impossible and harmful
Folks, this is HUGE NEWS.
In a move that serves as a significant blow to "ex-gay" programs and
anti-gay organizations, Dr. Robert Spitzer repudiated his
much-criticized 2001 study that claimed some "highly motivated"
homosexuals could go from gay to straight. His retraction occurred in
an American Prospect magazine article that hit newsstands today.
Spitzer's rejection of his own research, which was originally
published in the Archives of Sexual Behavior, is a devastating blow to
"ex-gay" organizations because it decisively eliminates their most
potent claim that homosexuality can be reversed through therapy and
prayer.
Dr. Spitzer's repudiation of his 2001 study is an earthquake that
severely undermines the validity of 'ex-gay' programs. Spitzer just
kicked out the final leg from the stool on which the proponents of
'ex-gay' therapy based their already shaky claims of success.
Spitzer's 2001 study was a surprise and created a media firestorm
because he had previously led the charge in 1972-73 to remove
homosexuality from the list of mental disorders in the Diagnostic and
Statistical Manual (DSM) of the American Psychiatric Association. At
the time, this was a shocking story that captured the nation's
attention. Dr. Spitzer was the last person in America one would have
expected to produce a study bolstering the claims of 'ex-gay'
activists.
According to today's American Prospect article:
"In retrospect, I have to admit I think the critiques [of my study]
are largely correct," Dr. Spitzer told the American Prospect in an
article by Gabriel Arana titled, My So Called Ex-Gay Life. "The
findings can be considered evidence for what those who have undergone
ex-gay therapy say about it, but nothing more."
He said he spoke with the editor of the Archives of Sexual Behavior
about writing a retraction, but the editor declined. (Repeated
attempts to contact the journal went unanswered.)
Spitzer said that he was proud of having been instrumental in removing
homosexuality from the list of mental disorders. Now 80 and retired,
he was afraid that the 2001 study would tarnish his legacy and perhaps
hurt others. He said that failed attempts to rid oneself of homosexual
attractions "can be quite harmful." He has, though, no doubts about
the 1973 fight over the classification of homosexuality.
"Had there been no Bob Spitzer, homosexuality would still have
eventually been removed from the list of psychiatric disorders," he
said. "But it wouldn't have happened in 1973."
Spitzer was growing tired and asked how many more questions I had.
Nothing, I responded, unless you have something to add. He did. Would
I print a retraction of his 2001 study, "So I don't have to worry
about it anymore"?
Dr. Spitzer's research was particularly harmful because he was the
only non-socially conservative scientist to produce a study claiming
some people could "pray away the gay."
"This man is an atheist, so he's not Bible thumping and doesn't have
an ax to grind," said Greg Quinlan, President of Parents and Friends
of Ex-Gays (PFOX), in an October 7, 2011 interview on NewsPlus with
Mark Segraves. "He just decided, let's talk about this ex-gay thing
and see if it's true. And he has concluded it can be true for people
who are highly motivated to change." PFOX currently has a video of Dr.
Spitzer on the front page of its website.
Virtually every anti-gay organization in the country quotes Dr.
Spitzer's work. (Here are a few examples) It will be an integrity test
to see which groups remove citations of his work in the coming week.
Those who continue to use his study to back their agenda are
deliberately misleading people and we intend to hold them accountable.
In our view, the Archives of Sexual Behavior should honor Dr.
Spitzer's wishes and retract his study. They have an ethical and moral
obligation to act as quickly as possible to right this terrible wrong
that has fueled anti-gay campaigns for more than a decade.
Not one mainstream organization of medical and mental health
professionals has found any evidence to support so-called "ex-gay"
therapy; in fact, the evidence they have found suggests that it can
actually be harmful to patients.
--
Together, we can change the world, one mind at a time.
Have a great day,
Tommy
--
Together, we can change the world, one mind at a time.
Have a great day,
Tommy
--
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