Notorious "Ex-Gay" Therapist Outed as a Fraud

One of my first ventures into LGBT activism was back in 2003, when I helped Wayne Besen expose "ex-gay" poster boy Michael Johnston who was originally from the Hampton Roads area..  Johnston had been featured in numerous national ads campaigns by right wing Christian organizations peddling the myth that gays can "change"  if they only accept Jesus.  In reality, Johnston was anything but changed and was sleeping with men around the area using a false name.  Johnston's ex-gay career ended after the Southern Voice did an expose.  Just as disturbing as Johnston's lies was the fact that some of the leading "Christian" homophobes knew that  Johnston was a fraud but continued to use him since it aided their agenda that claimed gays needed no non-discrimination protections since sexual orientation was a "choice."  Now Wayne has exposed another total fraud.  This time it's Norman Goldwasser, an Orthodox Jewish therapist at who compares homosexuality to Obsessive Compulsive Disorder and misleads clients by claiming that their sexual orientation can be changed.  Goldwasser has been leading a double life like Johnston and has been seeking male sexual partners on Manhunt, a gay dating App.  Despite the fraudulent nature of so-called "ex-gay" or "conversion" therapy and its condemnation by every legitimate medical and mental health association in America, the Republican Party in many states supports it as a party platform item.  Here are highlights from Wayne's expose of Goldwasser:  

Norman Goldwasser, by day, is an Orthodox Jewish therapist at Horizon Psychological Services who compares homosexuality to Obsessive Compulsive Disorder and misleads clients by claiming that their sexual orientation can be changed with his special brand of quack therapy, which is rejected by every respected medical and mental health association. By night, an undercover investigation by Truth Wins Out has found, he solicits sexual partners on Manhunt, a gay dating App, using the profile “Hotnhairy72.” During our operation, Goldwasser, going by the pseudonym “Dave”, offered to meet for sex with our operative, “Brandon,” at a Fort Lauderdale motel room. Goldwasser also had a profile on Bear Nation by the same name.

This latest scandal comes as the new movie Boy Erased (Starring Lucas Hedges, Nicole Kidman, and Russell Crowe) has brought a renewed spotlight to the issue of the harm caused by “ex-gay” programs.

“Norman Goldwasser’s double life of unconscionable lies highlights the rank hypocrisy and predatory nature of the fraudulent ‘ex-gay’ industry,” said Truth Wins Out Executive Director Wayne Besen. “We urge every state to ban the scourge of conversion therapy that attacks the mental health of LGBT youth and puts them in harms way.” Besen is the author of Anything Bust Straight: Unmasking the Scandals and Lies Behind the Ex-Gay Myth.

Truth Wins Out does not engage in the outing of people participating in ex-gay programs unless there is overwhelming hypocrisy, exchange of commerce, and the threat of harm to LGBT youth. The Goldwasser outing passes all three tests.

“Goldwasser can’t claim his personal life is none of our business when trying to ‘cure’ LGBT people is his business,” said Besen. “Here is a case where a charlatan is committing consumer fraud by misleading clients and adversely affecting their mental health. We are particularly concerned when Goldwassser’s scam preys on young people susceptible to his charade.”

Despite the harm that Goldwasser knowingly does to members of the LGBT community, as blogger friend Joe Jervis notes, Goldwasser begged Wayne not to expose him and to allow him to continue his fraudulent practices.  Jervis posted a text from Goldwasser to Besen:

Sorry, but I have ZERO sympathy for this lying dirt bag.