This just in from the Ex-Gay Survivor Conference's Film Forum. Morgan Fox of the Queer Action Coalition screened an extended trailer of his up coming documentary film that chronicles the 2005 protests of Love in Action's Refuge program. Refuge was designed for quuer youth under 18, many of whom have been forced to attend by their parents. The protest got sparked when 16 year old Zach Stark blooged about how his parents forced him to attend Refuge's summer program. That entry created a storm of grass roots youth activism and international media attention.
Tonight Morgan made a very important announcement that he included at the end of his trailer. He met with John SmidM director of LIA and confirmed that the Refuge program had been "disolved" which is a fancy way of saying that it shut down, closed, ended and is no more!
As we watched Morgan's clips many of us wept. One person in attendance actually attended LIA that summer during the protests but was never able to read what the signs said. The love he saw moved him to tears.
This is HUGE news. Congratulations to the QAC for all their fine and careful activism. As we commemorate the two year anniversary of the 2005 protests, we truly have something to celebrate.
Wiilie Hewes! Bruce Garrett! I know you understand how wonderful this news is.
Thank you Morgan. Even though you could not attend the Ex-Gay Survivor Conference, your film clips and your announcement gave us such hope and joy.
Tonight Morgan made a very important announcement that he included at the end of his trailer. He met with John SmidM director of LIA and confirmed that the Refuge program had been "disolved" which is a fancy way of saying that it shut down, closed, ended and is no more!
As we watched Morgan's clips many of us wept. One person in attendance actually attended LIA that summer during the protests but was never able to read what the signs said. The love he saw moved him to tears.
This is HUGE news. Congratulations to the QAC for all their fine and careful activism. As we commemorate the two year anniversary of the 2005 protests, we truly have something to celebrate.
Wiilie Hewes! Bruce Garrett! I know you understand how wonderful this news is.
Thank you Morgan. Even though you could not attend the Ex-Gay Survivor Conference, your film clips and your announcement gave us such hope and joy.
Comments
You probably know him better then anyone else posting here...or Morgan too for that matter. So I reckon you're in a better position then any of us to evaluate this news. I'd really like to know exactly what John said, when he said that refuge was no longer in operation. And...did he give a reason? Hearing his rational for it would be good.
But there is a lot more that went into it. Lots of behind the scenes discussions, internal decisions and I imagine conflicts. Real change can happen and it often takes many players each taking on a role.
When folks have come forward and shared their stories about some of what happened at Refuge--the mixing of youth with adult participants, the repressive rules, even the violence some experienced from their parents who insisted they must attend the program.
Perhaps more of these details will come to light. Some of them we have already discussed previously on this blog. The good news is that Change is Possible. It is in the best interest of young people that they do not go to a program like this, especially when forced to attend. I imagine some folks at LIA and in Exodus, folks who really care about the needs of these young people, have had something to do with this decision too.
From their site...
"Who is the Family Freedom Intensive designed for?
The workshop is designed for the parents of teens or adults who are struggling with sexual and relational sin. If a teen or adult child is willing to work on family issues, we welcome the family to participate as a group. It may be appropriate for siblings or other closely connected family members to attend also. If a son or daughter is unwilling to be here, we don't see it as productive for them to attend. In that case we encourage the parents to attend without them to focus on their own journey of healing. We pre-screen adolescent participants to make sure they are open to attending."