Delegate Patrick Hope
Encourages Virginia Lawmakers To Keep Fighting For Bill Until It Passes
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CHICAGO — Truth Wins Out today expressed disappointment that a Virginia bill intended to protect minors from the quack science of “ex-gay” therapy failed to be voted out of a House subcommittee. The bill was introduced by Virginia Delegate Patrick Hope, motivated by the scientific consensus that such “therapies” are not only ineffective, but also often quite harmful. Delegate Hope has promised that he will continue to fight to protect Virginia’s children until the bill becomes law.
“This is a minor setback on the inevitable road to eradicating this verifiably harmful practice,” said Truth Wins Out Executive Director Wayne Besen. “We encourage Delegate Hope and like-minded legislators to keep pushing this vital legislation until Virginia’s time comes. As people become more educated on the disastrous effects of ‘ex-gay’ therapy, all responsible legislators will seek to protect Virginia’s children first and foremost by banning this practice.”
The science has long been in on so-called “sexual orientation change efforts,” and those who suggest otherwise are simply misleading people. Truth Wins Out recently launched a comprehensive website, LGBTScience.org, which explains, clearly and in detail, the settled scientific consensus on sexuality and “reparative” or “ex-gay” therapy. We encourage lawmakers in Virginia and other places considering such laws to study the real science, and not to be swayed by charlatans who are paid to tell people they’re no longer gay.
Christopher Doyle, a paid “ex-gay” activist, testified against the Virginia bill, muddying the waters of a settled debate with quack science and questionable testimony. Doyle, who shows up to testify against these bills often, consistently fails to mention in his professional credentials that he has admitted to attempting to molest children in the daycare his mother ran when he was ten years old. Truth Wins Out believes lawmakers would benefit from knowing Doyle’s entire story.
Similar laws have passed in California and New Jersey and bills are currently being advanced in Maryland, New York and Minnesota. Moreover, when anti-gay activists have sought to overturn such bills in the court system, judges have found the laws to be both constitutional and responsible.
“Closer examination of the people fighting against laws to protect kids from the barbarism of ‘ex-gay’ therapy shows that, far from being qualified mental health professionals, they’re exactly the kinds of people lawmakers should want to protect kids from,” said Truth Wins Out Associate Director Evan Hurst. “Even one more horror story from a survivor of such abuse is too many. We applaud those lawmakers taking action to protect kids all across America, and encourage them to continue the fight until the work is done.”
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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