His name is Zach Stark. His father, Joe Stark, gave the CBN an exclusive interview and appeared on the Christian tv station to proclaim: "homosexuality is not in God's plan - it's wrong." Joe Stark also commented that the Love In Action anti gay brainwashing facility allows his son to "see for himself the destructive lifestyle, what he has to face in the future."
By which I take him to mean Zach gets to experience the agony of being surrounded by homophobes. The problem is that Zach is not free to leave the company of homophobes, rather he's forced to spend days and nights surrounded by them. In what reality based world is this not psychological abuse? By the time the homophobes get through, this is going to be one messed up kid.
The Love In Action facility can also be described as a Christian fundamentalist immersion program. The long list of activity restrictions includes a ban on 'secular' music. Hello? Last time I spent any time with teens, this was their lifeline!
Joe Stark spouts some of the propaganda he has obviously heard from Love In Action, such as, "statistics say that by the age of 30 [Zach] could either have AIDS or be dead.” Duh. Statistics say that by the age of 30 homophobes could be brain dead. In case we had any doubts, it now becomes obvious that the number one qualification for being a willing victim of the LIA fundamentalist immersion program is to be brain dead.
You can watch the CBN video clip, complete with eery crosses and sanctimonious holier-than-thou rhetoric. There's also a story at the same link from which I have taken snippets:
"Joe Stark did what he believed any responsible Christian parent would do. In late May, Joe’s 16-year-old son, Zach, told his parents he was gay. The Starks, devout Christians, enlisted the help of “Love in Action International,” a Memphis-based ministry that provides prevention and treatment for behaviors like homosexuality and drug addiction.
But little did the Starks know that their actions would create a firestorm among local homosexuals. In an exclusive interview with CBN News, Joe talked about his decision to enroll Zach in the “Love in Action” program, and the controversy that has followed. "
Yeah, well, the "firestorm" is hardly confined to the local or even gay community. The whole wide world is watching.
According to Memphis radio host Mike Fleming, "[Homosexuals] have set out to destroy "Love In Action."
Gee, thanks for that, Mike Fleming. Just goes to show, homophobes can have some damn good ideas. There's a right wing radio host here who appears to be the same Mike Fleming. He may also have a blog.
There's another angle to this story - possible insurance fraud by Love In Action - which I don't have time to address at the moment; I'll try to do so in the wee hours. But you can catch up on it at both Disenchanted Forest and the Republic of T. Links are below.
Most recent post on Zach.
My previous posts on Zach.
Thanks to ol cranky at Disenchanted Forest for the heads up. She has more!
Also check out the Republic of T. who is always on top of this story; be sure to see this post too.
Other bloggers who have the story:
Ex-Gay Watch
Memphis based:
Queer Action Coalition
Cherry Blossom Special (a commenter notes that there is a Joe Stark on the Memphis police force.)
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