Re: Dr. Robert Spitzer retracts and rejects "ex-gay" conversion as impossible and harmful

In our view, the Archives of Sexual Behavior should honor Dr.
Spitzer's wishes and retract his study.
---
and put homosexuality back on the mental disorder list?

just kidding ... homos are probably born that way

On Apr 11, 11:38 am, Tommy News <tommysn...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Dr. Robert Spitzer retracts and rejects "ex-gay" conversion as
> 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.
>
> More:http://campaign.r20.constantcontact.com/render?llr=gow5fgcab&v=0014Vp...
>
> --
> 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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