Once again, a gay man trying to go from gay to straight was sexually abused under the auspices of “touch therapy.” Such therapy is not only ineffective, but a gateway for conflicted therapists to sexually victimize their clients. This latest example occurred in Winnipeg, where a minister and former Christian college instructor was found guilty of sexually assaulting a young man who sought ex-gay counseling. A jury returned with the guilty verdict early last night after only a few hours of deliberations. The therapist, Terrance Lewis, 60, will be sentenced at a later date.
Lewis’ erotic therapy sessions included kissing, fondling and engaging in sexual role-playing. Many of these touch therapy sessions took place inside the therapists car. “He said I was to tell no one about it because no one would understand,” the victim testified.
“The use of so-called ‘touch therapy’ creates an ideal situation for abuse to occur, because you have sexually repressed therapists who can take advantage of vulnerable clients,” said TWO Executive Director Wayne Besen. “We call on all ‘ex-gay’ therapists to repudiate and abandon this bizarre practice before more victims are damaged.”
