Anti Gay Exodus Youth Turn Book Review Into Homophobic Preaching Session

If you haven’t heard of Exodus Youth, before, well congratulations. You have, until now, been lucky enough to have no traces of one of the most delightful anti gay youth organisations out there and the offspring of the even more lovely Exodus International that aims to free us all “from homosexuality through the power of Jesus Christ” .

And just in case you should need any evidence of just how homophobic they are, and how damaging this is to the LGBT youth of today then look no further than their latest blog post which is a review of a book called “You Don’t Have to Be Gay“.

Written by Jeff Konrad back in 1987, it’s taken them a little while (like 23 years) to getting round to review it, but never mind it’s important that they have eventually got round to doing it, so what do they have to say.

Well quite a lot actually, and it all wonderfully biased., because essential this isn’t a book review. This is Exodus Youth searching high and low to find a book, however old it is, that backs up their views and then adopting it as some kind of bible that speaks the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

For example this “book review” doesn’t question anything. It doesn’t analyze anything it just picks out the chunks it likes from it then uses them to push it’s message on to anyone reading it. Take for example the fourth paragraph of this “review”:

Konrad offers a glimpse into many aspects of the homosexual condition. He begins by addressing the root of the struggle, which is gender identity. Early in his book, he states that “homosexuality is but a symptom of a confused, distorted, unaffirmed gender identity, of a disturbed personality which hasn’t yet reached its maturity due to unresolved emotional turmoil and needs left unmet in the course of growing up…gender identity is our identification with our own sex, our sense of maleness and what we perceive to be masculine and feminine…it’s the perception we have of ourselves as being a male or female” (p. 34). He breaks down gender identity in a way that is clear and concise to the reader.

This paragraph has nothing to do with reviewing anything. The author of this review isn’t writing it to discuss or explore anything about the book, he’s using it to send out a message that homosexuality is a problem and something that can be cured. You know that isn’t true. I know this isn’t true. The issue is though that Exodus Youth aren’t trying to convince you or I of anything, they’re targeting themselves at a far more vulnerable group, LGBT youth. A section of our community who are going to be at their most vulnerable concerning their feelings, not only about their sexuality, but in general too. A group of people who will be looking for an answer that helps everything make sense at a time when nothing actually does, and here are Exodus Youth helpfully giving them one that doesn’t support or aid them to come to terms with their feeling, but just make a very vulnerable person suddenly feel a whole lot worse.

And their use of Konrad’s book as Exodus Youth propaganda doesn’t stop there. They then pull more and more ridiculous “evidence” out of Konrad’s book and begin quoting it like it’s the Bible, firstly on how gays choose to detach themselves from their fathers to stop them essentially from not being gay:

“Something that rang true for me while reading through the letters was Konrad saying, “homosexuals detach from their fathers to prevent further hurt and/or not to identify with them. For some this may have been an unconscious, subtle detachment. But for others, it was an overt vow not to be anything like their father” (p.46). That is what I experienced as a child with my father which helped me understand even more the struggle I had.”

Then we get more ridiculous re-confirming Konrad’s belief that gay men are gay just because they’re envious of others masculinity:

“Behind these homosexual temptations…behind these homosexual ‘orientations’…is a root problem of envy…Men who are unaffirmed in their masculinity often don’t see their own masculine traits. They see only their undesirable traits, or they’re so consumed with what they want that they don’t recognize what they have”

Which also involves some great advice on how to get in touch with your “real” not gay feelings:

“He does a fine job of providing applicable tools in how to respond to and heal from envy. One example is when he encourages Mike “to get in touch with your true feelings…If you’re walking across campus and some guy grabs your attention, analyze what you’re actually feeling…You’re now free to become the guy you’ve always wanted to be, but you must first search within yourself to see what prevented you from doing it before” (p. 198, 199).”

And then finally we round up with just how awesome this book is at curing something which isn’t actually curable because it isn’t a disease and how every” homosexual struggler” needs to own it.

Well actually Exodus Youth I think you’re wrong. I don’t think that any “homosexual struggler” should read it. I think it’s a dangerous book for anyone struggling to come to terms with sexuality they were born with. What I do though think is that everyone of us who stands up as a proud LGBT member in our community should read it, not because it’s going to change us or turn us straight, but so that unlike you we are educated in what the other side of the (non) argument about homosexuality actually is.

(You can read the review by searching for “Exodus Youth – You Don’t Have To Be Gay: A Review” – I’m not willing to give them any link love by linking up to them.)

Photo credit: Johnny Jet