Netflix's 'Pray Away' looks behd the curta of the 'ex-gay' movement

Contents:

• NETFLIX'S 'PRAY AWAY' LOOKS BEHD THE CURTA OF THE 'EX-GAY' MOVEMENT
• DISNEY WORLD WEL THOANDS OF LGBTQ+ PEOPLE TO CELEBRATE GAY DAYS: ‘WE ARE HERE, WE ARE QUEER AND WE AREN’T GOG ANYWHERE’
• IS DIMRI REALLY GAY?
• IS IT POSSIBLE TO PRAY THE GAY AWAY?
• JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS ASSISTANT COACH KEV MAXEN MAK HISTORY AFTER COMG OUT AS GAY
• ‘PRAY AWAY THE GAY’ HAS GONE AWAY. WHY ARE GOVERNMENTS TRYG TO STOP IT?
• WHEN IS NATNAL PRAY GAY AWAY DAY?

NETFLIX'S 'PRAY AWAY' LOOKS BEHD THE CURTA OF THE 'EX-GAY' MOVEMENT

When Amerin documentarian Kriste Stolakis set out to make her but feature film, she knew she wanted to she a light on the “ex-gay” movement, which nsists of those that believe a person’s genr inty or sexual orientatn n be changed.

DISNEY WORLD WEL THOANDS OF LGBTQ+ PEOPLE TO CELEBRATE GAY DAYS: ‘WE ARE HERE, WE ARE QUEER AND WE AREN’T GOG ANYWHERE’

Really is a movement of hurt people hurtg other people, of what ternalized homophobia and transphobia looks like when is wield outward. Shot before the Covid-19 panmic, the film chronicl the rise — and subsequent fall — of Exod Internatnal, a nversn therapy anizatn that, acrdg to the team behd the the film, began as a Bible study group the 1970s nsistg of five evangelil men who were lookg to help one another leave the “homosexual liftyle.

IS DIMRI REALLY GAY?

But years after risg to stardom the relig right, many of the “ex-gay” lears, whose own same-sex attractns never went away, have sce e out as LGBTQ and disavowed the very movement that they helped to grow. Stolakis’ list of terviewe “Pray Away” clus Randy Thomas, the fal vice print of Exod Internatnal; Yvette Cantu Schneir, the former head of Exod’ women’s mistri; and John Plk, one of the most bt-known “ex-gay” people the world. “Somethg my team and I talked about a lot makg this film is, this really is a movement of hurt people hurtg other people, of what ternalized homophobia and transphobia looks like when is wield outward, ” said Stolakis, whose other directorial creds clu “The Typist” and “Where We Stand.

IS IT POSSIBLE TO PRAY THE GAY AWAY?

”While many former lears have renounced and spoken out agast the “pray the gay away” movement, Stolakis said “the larger culture of homophobia and transphobia, ” particularly relig muni, has allowed the movement to ntue wh younger lears, even wh the dissolutn of Exod Internatnal 2013 and the legalizatn of same-sex marriage the U. Alone, nearly 700, 000 lbian, gay, bisexual and transgenr adults have been subjected to some form of nversn therapy durg their lifetime, acrdg to a 2019 report om the Williams Instute at the UCLA School of Law. ”Wh “Pray Away” set to but more than 190 untri on Netflix this week, Stolakis wants to make one thg clear to every prospective viewer: The “ex-gay” movement was never led by jt “a uple of bad appl.

”“As long as that larger culture of homophobia and transphobia exists — be our church, any relig muny, our polil sphere or our culture — some versn of nversn therapy and the ex-LGBTQ movement will ntue, ” she explaed. Tens of thoands of LGBTQ+ people are flockg to central Florida this weekend to go on theme park ris, mgle wh stumed performers, dance at all-night parti and lounge poolsi at hotels durg Gay Days, a s-long tradn. Ron DeSantis and Florida lawmakers have champned a slew of anti-LGBTQ+ laws — spurrg the most proment gay rights group the U.

JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS ASSISTANT COACH KEV MAXEN MAK HISTORY AFTER COMG OUT AS GAY

And other civil rights anizatns to issue warngs that the Sunshe State may no longer be safe — Gay Days anizers are still enuragg visors om around the world to e to one of Florida’s largt gay and lbian celebratns. If the hoped-for 150, 000 or more visors e to the half-week of pool parti, drag bgo and thrill ris at Orlando’s theme parks and hotels, then “that’s the pot, ” said Joseph Clark, CEO of Gay Days Inc. Gay Days is a bon celebratn.

‘PRAY AWAY THE GAY’ HAS GONE AWAY. WHY ARE GOVERNMENTS TRYG TO STOP IT?

It’s not lost on the anizers that the highlight of the weekend will be a Saturday meetup of LGBTQ+ visors at the Magic Kgdom at Walt Disney World, where the first Gay Days started as a sgle-day celebratn 1991. Currently Disney is embroiled a legal fight wh DeSantis over the ernor and Republin lawmakers’ takeover of Disney World’s erng district — after Disney officials publicly opposed legislatn that crics have dubbed “Don’t Say Gay.

But the anizers of Gay Days and their supporters say that Orlando is as gay-iendly a cy as they e, earng a perfect sre on the Human Rights Campaign x, which measur how clive ci are of LGBTQ+ rints and visors. “We live a bubble here Orlando, where even wh the chaos Florida, we feel safe here, ” said Jeremy Williams, edor--chief of Watermark Publishg Group Inc., a Florida-based media pany that is one of the sponsors of Gay Days.

WHEN IS NATNAL PRAY GAY AWAY DAY?

Gay Days has survived past challeng, cludg the early years when Disney posted signs at the Magic Kgdom’s entrance warng visors there was a large gatherg of gays and lbians and offerg pass to other parks for guts who might be offend.

Over the last three s, though, the theme parks and rorts have thrown down the wele mats as Gay Days has bee a profable bounce between the sprg break and out-of-school summer crowds. Durg Gay Days the 1990s, hundreds of anti-abortn activists wh Operatn Rcue protted outsi Walt Disney World, and the Southern Baptist Conventn ced the gatherg llg for a boytt of all thgs Disney. Some Christian groups tried to buy air time durg Gay Days the late 1990s to prsure people to renounce their sexual orientatn, but mastream TV statns Orlando rejected the ads.