“Prayers For Bobby” was shown over at Lifetime channel two nights ago in the United States. It stars Sigourney Weaver as a mother (Mary Griffith) who tried very hard to convert her son (Bobby Griffith, played by Ryan Kelley) away from homosexuality, with major consequences. It shows just how dangerous it is to attempt to de-gay someone, especially youths.
There had been a high number of gay, lesbian and even and transgender suicides (read more about transgenders in this situation here) across the decades, many related to attempts to “change” homosexuality by means of prayer and reparative therapy. There will be more, mostly teenagers. But this fact is often silenced by many ex-gay organizations, as such Focus On The Family (FOTF) even tried to scare people from watching this movie. The truth remains that ex-gay organizations such as FOTF are responsible for spreading myths about homosexuality and transgenderism, to the point of creating paranoid parents who drag their children to de-gay them, spending tens of thousands of dollars. And these groups continue to demonize the LGBT community.
I highly recommend the book, written by Leroy Aarons, and the movie when it is available for sale on DVD. It speaks to a lot of people who have attempted to change their sexual identity and sexual orientation, having their person and emotions badly damaged. It is an eye opener also for those who think that gays are just a “lifestyle” and can be changed. A glimpse into dear Bobby’s life shows just how dreadfully wrong those presumptions are.
Yuki's Choice Readings:
- Ex-Gay Watch's David Roberts, shares his thoughts on this movie.
- I helped stopped an anti-gay troll from making dogmatic claims about homosexuality, but was strangely accused of homophobia by this Ryan Kelley fan who uploaded this video on YouTube.
Update: It seemed that this Ryan Kelley fan had removed all my comments from the YouTube page. Luckily, I have Google Cache to thank. Unfortunately, it failed to get RyanKelleyTV's weirdly baseless comments about me. Nevertheless, the conversation with NOTHGIF is still cool!
5 comments:
Yuki, my sister called me yesterday saying she saw this film and it moved her deeply. I think it will make a significant impact for those who view it.
I know. I wish I can watch it too. I guess I would have to wait for the DVD version to come out. Hmmmh.
Hi Yuki,
Yeah it's a SUPERB movie!! I'm looking for the book actually and i couldn't find it, checked MPH online but there's nothing, not even listed......
LTC, I suggest you try to go to a MPH bookstore, then ask them whether they have the book down at Singapore, if they do then buy it at SD rates. And please do remember this is really an old book from the 90s, so it should be difficult to find one in print now.
Another way is to try to track this book down on E-Bay. And since this movie is out, I have this funny feeling they may reprint this book, so let us be up to date and alert whether that happens. :-)
Hi Yuki,
Thanks for the info!
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