FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CHICAGO — Truth Wins Out today lauded the decision from Britain’s Association of Christian Counsellors (ACC) to ban so-called “ex-gay” or “reparative” therapy in its members’ practices. The organization rightly ordered its members to cease the practice “in the interests of public safety,” recognizing the scientific consensus that such treatments are ineffective, at best, and oftentimes extremely harmful to clients.
“The fact that a large, mainstream Christian counseling association has banned ‘ex-gay’ therapy exposes the lie perpetuated by anti-gay factions that this is somehow an issue of religious freedom,” said Truth Wins Out Executive Director Wayne Besen. “This group demonstrates that religious faith can peacefully coexist with respect for science and a commitment to giving patients the best care possible, and as such, we applaud them.”
More and more Christians around the world are standing up to proclaim that their religious faith is not synonymous with quack science or anti-gay bigotry. As the NALT Christians Project and a groundswell of activism inside the church show, Christians are ready to stand up with the message that their religious faith is in no way threatened by equal rights and acceptance for LGBT people. Truth Wins Out encourages all those concerned with these decisions not to be swayed by claims that anti-gay religious counselors should have a special pass to harm their clients, based on their sincerely held religious beliefs.
The science has long been in on efforts to change a person’s sexual orientation through therapy and prayer. Truth Wins Out recently launched a comprehensive website, LGBTScience.org, where the leading experts on sexual orientation and gender identity are on record explaining current scientific consensus on these issues and the evidence against “ex-gay” or “reparative” therapy. Lawmakers and professional associations are encouraged to utilize this resource when debating this question, for the sake of quality mental health care for all patients.
“The Association Of Christian Counselors knows that the science is conclusive, and their religious faith motivates them to ensure that they give their patients the best, most scientifically sound treatment available,” said Truth Wins Out Associate Director Evan Hurst. “We should only hope that this decision reverberates throughout the faith-based counseling community until the day that no person’s life is ruined by these harmful quack therapies.”
Truth Wins Out encourages the similarly-named American Association of Christian Counselors, strong advocates of “ex-gay” torture, to abandon their anti-scientific extremism and follow the lead of their esteemed colleagues in Britain by ceasing all therapies which cannot be justified without completely disregarding the exhortation, “First, do no harm.”
Truth Wins Out (TWO) is a non-profit organization that works to demolish the very foundation of anti-gay prejudice. Our philosophy is simple: We attack the underpinnings of homophobia by debunking harmful lies, discrediting hateful myths, and countering anti-gay organizations. By chipping away at the underlying ignorance that fuels anti-LGBT attitudes, we can ultimately win our fight for fairness and achieve full equality for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people worldwide.
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