Op-ed writer Carol Towarnicky profiles former ex-gay Peterson Toscano, a survivor of Exodus International’s flagship “Love In Action” live-in therapy program, today in the Philadelphia Daily News.
Toscano recalls the “fear and smear tactics” of the ex-gay movement to the newspaper — and also to audiences of his road show, Doin’ Time in the Homo Nomo Halfway House, scheduled for this weekend in Germantown, Pa.
Toscano is a co-founder of Beyond Ex-Gay, which has scheduled its second major gathering of former ex-gays at the Mid-South Regional Gathering in Memphis, Tennessee. The Feb. 23 gathering is timed to coincide with Focus on the Family’s Love Won Out ex-gay roadshow.
The gathering will offer a series of interactive workshops for former ex-gays and their allies, including:
- A round table discussion about the ex-gay movement and youth concerns
- From the on-line chat room to the talk show—processing our stories through the media
- Ex-Gay 101 for allies
- Creating and maintaining support structures for former ex-gays
Also scheduled that weekend: “Deconstructing the Ex-Gay Myth‚ÄîA Weekend of Action & Art” (video) co-hosted by BXG and the Memphis Gay and Lesbian Community Center.
The gathering comes eight months after Beyond Ex-Gay’s first conference for survivors of ex-gay programs.
