This is “Love in Action,” an anti-gay camp for teens to find Jesus and change their sinful sinful ways.
And these are the thoughts of a 16 year old boy, who doesn’t want to be a part of it, who came out to his parents only to be thrown into the program with the ultimate goal of brainwashing out the gay.
The camp rules are posted, and it’s just fucking sick. It’s brainwashing, it’s child abuse, it’s fucking INSANE and I wish that it was illegal so these fucked up misguided assholes he calls mom and dad could be locked away for attempting to emotionally DESTROY their child.
Just because you wrap it up in bible quotes doesn’t mean it isn’t intended to harm. The entire goal of this brainwashing scheme is to take away what matters most. No communication with any friends, no keeping a journal, no “false images” that could at all remind you or relate to your previous (read: happy) life, no physical contact with anyone aside from polite professional handshakes.
These cruel sick fucks think that it’s ok to take a CHILD, a fucking child who says NO and break him, fuck him up mentally and emotionally until he is weak and powerless, crush his soul and leave an empty sad shell of a person that they can implant their BULLSHIT anti-gay rhetoric in and send on his way.
They’re going to murder him. They’re going to kill everything that made him who he was. I hope his parents and everyone brainwashing kids in this sick cult fucking roast.
Is there any civil-rights related legal recourse for older teens who’re involuntarily placed in such programs? If so, I’d love to donate to a group that provides it.
I’d like to think that teens old enough to be emancipated from their parents would be given that opportunity, but my guess is that they don’t even get a chance.
I don’t know specifically what civil rights groups would take an active stand against this kind of thing, but if anyone does please let me know as well. I hope that just having people be aware that this kind of thing is going on will build more opposition to it.
Apparently, there are already daily protests at the camp in Zach’s case, but the really sad thing is that most cases don’t even get this much attention.
Has anyone ever seen that Mr. Show skit where they try to convince David Cross’ character that he doesn’t have to be gay? It’s very funny if you ever get the chance to see it.
I think these camps are really stupid, but I can understand the goals of the parents, however misguided they may be. If you really thought something your child was doing was going to condemn them to hell, wouldn’t you try to change it? That being said, it’s still a stupid and wrong thing to do.
Some people shouldn’t be parents, I suppose. Thankfully, there ARE protests. If theres enough publicity, you think Randall Terry might show up? :dubious:
Sorry. It’s a widely-repeated attribution by LIA survivor Tom Ottosen, from this article. Smid denies he said it. (Counselling suicide is a crime, after all.) He doesn’t deny the “better off dead” gist of it, though:
I think, brickbacon, that the parents’ motivation isn’t salvation for their kids, it’s that being gay is evil (actually, according to the LiA site, there is no such thing as being gay in the first place). It’s much more about denial and coming up with a way to not have to deal with a family member who is gay than it is about helping or saving the kid.
[/armchair psychologist]
You may be right, however I think there are some people who genuinely believe being gay is a sin that can be corrected. It’s delusional, but they think they are trying to help.
I want to go find this kid and offer him my parents, who (even though all their kids are straight) would love him and show him what Christian love actually is. Which, um, incidentally, is not all about the hate.
I also would like to go have a chat with his parents. Just talk. All rational-like. I promise.
Yeah. As soon as I read it, part of my brain started trying to convince me that a road trip to Tennessee was totally doable… then I saw that the program started on Monday. Goddamnit.
What exactly are the rights of teenagers in these situations?
Do they not have a right to decide their own religious thoughts, or to write in a journal or alk to friends? They haven’t committed any crime, after all. Do these camps actually have a legal right to deprive kids of their basic civil rights?
You know, I was going to suggest that. But in all seriousness, even if he tried it, it wouldn’t solve the underlying problem. Who knows what his parents would do to him then.
This is basically a boot camp. The basic rules and regs (hygiene, daily schedule and so forth) are not overly strict, if we were talking about delinquent kids who need to get their act together.
But this isn’t that. Presumably, the kids who are sent to this place haven’t been in any trouble with the law or at school. But they’re being treated like criminals just because they’re gay. I also wonder if they have any legal rights. Probably not, though.
Reading his blog, I think he has a chance. It will hurt, and he will have to deal with a lot of shit – but he sounds like a fighter, that boy, and it doesn’t seem as though he’ll break that easily. And he’s got people down at their gate every day making a joyful noise.
I truly hope that the love and support he’s getting on that blog from angry, righteous Queers and allies shields his heart and gives him strength.
From what I posted to his blog:
The sad part, of course, is that not all of this place’s inmates are probably as sure of themselves as he seems to be – and some of them will no doubt fall into the chasm.
