April 6, 2009
New Hate Crimes Bill Threatens Heterosexuals
Contact: Greg Quinlan, Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays & Gays
(PFOX)
513-435-1125 PFOX@pfox.org
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Hate Crimes Bill Introduced in Congress
GAYS HATING EX-GAYS
A commentary by ex-gay Greg Quinlan
Washington D.C. - April 7, 2009/ What happens when ex-gays dare to
come out of the closet? When I helped staff the exhibit booth
for the Ex-Gay Educators Caucus at the National Education
Association conference in June 2006, Wayne Besen, the former
spokesperson for the gay Human Rights Campaign, approached our booth
and began to insult us for having the audacity to live as
heterosexuals. He took photos of our booth for his ex-gay
bashing website which targets the ex-gay community for ridicule and
harassment. Mr. Besen and gay rights organizations do not
believe ex-gays are entitled to the same rights and respect that
gays currently enjoy. They picket ex-gay conferences and
protest vigorously against ex-gay equal access.
In his continuing zeal to discredit the ex-gay community, Besen
likes to bully ex-gays by insisting that we still look "gay."
When he was Director of Communications for the Human Rights
Campaign, Besen delighted in telling me to "butch up" so "normal
people" wouldn't think I'm still "gay." See his emails for
yourself at
http://pfox.org/Human-Rights-Campaign-Hate-Against-Ex-Gays.pdf
At the conference, Besen stuck his finger in my face and called me
a "fu*king faggot," "fu*king cocksu*ker," "fu*king fag bastard,"
"fu*king nellie fairy," and so on. I guess he skipped the
tolerance class where school kids learn to appreciate diversity and
gays. "You're still having gay sex," he yelled at me. We
had to call security to escort him out of the convention hall
because we were scared for our safety.
Hate against ex-gays like me is all too common. What's going
to happen when Congress passes the national Hate Crimes Prevention
Act for gays? It was introduced last week in the House of
Representatives by Rep. John Conyers (D-MI) and Rep. Mark Kirk
(R-IL).
With their hate officially protected by law, gay rights groups will force ex-gays into the closet. Homosexuals will determine heterosexuality by censoring any ex-gay speech or behavior they disagree with as "hateful," "discriminatory," "intimidation," "bullying," "dangerous," or leading to "spiritual and physical violence." We know because this is what they already label us. Fighting "hate" and "discrimination" against gays has become a euphemism for attacks against ex-gays and their supporters.
Think twice, America. Do you want to give gay activists like Besen the right to hate under the guise of a "civil rights" protection? Besen has now aligned himself with Lambda Legal, the nation's oldest and largest attorneys group "working for the civil rights of lesbians and gay men." Lambda Legal has offices and lawyers across the country.
While you still can, please stand up for the equal rights of the
ex-gay community. Unpopular minorities like former homosexuals
deserve the right to be free and out in society. The violence
and hate spewed against heterosexuals after they voted against
genderless marriage last fall is proof that a politically powerful
and wealthy group like homosexuals can scare us into silence.
Let's not be silent.
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See http://pfox.org/about_us.html for more information about the ex-gay community.
Greg Quinlan is a director of Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays & Gays (PFOX).
Mr. Quinlan is available for media interviews at 513-435-1125 or pfox@pfox.org