A
Tennessee
teen
is
claiming
in
a
blog
that
he
was
forcibly
admitted
into
an
“ex-gay”
camp
by
his
parents
after
coming
out
as
gay,
gaining
attention
from
media
outlets
and
gay
activists.
Zach,
a
16-year-old
from
Bartlett,
Tenn.,
was
sent
to
the
camp
Refuge,
associated
with
Love
In
Action
near
Memphis
June
6
and
is
to
remain
there
at
least
until
June
20,
according
to
his
June
3
blog
entry.
Love
In
Action,
an
ex-gay
ministry,
is
accredited
by
the
ex-gay
group
Exodus
International
and
supported
by
numerous
area
churches
in
Memphis.
Officials
with
the
ministry
on
Wednesday
would
not
confirm
whether
the
teen
was
enrolled.
A
friend
contacted
by
this
newspaper
would
not
confirm
Zach’s
full
name.
His
parents
could
also
not
be
identified.
Gay
activists
tracking
the
teen’s
plight
have
organized
daily
protests
since
June
6
outside
Love
In
Action’s
facility
in
Memphis.
The
organization
scheduled
a
press
conference
for
June
16,
after
this
publication’s
press
deadline,
to
address
the
growing
controversy.
“LIA
is
calling
upon
the
community
to
extend
open-minded
consideration
and
tolerance
towards
young
people
with
same-sex
attraction
who
are
currently
undergoing
the
organization’s
youth
program
called
Refuge,”
according
to
a
press
statement
from
the
organization.
Wayne
Besen,
a
gay
author
who
tracks
the
“ex-gay”
movement,
said
the
teen
is
likely
to
experience
psychological
damage.
“This
is
significant
child
abuse,”
said
Besen,
author
of
“Anything
But
Straight:
Unmasking
the
Scandals
&
Lies
Behind
the
Ex-Gay
Myth.”
On
May
29,
the
teen
blogged
that
his
parents
sat
him
down
and
told
him
he
was
going
to
a
“fundamentalist
Christian
program
for
gays.”
“They
tell
me
that
there
is
something
psychologically
wrong
with
me,
and
they
‘raised
me
wrong.’
I’m
a
big
screw
up
to
them,
who
isn’t
on
the
path
God
wants
me
to
be
on.
So
I’m
sitting
here
in
tears,
[joining]
the
rest
of
those
kids
who
complain
about
their
parents
on
blogs
—
and
I
can’t
help
it,”
Zach
wrote.
“I’ve
been
through
hell.
I’ve
been
emotionally
torn
apart
for
three
days...
I
can’t
remember
which
days
they
were
…
time’s
not
what
it
used
to
be,”
the
teen
wrote
in
his
last
blog
entry,
posted
June
3.
The
teen
also
posted
what
he
said
were
an
exhaustive
set
of
rules
for
Refuge
that
were
e-mailed
to
his
parents:
“No
hugging
or
physical
touch
between
clients.
Brief
handshakes
or
a
brief
affirmative
hand
on
a
shoulder
is
allowed
…
“[Love
In
Action]
wants
to
encourage
each
client,
male
and
female,
by
affirming
his/her
gender
identity,”
the
rules
continued.
“LIA
also
wants
each
client
to
pursue
integrity
in
all
of
his/her
actions
and
appearances.
Therefore,
any
belongings,
appearances,
clothing,
actions,
or
humor
that
might
connect
a
client
to
an
inappropriate
past
are
excluded
from
the
program.
“These
hindrances
are
called
False
Images,”
according
to
the
rules.
“F.I.
behavior
may
include
hyper-masculinity,
seductive
clothing,
mannish/boyish
attire
(on
women),
excessive
jewelry
(on
men),
mascoting,
and
‘campy’
or
gay/lesbian
behavior
and
talk.”
Camp
participants
are
also
forbidden
specifically
from
wearing
any
clothing
by
Calvin
Klein
or
Abercrombie
&
Fitch.
Refuge
offers
a
two-week
program
for
$1,500
and
a
six-week
program
for
$4,000,
according
to
its
Web
site.
Since
its
inception
three
years
ago,
the
program
has
hosted
more
than
20
participants,
according
to
Rev.
John
Smid,
Love
In
Action’s
executive
director,
who
is
married
to
a
woman
and
claims
to
have
left
behind
“the
homosexual
lifestyle,”
if
not
same-sex
attractions.
Gay
bloggers
and
allies
who
track
the
teen’s
thoughts
about
being
sent
to
the
program
created
additional
blogs
to
support
the
teen
and
refute
the
reparative
therapy
practiced
by
Love
In
Action.
Supporters
also
took
part
in
daily
demonstrations
that
started
June
6,
Zach’s
apparent
first
day
in
the
program,
at
Love
In
Action’s
Memphis
headquarters.
“The
history
of
organizations
like
Love
In
Action
are
founded
upon
deception
and
have
been
proven
ineffective
and
damaging
to
people,”
said
Morgan
Fox,
an
organizer
of
Queer
Action
Coalition
who
said
she
is
a
friend
of
Zach’s.
The
coalition
formed
in
direct
response
to
the
teen’s
blogs,
Fox
said.
“He’s
probably
been
there
about
two
weeks.
But
they
shut
you
off
from
the
world
when
you’re
in,”
Fox
said.
Zach’s
blog
indicates
that
his
cell
phone
had
been
taken
from
him
and
he
only
accessed
his
computer
to
post
a
blog
entry
by
waiting
until
his
parents
were
asleep.
About
30
people
take
part
in
the
daily
protests,
said
Kevin
Gilliland,
a
member
of
the
Memphis
Gay
&
Lesbian
Community
Center.
“We’re
in
the
buckle
of
the
Bible
Belt,
and
[the
teen]
has
brought
a
lot
of
attention
to
[the
ex-gay
movement].
A
lot
of
the
people
protesting
are
teens.
This
is
an
issue
of
psychological
abuse,”
Gilliland
said.
Supporters
of
the
teen
are
e-mailing
Love
In
Action
to
express
their
opposition
to
...
