Guest Post by Morbo
How far gone do you have to be before the “ex-gay” movement gives you the boot? Quite far, apparently.
Consider the case of Richard Cohen. Cohen (not the syndicated columnist) spent several years being feted by the Religious Right as the ex-gay movement’s poster boy. He claimed to become straight after years of living as a gay man. Furthermore, he said he had developed a regimen to help others overcome homosexuality.
As gay-rights activist Wayne Besen notes, Cohen’s “therapy” was always a little odd: He encouraged men fighting gay urges to beat on some pillows with a tennis racket while screaming at their dads (who were not present during these sessions) for being absent or not manly enough. He also urged men to hold one another in close but non-sexual ways to learn the difference between appropriate forms of male bonding and non-appropriate forms.
Besen reports that during a 2000 meeting of the National Association for Research and Therapy of Homosexuality (NARTH) in Washington, D.C., Cohen ordered male attendees to remove their shoes and “massage each other’s backs while new age music piped through the speakers. ‘Touch, Yes! Sex, no!’ Cohen bellowed.”
Despite this bizarre behavior, Cohen remained in good standing with the ex-gay boosters of the Religious Right. He was even tapped by the mainstream media as an expert and appeared on CNN.
Besen notes that Cohen was kicked out of the American Counseling Association in 2002. Nevertheless, he continued to offer his “therapy” and seek media appearances. It all came crashing down recently after Cohen made a fatal mistake — he agreed to appear on “The Daily Show.”
If you haven’t seen this clip (“Diagnosis Mystery,” part 2), do take a look. I guarantee you it is the funniest thing you will see today.
NARTH quickly cut its ties to Cohen, and another group he had worked with, Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays, followed suit. Exodus International, the largest of the ex-gay ministries, issued a statement disavowing Cohen.
Ah, hubris! I don’t know if Cohen thought he could outsmart “The Daily Show” staff or whether he was clueless about the program’s bent, but I think we can safely mark this one down as another notch on Jon Stewart’s belt. I don’t expect Cohen will be showing his face on CNN any longer.
Looking at Cohen’s checkered career, I can only wonder what took so long.