Gay blogger released from ‘ex-gay’ camp Tenn. teen criticizes gay activists, who say new posts reflect coercion

By ANDREW KEEGAN Aug. 05, 2005

A gay Tennessee teen who gained worldwide attention after detailing his fear of being sent to an “ex-gay” camp in an Internet posting said the entire situation has been blown out of proportion, according to his latest blog.
But some gay activists who oppose the camp said the posting shows signs of intimidation.
After coming out to his parents, Zach Stark, 16, was enrolled on June 6 at Refuge for a reported eight-week session at a cost of more than $4,000. The Christian facility, a branch of Love In Action located near Memphis, Tenn., works to convert gay youth to heterosexual orientation. It receives adolescent referrals from Exodus, an organization devoted to helping gay adults become heterosexual.
Stark’s June 3 blog about coming out to his parents and his uncertainty about the upcoming retreat included suicidal thoughts, which quickly garnered widespread attention.
But in his latest blog, posted Aug. 1, Stark states that he “is annoyed toward a lot of things,” including that Love In Action was misrepresented.
There is no mention of what transpired during the 56-day stay at Refuge by the youth from Bartlett, Tenn. Stark says that homosexuality is still a “factor” for him, but he won’t let it “run my life.” He also includes an apparent slap at gay activists who led a campaign against Love In Action.
“I refuse to deal with people who are only focused on their one-sided (biased) agendas,” Stark writes. “It isn’t fair to anyone.”
Activists won’t abandon protestJohn Smid, Love In Action’s executive director, declined to comment on Stark’s postings, while gay groups said they would continue to question the ex-gay program’s efforts.
Stark’s original posting led Memphis residents to form the Queer Action Coalition, which began daily demonstrations at the Love In Action offices to raise awareness of the dangers of ex-gay therapy. According to one of the group’s co-founders, Morgan Fox, the protests continued for two weeks, beginning the day Stark was admitted.
“At the height of the protest we had about 80 people outside the offices,” Fox said.
Responding to the teen’s latest blog, Fox said the group has great respect for Stark.
“We have always tried to protect his identity and his rights,” he said, noting the group never divulged the teen’s last name, which was obtained by media outlets.
“But we’ve always said from the beginning that this is not all about Zach.”
Since Stark’s blog post, Queer Action Coalition has received numerous e-mails from former Love In Action clients disputing the organization’s claim of reforming gays, Fox said.
“We responded in forming QAC because it was frightening to read about a kid having to deal with this,” he said. “We absolutely will not judge Zach. What we will do is focus on the message that Love In Action promotes — a lot of people have been harmed by their claim to offer choice.”
Wayne Besen, a gay author who studies the ex-gay movement and has followed Stark’s plight, said he is certain that some type of coercion was exerted on the teen, given the wording of his latest blog.
“It’s disconcerting because the boy who blogged before entering the program has a different voice,” said Besen, author of “Anything But Straight: Unmasking the Scandals and Lies Behind the Ex-Gay Myth.”
“The boy who blogged after the program is no longer a free-spirited young man,” he said.
Besen points to several words in the latest blog as proof of intimidation.
“[Zach] now uses right-wing buzz words like ‘agendas’ and how homosexuality is a ‘factor’ in his life,” he said.
Besen recently posted on his Web site, www.waynebesen.com, a letter by a co-founder of Love In Action criticizing the conversion program.
Former ex-gay John Evans, who co-founded Love In Action with Rev. Kent Philpott in 1973, sent the letter July 30 to Smid, the ministry’s current director.
“In the past 30 years since leaving the ‘ex-gay’ ministry I have seen nothing but shattered lives, depression, and even suicide among those connected with the ‘ex-gay’ movement,” Evans wrote

Ok so this is 8 days old. I still wonder about parents like the young man's and wonder if my own folks would have done something like that if it had been around when I was a kid.
I whent through enough "hell" on my own without having to deal with treatment that is worse then just accepting and making a life.
You will probably never read this Zach, but I truely wish you well and have a happy life wheather you are gay or not. Only what's inside of you can truely tell you that fact.