'Ex-gay' group found guilty of consumer fraud, must refund thousands of dollars

Ex-gay group JONAH  found guilty of consumer fraud

And another nail has been hammered into the coffin of "ex-gay" therapy.

 From The Washington Blade:

A New Jersey jury on Thursday found a group that promotes so-called “conversion therapy” guilty of committing consumer fraud under state law. The verdict came in a case brought against Jews Offering New Alternatives for Healing in 2012 on behalf of four men who underwent “conversion therapy.” The Southern Poverty Law Center, which filed the lawsuit, argued JONAH violated New Jersey’s consumer fraud law with its claims that gay men could become straight. The Associated Press reported jury awarded the remaining three plaintiffs and two parents $72,000.

“This verdict is a monumental moment in the movement to ensure the rights and acceptance of LGBT people in America,” said Southern Poverty Law Center Deputy Legal Director David Dinielli, the lead attorney for the plaintiffs. “Conversion therapy and homophobia are based on the same central lie — that gay people are broken and need to be fixed. Conversion therapists, including the defendants in this case, sell fake cures that don’t work and can seriously harm the unsuspecting people who fall into this trap.”

And Buzzfeed:

Filed in 2012, the complaint said that the young men were required to stand naked as part of their therapy and, in one exercise, were told to wrestle away oranges representing testicles from each other. In another exercise, a client said he beat an effigy of his mother with a tennis racket until his hands bled.

In February, Hudson County Superior Court Judge Peter Bariso Jr ruled in a pre-trial decision that the jury could not hear testimony from conversion therapy proponents, including Joseph Nicolosi and Christopher Doyle, who argued that homosexuality is a disorder.

“[T]he theory that homosexuality is a disorder is not novel but — like the notion that the earth is flat and the sun revolves around it — instead is outdated and refuted,” Bariso ruled at the time.

The jury’s verdict found that JONAH must refund thousands of dollars paid by former clients for violating New Jersey’s Consumer Fraud Act, NJ.com reported.

'Plantiff couples await SCOTUS marriage ruling' & other Thur. midday news briefs

Bayard Rustin

Plaintiff couples on pins and needles awaiting ruling - Still no ruling from SCOTUS on marriage equality and we are ALL - including the plantiff couples - on pins and needles.

 Iowa's Görtz Haus Learns That Refusing To Host Gay Weddings Is Bad For Business - Of course we will probably be blamed for this. Sorry but you can force folks to use a business.  

Logo Honors Civil Rights Leader Bayard Rustin At 2015 Trailblazer Honors - That's right! And keep those honors coming! Bayard Rustin should be honored continuously! 

Stonewall Inn granted landmark status by New York commission - Sweet! Now we need some Southern lgbt landmarks thrown in the mix.

  Kyrgyz Lawmakers Overwhelmingly Support Moving “Gay Propaganda” Ban Forward - Ugh. This isn't good! 

 Barber: Gay Rights Activists Are 'Pawns' Of Satan - Ah yes. There is that repulsive homophobia which I miss . . .

When gays say 'equality,' some conservatives can't help but to think of sexual intercourse

You ever notice how so many times when we talk about lgbt equality, anti-gay figures always try to make the conversation about gay men having sex?

Check out this snippet of an interview between Al Jazeera America anchor David Shuster and Cathie Adams, former Texas GOP head. Adams is attempting to justify the discredited the idea of "ex-gay therapy."

The portion beginning at 3:55 simply boggles the mind. Shuster is biting his lip so hard to keep from laughing that he should have just done it :

Editor's note - I apologize for the fact that the video has been taken down. Please try this link, courtesy of my buddy, Richard Sparrow:

 http://america.aljazeera.com/watch/shows/Ali-Velshi-On-Target/2015/6/why-i-endorse-gay-conversion-therapy.html

'Alan Keyes blames gays for Charleston Massacre' & other Wed. midday news briefs

I should have titled this post  'Alan Keyes is an idiot.'

Alan Keyes Suggests Charleston Massacre Was Gay Rights Terrorism - So Alan Keyes is linking Dylan Roof, that awful man who initiated the shootings in Charleston, to lgbt equality? What the @!#%!*!!!! 

Family Acceptance Is The Biggest Factor For Positive LGBT Youth Outcomes, Study Finds - And that's just common sense.  

FRC flat-out lies about Gen X and marriage equality; typical but no less egregious - The Family Research Council is caught lying (it's like always for this group).  

Annual Black Pride Festival Takes on New Urgency in Wake of Charleston Shootings - SC Black Pride is holding its 10th anniversary. It's sweet that an organization I helped start is still going strong and especially poignant this week.

 Feds Order Federal Employee Health Plans To Cover Transgender Health Services - Because it's the right thing to do.

Conservatives attempting to piggyback on Charleston tragedy to attack gays

The recent events in Charleston are bad enough. Unfortunately, Bryan Fischer and a few other anti-gay conservatives are attempting to make things worse by tying in the move to remove Confederate flags from places of honor at state houses to attacks on gays. They are claiming that the rainbow flag represents anti-Christian hate and should also be removed:

I am not aware of any rainbow flags flying at state houses but making ridiculous assertions has never stopped Bryan Fischer. And as The New Civil Rights Movement points out, Fischer is not the only conservative exploiting Charleston to attack gays:

'Anti-gay right moving to drama queen mode, Huckabee becoming delusional,' & other Tues midday news briefs

Mike Huckabee

Martyrdom And Dominion: Religious Right Conference Prepares For A 'Spiritual Battle' Against Gay Marriage - As we move closer to the POSSIBILITY of 50 state marriage equality, the religious right is moving into getting serious drama queen mode and are also getting confused. They don't know whether to become martyrs or attempt to take "total control." I personally wish they would make up their minds. 

 
‘One Million Moms’ attacks LGBT-inclusive Chobani, Tylenol pride month ads - These ads contained no nudity, nothing of a sexual nature, and profanity or violence. They just simply acknowledged that gay couples are raising children. OH YEAH. Pass the pitchfork.

  No, High Suicide Rates Do Not Demonstrate That Transgender People Are Mentally Ill - Zack Ford of Think Progress refutes some serious nonsense.  

Huckabee Announces Support For Term Limits – For Supreme Court Justices - Mike Huckabee has it confused. To be president, you must convince voters that you have the best plan for the country. It's not a race regarding how many times you show your ignorance.  

Mike Huckabee Pledges To Block Gay Marriage If Elected President - Doesn't mean that Huckabee won't try, though.

Disgustingly anti-gay documentary has an atrocious theme song to match

In several posts, People for the American Way's Right Wing Watch has been chronicling a wacky and vile anti-gay documentary by infamous activist Janet Porter.

This documentary ironically called "Light Wins" features Republican presidential candidates Mike Huckabee and Rand Paul, as well as lots of discredited information such as the work of anti-gay activists John R. Diggs and David Barton.

Central to this documentary, as with anything anti-gay,  is the claim that gays are wanting to recruit children. The following is a clip featuring that madness:

And hold on to yourselves. This documentary has its own theme song, which is as bad as the documentary itself:



How in the hell is someone supposed to "tootsie roll" to that?