopted a resolution that states that mental health professionals should avoid telling clients that they can change sexual orientation through therapy or other treatments, such as the one given at the “Love Won Out” program.

Statement by Rea Carey, Executive Director
National Gay and Lesbian Task Force

“The decision by Focus on the Family to drop this pointless and offensive program exposes a failed anti-LGBT agenda that has harmed countless lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people and their families, often driving a wedge between faith traditions and living honestly and openly. The Task Force is gratified that the perniciousness of ‘Love Won Out’ programs has finally been revealed and that the truth of the central importance of self-determination and family acceptance has prevailed. To Focus on the Family, I say, ‘There is a reason your numbers have been dropping. You can’t make money off of forcing people to lie about who they really are.’”

More about the Task Force’s longtime work on depathologizing sexual orientation and gender identity

The Task Force’s long history of fighting the right wing’s so called “ex-gay ministries” began in 1973, when the Task Force worked to change the American Psychiatric Association’s classification of homosexuality as a mental disorder, and worked with psychiatrist allies to defeat a proposed association-wide referendum to stop the declassification. In addition:

• In 1998, the Task Force Policy Institute co-published Challenging the Ex-Gay Movement, with Equal Partners in Faith and Political Research Associates. That same year, the Policy Institute also released Calculated Compassion: How the Ex-Gay Movement Serves the Right's Attack on Democracy. These publications, in-depth analyses of so-called "ex-gay ministries," attested to the fact that "reparative therapies" are both harmful and do not work.
• In 2005, the Task Force released A Report From "Love Won Out: Addressing, Understanding, and Preventing Homosexuality." This report detailed the frames and world view put forth by "ex-gay" leaders, and examined how to counter their anti-LGBT arguments.
• After noticing a new tactic within the "ex-gay" movement of targeting lesbian, gay and bisexual youth for "reparative therapies" and "preventive" measures, the Policy Institute released a 2006 report, Youth in the Crosshairs: The Third Wave of Ex-Gay Activism. The report revealed how groups such as Exodus International and Focus on the Family promoted widely discredited theories on the root of homosexuality and recommended "prevention" and "reparative therapies" despite the growing body of research that shows these treatments to be ineffective and even harmful for many participants.

To learn more about the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, follow us on Twitter: @TheTaskForce.

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The mission of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force is to build the grassroots power of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community. We do this by training activists, equipping state and local organizations with the skills needed to organize broad-based campaigns to defeat anti-LGBT referenda and advance pro-LGBT legislation, and building the organizational capacity of our movement. Our Policy Institute, the movement’s premier think tank, provides research and policy analysis to support the struggle for complete equality and to counter right-wing lies. As part of a broader social justice movement, we work to create a nation that respects the diversity of human expression and identity and creates opportunity for all. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., we also have offices in New York City, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis and Cambridge.