Twelfth researcher complains about religious right distortion of her work

Rick Fitzgibbons is accused of distorting research

Another researcher has come out complaining about how a religious right "expert" distorted her work to stigmatize the lgbtq community.

According to Box Turtle Bulletin, Rick Fitzgibbons of  the NARTH (the National Association of Research and Therapy of Homosexuality) wrote a piece about same-sex adoption. In the piece, Fitzgibbons cited the work of Seton Hall professor Dr. Theodora Sirota to make the case that children in same sex households are not raised better than children "in stable homes with a mother and a father."

However, according to Sirota, Fitzgibbons misused her work. You can read the letter here, but Box Turtle Bulletin breaks the distortion down nicely:

To support his denunciation of same-sex adoption, Fitzgibbons offers this summary of Sirota’s research:

Researchers interviewed 68 women with gay or bisexual fathers and 68 women with heterosexual fathers. The women (average age 29 in both groups) with gay or bisexual fathers had difficulty with adult attachment issues in three areas: they were less comfortable with closeness and intimacy; they were less able to trust and depend on others; and they experienced more anxiety in relationships compared to the women raised by heterosexual fathers.

The problem is not with what Fitzgibbons said; it’s what he left out: The gay and bisexual fathers in Sirota’s study were married to the mothers.

Dr. Sirota’s article is about the impact of a homosexual father raising a girl in a heterosexual marriage. It has nothing to do with same-sex couples, nothing to do with same-sex adoption at all.

Or as Dr. Sirota says in her letter:

  . . .  no conclusions about gay or lesbian fitness to adopt children or quality of active gay parenting can be drawn from the findings of my research. No conclusions about the well-being of children who are or were actively raised by gay or lesbian parents can be drawn from the findings of my research.”

While NARTH is looked upon as experts on the lgbtq community in religious right circles,  the mainstream scientific community pretty much ignores the groups's research and with good reason.

The website Truth Wins Out calls NARTH  a discredited “ex-gay” fringe organization that peddles fraudulent “cures” for homosexuality.

According to Truth Wins Out, several NARTH members have been embroiled in controversies including:

Gerald Schoenwolf, PhD, a member of NARTH’ “Scientific Advisory Committee,” who wrote a piece on the group’s website that seemed to justify slavery

NARTH psychiatrist Joseph Berger, MD, another member of its “Scientific Advisory Committee,” who wrote a paper encouraging students to “ridicule” gender variant children.

Also, according to Truth Wins Out:

NARTH’ co-founder, Joesph Nicolosi encourages male clients to become more masculine by drinking Gatorade and referring to friends as “dude”. NARTH therapists have been known to practice rubber band therapy, where a gay client is made to wear a rubber band and snap it on his wrist when sexually stimulated. It is a mild form of aversion therapy meant to “snap” the client out of the moment of attraction. NARTH members have also been known to practice “touch therapy”, where a client sits in the therapist’ lap for up to an hour, while the therapist caresses him.

In 2010, another member of NARTH, George Rekers, resigned from the organization after caught coming from a vacation overseas with a "rentboy."

Unfortunately the distortion of legitimate scientific work by religious right experts is not done solely by NARTH. Other groups have gotten into trouble over this sadly overlooked aspect of the so-called culture wars. Over the years, there have been 11 other complaints from researchers about how their work was being distorted by religious right and so-called "pro-family" groups, including:

National Institute of Health director Francis Collins, who rebuked the right-wing American College of Pediatricians for falsely claiming that he stated sexual orientation is not hardwired by DNA.

Six researchers of a 1997 Canadian study (Robert S. Hogg, Stefan A. Strathdee, Kevin J.P. Craib, Michael V. Shaughnessy, Julio Montaner, and Martin T. Schehter), who complained in 2001 that religious right groups were distorting their work to claim that gay men have a short life span.

The authors of the book Unequal Opportunity: Health Disparities Affecting Gay and Bisexual Men in the United States (Professors Richard J. Wolitski, Ron Stall, and Ronald O. Valdiserri), who complained that their work was being distorted by Focus on the Family.

University College London professor Michael King, who complained that the American Family Association was distorting his work on depression and suicide in LGBT individuals

University of Utah professor Lisa Diamond, who complained that NARTH (the National Association of Research and Therapy of Homosexuality), a group which also share board members with the American College of Pediatricians, distorted her research on sexual orientation.

Dr. Carol Gilligan, Professor of Education and Law at New York University, who complained that former Focus on the Family head James Dobson misrepresented her research to attack LGBT families.

Dr. Kyle Pruett, Ph.D., a professor of child psychiatry at the Yale School of Medicine, who has also complained that Focus on the Family distorted his work.

Dr. Robert Spitzer, Professor of Psychiatry at Columbia University, who has consistently complained that religious right groups distorted his study to claim that the LGBT orientation is easily changeable.

 Judith Stacey, Professor of Sociology at New York University, who has had to, on more than one occasion, cry foul over how religious right groups distorted her work on LGBT families.

Greg Remafedi, Professor  at the University of Minnesota, who has complained several times about how religious right groups such as the American College of Pediatricians and PFOX have distorted his work, all to no avail. The American College of Pediatricians refused his request to remove his work from their site.

In 2010, John Horgan, a science journalist and Director of the Center for Science Writings at the Stevens Institute of Technology, became the 11th researcher to complain.

Last year, Tom Minnery, a spokesman from Focus on the Family, was dressed down by Sen. Al Franken (D-MN) during a Congressional hearing for deliberately misrepresenting a study. Minnery initially used the study to claim, as Fitzgibbons did in his misrepresentation, that same-sex households are inferior to two parent mother/father households.

'Good riddance, Michele Bachmann' and other Wednesday midday news briefs

After Bruising Loss In Iowa, Bachmann Bows Out - I personally never really shared the amusement of Bachmann that my fellow bloggers did. To me, she proved that demagogues come in both sexes. A hateful woman who didn't care if what she said wasn't true and when told of the fact, she doubled down on the lie. Now if only she would leave Congress.

Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire To Endorse Marriage Equality - Not bad at all.

They've tossed more stones than Bedrock's head contractor. Our agenda: Surviving that. - You know for all of the talk coming from the religious right about how "gays have plotted to take over America," I have yet to see any concrete proof from them and I have YET to get any orders from "national gay headquarters."

Florida Appeals Court Rules That Both Lesbian Moms Have Parental Rights - A victory which should not be overlooked.

Proposed Bill Would Permit Christian Students to Bully Gays in Tennessee: VIDEO - Ugh!

Alabama Crimson Tide Site's 'Hey Homeauxs' T-Shirt For Louisiana State University BCS Game Sparks Controversy - This t-shirt is a hot mess and a half.

NOM anoints Santorum as 'Catholic hero'

Regardless of who won the primary last night - Romney actually won by eight votes but Santorum got the momentum, the National Organization for Marriage is patting itself on the back for supposedly contributing to Ron Paul's third place victory.

NOM ran several ads against Paul because he would not sign its silly marriage pledge. Today, the organization is crowing hard:

NOM congratulates Rick Santorum and Mitt Romney for their photo-finish in Iowa. Both these candidates, along with Newt Gingrich, Rick Perry and Michele Bachmann are champions for traditional marriage. It’s especially satisfying to see Senator Santorum, a longtime friend and champion for the family, come from behind to mount such a successful campaign. The strong showing by both Santorum and Romney shows that supporting marriage is not only the right thing to do, it is the politically smart thing to do. This is a lesson that Ron Paul may be learning the hard way. Paul suffered a big loss by finishing third in Iowa, a state he was expecting to win. NOM aired television and online ads that were highly critical of Paul’s unacceptable stance on marriage, including his belief that civil marriage should be abolished altogether. No doubt our ads, along with tens of thousands of telephone calls and grassroots work with our thousands of supporters in Iowa were a factor in Ron Paul’s poor showing. We will continue to point out Paul’s unacceptable views on marriage to voters in upcoming states.”

Actually the idea that Paul was supposed to win isn't necessarily true. Romney was ahead in the polls.

But we know that ignoring the truth is a NOM specialty.

Now aside from the self-back slapping, NOM is also taking time out to declare Santorum as the next big thing. Try not to get nauseated as you read the following from former NOM head Maggie Gallagher calling Santorum a Catholic hero:

Rick Santorum gave a magnificent speech tonight. It was an expression, a flowering in a way I do not think America has seen in my lifetime of Catholic culture. He made his economic message more than a question of self-interest -- he made it a moral cause. He connected the dignity of every human life, with the dignity not only of work, but every human being who is made in the image of his Creator to be a creator -- a worker, and not just a consumer.

God bless him, God bless him. This is a serious fight.

Not to be outdone, another NOM employee - Thomas Peters (who wrote that ill-timed column claiming that the marriage equality push failed in NY days before it actually passed) said the following:

For many voters, tonight was the first time they got a chance to see Rick Santorum as a real contender, after he has spent the past months quietly canvassing every county in Iowa. Tonight viewers of his speech were reminded that hard work and aspiration pay off. Santorum said tonight he learned these essential lessons from the example of his grandfather and father.

He was inspiring, effective, while sounding fully like himself. He contrasted his positions with both the Democrat and Republican establishment, arguing that "cutting taxes is not enough." He offered more: for America to reach its full potential, he said, it must embrace the values that made it into the great country it is. American values, Santorum said, which are not shared by those who currently occupy the White House.

What tripe. Of course Peters - and Gallagher for that matter - don't have to worry about paying taxes or the economy because they are the beneficiaries of an obscenely huge amount of money funneled into their pockets by anonymous sources for being self-proclaimed "moral defenders" of the family.

However, the rest of us normal, ordinary folks - particularly the lgbtqs whom Santorum has waged war with over the years - aren't impressed.

You can't get the vast majority of us to vote for Santorum on a bet. That's not to say that he doesn't have his uses, however.

He certainly wiped the "I'm inevitable" smile off of Romney's face.

New Hampshire newspaper - 'Don't mess with marriage'

The National Organization for Marriage loves to push the mantra "don't mess with marriage" as a way of falsely claiming that gays want to disrupt the institution.

However, according to Think Progress, the mantra has been turned not only on NOM but others who would supports its efforts:

The GOP presidential race will shift to New Hampshire after today’s Iowa caucuses, where Republicans in the legislature and Catholic leaders have pledged to repeal the state’s 2009 marriage equality law — despite overwhelming public support for the measure. This morning, the state’s leading newspaper, the Concord Monitor, debunks the arguments against same-sex marriage and calls on lawmakers to “leave the law alone“:

• Marriage is between one man and one woman. This is more of a declaration than an actual argument. In fact, it’s a declaration of bigotry. After all, who gets to define marriage? Those already married? Without a compelling reason to deny marriage to gay people, a statement like this is hard to take seriously.

• But marriage has been restricted to heterosexuals for thousands of years. Many traditions outlive their usefulness. Slavery was an ancient practice too, after all. So was barring women from participation in politics. Once upon a time, people with disabilities were routinely locked away in institutions. Mercifully, times change.

• Marriage is for procreation. In many cases, yes. But infertile, straight couples marry all the time. So do those uninterested in having kids. Those past their child-bearing years aren’t forced to divorce. Having children isn’t the only thing that brings couples together.

• Same-sex couples don’t do as good a job raising children. There are all sorts of good parents and, alas, a wide variety of bad ones, too. Sexual orientation has nothing to do with it. Nor is there a legislative push to ban other sorts of truly bad parents – child molesters, bank robbers – from marrying. No doubt each of New Hampshire’s 424 legislators has among his or her constituents gay couples raising children just fine. Examples that disprove this worry are easy to find.

You really should read the rest of the editorial. It is a definite take down of all of the phony arguments against marriage equality

'Bachmann won't talk about anti-gay comments' and other Tuesday midday news briefs

Bachmann Refuses To Explain Past Anti-Gay Comments - Come on Michele. Whatever happened to that titanium spine.

NOM, while calling us Soros-funded elites, continues to spend money like its water - Naturally NOM won't disclose anything about ITS finances.

Delaware Welcomes First Civil Unions - That's Delaware AND Hawaii.

Spain's First Gay Retirement Home Represents LGBT Rebellion Of Older Generation - Interesting story.

NOM thrilled with Santorum's momentum

By tomorrow morning, the Iowa Republican caucus will be over and my head will stop throbbing from overkill.

The big story seems to be Rick Santorum (who probably never met a same-sex relationship or family he approved of) is moving up in the polls. I refuse to say "surging" because that term has been overused as it is.

It's looking like this uptick is due to Romney still making folks uneasy and how Santorum appeals to the so-called evangelical crowd.

And the one group who seems to be thrilled for Santorum is the National Organization for Marriage. Check out its last five posts:

Perry Launches Anti-Santorum Radio Ad in Iowa

Santorum on the Campaign Trail: America Needs One Marriage Law

Santorum's Fundraising Soars Along With His Poll Numbers

Santorum: GOP's Man of the Moment

In Last Iowa Poll, Santorum Voters Most Committed

Don't be fooled by NOM's "Santorum fever." He is clearly the flavor of the month (like Herman Cain, Michele Bachmann, Rick Perry, etc.,etc). Regardless of how he does in Iowa, it will be his single moment in the sun.

And when Santorum's moment is up, count on NOM to slink to the candidate in the lead while omitting it supported anyone else.

Know Your LGBT History - The Lion in Winter

One of the wildest, mind blowing experiences I ever had was attempting to watch the motion picture The Lion in Winter (1968) for the first time.

It was originally a 1966 play which was made into a motion picture starring Peter O'Toole and Katherine Hepburn. It received three Oscars, including one for Hepburn for Best Actress. From Wikipedia:

Set during Christmas 1183 at Henry II of England's château in Chinon, Anjou, Angevin Empire, the play opens with the arrival of Henry's wife Eleanor of Aquitaine, whom he has had imprisoned since 1173. The story concerns the gamesmanship between Henry, Eleanor, their three surviving sons Richard, Geoffrey, and John, their guest, Philip II of France (the son of Eleanor's ex-husband, Louis VII of France), and Philip's half-sister, Alais, who has been at court since she was betrothed to Richard at age 8, but has since become Henry's mistress.

The Lion In Winter was a classic example of palace intrigue done in hyper mode. There are so many twists and turns that it would be best for one not to root for one character because the character would veer off in another direction and betray your sympathies by revealing themselves to be cold and venomous.

The scene below is a perfect example of this. King Philip (Timothy Dalton) and King Henry are bartering over allegiances and property. Henry outmaneuvers Philip, or so he thinks.

Philip has one trump card he plays - his relationship with Henry's son, Richard. It's a nasty scene. Imagine entering into a gay affair just so that you could use it to hurt the man's father in the future:




Historically, it is not known whether or not Richard (who later became Richard the Lion-Hearted) and Philip had an affair. However, history does hint that Richard have been bisexual at the very least.


Past Know Your LGBT History posts: