Wednesday, February 15, 2012

Montgomery, Maryland Board of Education Should Reconsider Fliers Policy After PFOX Debacle


I continue to be amazed by the ignorance of many local school boards that allow themselves to be deceived by, in my view, utterly disingenuous organizations such as PFOX. PFOX, which is a front organization for leading Christianist organization, works to maintain the myth that sexual orientation is changeable and that reparative therapy works. Never mind that ALL of the legitimate medical and mental health associations (i.e., all those not funded by Christianist organizations) condemn reparative therapy and deem it to be unethical conduct for mental health care practitioners. Yet Montgomery County allowed PFOX to send home over 8000 fliers to students thereby giving the appearance that the school board endorsed PFOX's witch doctor like program. I cannot believe that the school board's liability insurance carrier is pleased by this stupid move. It's a lawsuit waiting to happen. The Montgomery Gazette looks at the backlash against the school board action. Here are highlights:

Montgomery’s school board may re-examine its policy on the dissemination of information following the distribution of fliers this month that some critics said were hurtful to gays.

The result might be that the school system no longer will allow groups to send materials home with students, in light of concerns from some community members about the content of the fliers from Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays and Gays (PFOX) that were distributed earlier this month, said Philip Kauffman, the board member who proposed re-examining the policy.

PFOX, which is based in Reedville, Va., states on its website that it advocates in favor of individuals who identify themselves as ex-gays and attempts to change public perception about them. It is critical of the idea that being gay or lesbian is innate and describes the ex-gay movement as a civil rights movement.

PFOX distributed 8,000 of its fliers at five Montgomery County schools, NBC4 Washington reported Feb. 7.

A portion of the flier posted on PFOX’s website that was sent home with students read: “No ‘gay gene’ or gay center of the brain has been found. No medical test exists to determine if a person is homosexual. Sexual orientation is based on feelings and is a matter of self-affirmation and public declaration.

The flier also offered to provide students with other information, including ex-gay speakers who would come to schools. The disclaimer at the bottom, required by Montgomery schools, states that the flier is not endorsed by the Board of Education of Montgomery County, the superintendent, or “this school.”

The fliers provoked outrage from some portions of the community, including Superintendent of Schools Joshua P. Starr, who told the Washington Post on Feb. 8 that he found the fliers’ message “deplorable.”

Board Vice President Christopher S. Barclay (Dist. 4) of Takoma Park said that, in such situations, “What you permit is what you promote.” The board’s vote means that its members will vote again on Feb. 27 whether or not to ask its Policy Committee to review its policy governing the fliers.

PFOX board member and Montgomery County resident Peter Sprigg said Tuesday that the group would examine its legal options if the policy were changed or if the group believed it was unfairly being singled out by the school board. “The idea that there is anything offensive in this flier is a complete misunderstanding of its content,” Sprigg said.

For those not in the know, Peter Sprigg is "Senior Fellow for Policy Studies" at Family Research Counsel, a Southern Poverty Law Center registered hate group. FRC describes Sprigg's credentials as follows:
Mr. Sprigg is an ordained Baptist minister. Before coming to FRC, he served as pastor of Clifton Park Center Baptist Church in Clifton Park, N.Y. Mr. Sprigg previously served for ten years as a professional actor and unit leader in Covenant Players, an international Christian drama ministry. . . . Mr. Sprigg received the Master of Divinity degree cum laude from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary (Mass.). He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree summa cum laude from Drew University (N.J.), with a double major in political science and economics.

That's right. As is the norm with the talking heads for the anti-gay Christianist groups, Sprigg has ZERO credentials in the area of medical or mental health care. But he's an ordained minister with a theology degree. And with the Christianists, that's all that matters.

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