‘Ex-Gay’ Twin From Billboard: ‘I’m Gay’ And ‘Not A Twin’

People misuse the word “irony” all the time, but enjoy this one; this is a rare occurrence of pure, irrefutable irony.

Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays and Gays (PFOX) is a group that, besides not knowing how to abbreviate, are advocates of Ex-Gay reparative therapy. This means that they like to take psychological science and beat it with an aluminum bat. I mentioned in a previous article?why their stance is unfounded, but I’m feeling verbose, so let’s go over it again.

  1. Sexuality doesn’t change.?The American Academy of Pediatrics warns parents to “Avoid any treatments that claim to be able to change a person’s sexual orientation…”
  2. Not being heterosexual is not a mental illness.??Per the American School Counselor Association: “[LGBTQ] youth often begin to experience self-identification during their pre-adolescent or adolescent years, as do heterosexual youth. These developmental processes are essential cognitive, emotional and social activities, and although they may have an impact on student development and achievement, they are not a sign of illness, mental disorder or emotional problems nor do they necessarily signify sexual activity…”
  3. Reparative therapy is damaging.?The American Psychiatric Association says, “The potential risks of reparative therapy are great, including depression, anxiety and self-destructive behavior, since therapist alignment with societal prejudices against homosexuality may reinforce self-hatred already experienced by the patient.”?They also advise professionals to avoid reparative therapy,?”keeping in mind the medical dictum to first, do no harm.”
  4. The fake therapy only exists because of anti-LGBT bullies.?The very groups trying to get people to undergo this therapy are the same ones who are bullying people into hating themselves for their sexual orientation in the first place. From the National Association of Social Workers: “Social stigmatization of lesbian, gay, and bisexual people is widespread and is a primary motivating factor in leading some people to seek sexual orientation changes.”

All of the above quotes can be found compiled and sourced from The American Psychological Association’s Website.

So, now that we’ve discredited this heterosexist organization using actual science, let’s talk about the irony I mentioned before. PFOX put up a billboard in Richmond Virginia trying to push the point that sexual orientation is a choice, not something inborn, using some kind of “study” they believe in (that’s comforting) about twins.

This billboard talking about ex-gay twins was sponsored by PFOX and placed in Richmond, Virginia. Photo source: towleroad.com
This billboard talking about ex-gay twins was sponsored by PFOX and placed in Richmond, Virginia.
Photo source: towleroad.com

You see the male models the billboard uses? The models are actually one model who has no twin, and here’s the best part: he’s openly gay.

Kyle Roux is a South African model who did a photo shoot nearly a decade ago for stock photos. He was paid, the rights were signed away for commercial use, and Roux moved on. He was rather surprised, though, after much time had passed, to find his image on this billboard. He contacted?WWBT, an NBC News Outlet in Richmond, to tell them his story:

“I was obviously quite shocked, so that why I decided to send you guys an email saying hey, I’m that guy in that billboard…It just seems like there no place in today’s world for an organization that is promoting this as being some kind of deviant or distasteful lifestyle, because I’ve lived my life openly gay and happy for my entire life.”

According to WWBT, Roux, who is very openly and happily gay, hadn’t thought about the photoshoot until friends and family pointed it out to him. You can watch the interview below:

Former PFOX board member and self-professed ex-gay Christian Doyle had this to say:?”The issue isn’t the photo on a the billboard, but the actual science.” In response, I’d like to invite Mr. Doyle to read the?actual?”actual science” I included at the top of this page from real?subject-matter experts, not the supposed experts not listed on PFOX’s?website whose credentials are completely unknown. Also, a study found a correllation between twins and sexual orientation: 52% of men with gay identical twins were also found to be gay.

But really…irony.

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david phamDavid Pham is a proud Gaytheist, Gaymer, and Iraq veteran who staunchly supports minority rights and the separation of church and state. When he’s not writing or researching, he can usually be found reading, gaming, and cracking jokes at inappropriate times. He is a former Combat Medic and EMT who now studies Psychology and is pursuing a Ph.D. in the field with the goal of teaching at the college level.

David Pham is a proud Gaytheist and Gaymer, and an Iraq Veteran who staunchly supports LGBT rights and the separation of church and state. When not reading or researching, he's usually found with his nose in his Kindle or Wii U Gamepad. He studies Psychology with the intent to provide therapy to Veterans and teach at the college level.