Resource: Conversion therapy proponents and groups

Key Figures

Christopher Doyle
● Christopher Doyle is a ​conversion therapy practitioner​ in the Washington, DC, area and one of
the most visible so-called ​“ex-gay” advocates​, or someone who claims to be formerly gay
● Doyle is linked to several pro-conversion therapy advocacy groups: He is the co-founder of
National Task Force for Therapy Equality​ (NTFTE)​, co-founder and treasurer of ​Voice of the
Voiceless​, the director of the ​International Healing Foundation​, and a political consultant for
Equality and Justice for All
● Doyle signed onto a “Dear Legislator 2018” ​letter​, spearheaded by his group NTFTE, that urged
lawmakers to oppose efforts to protect LGBTQ youth from conversion therapy and falsely said
that “the therapy is safe and effective”
● According to HuffPost, a 2017 documentary ​featured​ Doyle practicing conversion therapy in
which he used what another psychotherapist referred to as “shame and guilt,” including by telling
his patient to “grow a pair of balls”
● Influential and extreme anti-LGBTQ legal group ​Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF)​ legally
represented​ Doyle in 2014 when Maryland originally considered a bill that would protect LGBTQ
youth from conversion therapy. ADF was looking into “whether Doyle’s foundation has grounds to
file a defamation case” against a state delegate who supported the bill.
● Doyle is regularly featured in both ​local​ and national media coverage, in which he has repeatedly
pushed misinformation about conversion therapy. For example, Doyle was featured in a May
NBC News ​article​ and a September CNN ​article​ about films about conversion therapy. He has
also been mentioned in Arizona’s ​AZ Central​ and ​CBS 2 New York​. Doyle ​wrote​ an article for the
Christian Post following the Supreme Court’s ​NIFLA​ ruling, in which he argued the court’s ruling
was good news for “sexual freedom” and in striking down efforts to protect LGBTQ people from
conversion therapy.

Dr. Julie Hamilton

● Dr. Julie Hamilton is the ​former president​ of the A​ lliance for Therapeutic Choice and Scientific
Integrity​ (ATCSI), a group that is dedicated to “ensuring that competent licensed, professional
assistance is available for persons who experience unwanted homosexual (same-sex)
attractions.” The group ​was once known​ as the ​National Association for Research & Therapy
of Homosexuality (NARTH)​.
● Hamilton edited the 2009 book ​Handbook of Therapy for Unwanted Homosexual Attractions: A
Guide to Treatment​ and wrote its preface, in which she suggested a man who was murdered by
his former partner, who was male, might not have been killed if he had undergone conversion
therapy
● Hamilton is currently being ​represented​ by anti-LGBTQ group Liberty Counsel in a lawsuit filed
against Boca Raton and Palm Beach County in Florida for passing measures that protect LGBTQ
youth from conversion therapy
● Hamilton has been featured in ​local​ ​outlets​ of her resident state, Florida, but not in any major
mainstream national coverage
Dr. Joseph Nicolosi Jr.
● Dr. Joseph Nicolosi Jr. ​practices​ conversion therapy at The Breakthrough Clinic, where he is the
clinical director. The Breakthrough Clinic ​categorizes​ “seeking same-sex partners” while religious
as a potential form of sex addiction. It has locations in California and New York, and its website
notes that Skype and phone therapy sessions are available to clients throughout the world.
● According to Rewire, Nicolosi is ​associated​ with ​NTFTE
● Nicolosi Jr.’s father ​Dr. Joseph Nicolosi Sr.​ claimed to be the “originator of reparative therapy,”
which is trademarked on his website, and was the co-founder of ​NARTH​. Dr. Nicolosi Sr. ​claimed
to have helped hundreds of clients “with their goal to reduce their same-sex attractions and
explore their heterosexual potential.”
● The Christian Civic League of Maine, which was ​formerly headed by​ extreme anti-LGBTQ group
Maine Resistance Director Michael Heath, ​invited and flew​ Nicolosi Jr. out from California to
testify against Maine’s proposed bill to protect LGBTQ youth from conversion therapy in
February.
○ In his ​testimony​, Nicolosi Jr. falsely claimed that “reparative therapy” is different from
conversion therapy, saying, “In reparative therapy, the client is in the driver’s seat. He
sets his own goals, which the therapist helps him achieve.”
○ Nicolosi Jr. also said that same-sex attractions may be caused by “trauma and sexual
addiction” and that “as those underlying issues are resolved, the sexuality begins to
change on its own.” Nicolosi Sr. ​pushed​ the same myth, once saying, “If you traumatize a
child in a particular way, you will create a homosexual condition.”
● Nicolosi Jr. is ​attempting​ to rebrand conversion therapy as “reintegrative therapy”
● Nicolosi Jr. was ​featured​ in Maine broadcast outlets in coverage about the state’s deliberations of
its proposed conversion therapy bill

David Pickup
● David Pickup is a conversion therapy proponent and practitioner with ​practices​ in Texas and
California who ​has​ “extensive expertise in reparative therapy”
● Pickup is a board member of ​ATCSI​, “works closely” with​ ​Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays &
Gays​,​ and co-founded ​NTFTE​ ​with Doyle
● He, along with Doyle, signed the "Dear Legislator 2018" ​letter​ urging lawmakers to oppose efforts
to protect LGBTQ youth from conversion therapy
● Pickup ​claims​ to have gotten rid of his same-sex attractions after undergoing conversion therapy
in the care of Dr. Nicolosi Sr., which he says “worked for me” and “helped save my life”
● Pickup is being ​represented​ by Liberty Counsel in a lawsuit against Tampa, FL, for passing
measures to protect LGBTQ youth from conversion therapy. The lawsuit received attention from a
number of ​local​ ​outlets​ in the state and national ​LGBTQ​ ​outlets​.
● Pickup has been featured on ​local news stations​ and ​print​ outlets outside of the states in which
he practices as well as in ​print​ ​outlets​ in California and ​Texas​. He was also featured in a CNN
news ​article​ in 2012 about a former lawsuit challenging California’s measure to protect LGBTQ
youth and an Associated Press ​article​ in 2012. Pickup has also been mentioned alongside Doyle
in ​The Washington Times​.
Key Groups

National Task Force for Therapy Equality (NTFTE)

● The National Task Force for Therapy Equality (NTFTE) ​claims​ to represent “tens of thousands of
licensed psychotherapists, psychiatrists, and physicians and over 1,000 clients and patients” and
says​ it is “one of the top lobbyist organizations in the US who has played a major role in defeating
change-therapy bans in 20 out of 31 states within the last 5 years”
● NFTE is ​led​ by ​Christopher Doyle​, ​David Pickup​, Karl Benzio, Laura Haynes, Gregory Quinlan,
and Robin Goodspeed
● NTFE ​has described​ its purpose as to “secure therapy equality for clients that experience distress
over unwanted same-sex attractions and gender identity conflicts”
● NTFTE ​filed a report​ in May 2017 to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) attacking human rights
organizations for what NTFTE called a “hate campaign” to ban conversion therapy. According to
The Washington Post,​ the complaint ​accused​ those groups of “mass fraud” and “actively
distorting the scientific research by promoting the ‘Born Gay’ hoax”
● NFTE issued a “Dear Legislator” ​letter​ in 2018 to encourage legislators to block protections for
LGBTQ youth from conversion therapy
The letter cited several right-wing organizations such as the ​American College of
Pediatricians​ (ACPeds) and the ​Association of American Physicians and Surgeons​ that
masquerade as respectable medical organizations to push misinformation about
conversion therapy. ACPeds is an extreme anti-LGBTQ group with membership
estimated​ to be “between 60 and 200 pediatricians” whose name makes it easily
mistaken for the legitimate medical organization the American Academy of Pediatrics
(AAP), a group composed of 64,000 physicians.
● In March, NTFTE ​released​ a so-called “Therapy Ban Harm Fact Sheet” opposing California’s
shelved​ bill that would have officially labeled conversion therapy as fraud. The document
advocated against ​successful​ medical treatments for transgender minors and instead suggested
“talk therapy to help them embrace their body,” a euphemism for conversion therapy. It also
falsely claimed that “same-sex attraction and gender variant feelings … carry a high probability to
decrease or change if allowed to” and that conversion therapy, “when done right, is safe and
effective and decreases shame.”
● NTFTE ​launched​ a “Tampa for Truth” campaign to oppose the city’s measure protecting LGBTQ
youth from conversion therapy
● NTFTE has been ​linked​ to major anti-LGBTQ legal group Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF)
● NTFTE is also linked to pro-conversion therapy advocacy group Equality and Justice for All
(EAJFA) and directly links to EAJFA on its ​homepage​. The two share a P.O. Box and sent ​joint
letters​ signed by ​Christopher Doyle ​to the New York City Council and the Seattle City Council in
2017 opposing any measures to protect LGBTQ youth from conversion therapy.
● Aside from the ​Washington Post​ ​article​ detailing NTFE’s report to the FTC, there has been no
major national coverage including NTFTE. It has, however, been mentioned in Florida’s ​Palm
Beach Post​ and​ ​Sun Sentinel​, ​Arizona’s ​AZ Central​, and in Vermont’s ​Rutland Herald​.

Alliance for Therapeutic Choice and Scientific Integrity (ATSCI)

● The Alliance for Therapeutic Choice and Scientific Integrity (ATSCI) ​describes​ itself as “a
multi-disciplinary professional and scientific organization dedicated to … ensuring that competent
 licensed, professional assistance is available for persons who experience unwanted homosexual
attractions”
● ATSCI is a 2014 ​rebranding​ of the National Association for Research and Therapy of
Homosexuality (NARTH), which was ​co-founded​ in 1992 by Dr. Nicolosi Sr.
○ According to The New Republic, NARTH was an organization of psychologists that ​aimed
to help gay people “realize their heterosexual potential”
○ In 2013, NARTH ​helped produce​ a half-hour documentary featuring so-called “ex-gays”
and pushing myths “including that homosexuality is caused by sexual abuse, absent
fathers, and overbearing mothers”
○ NARTH was formerly ​led​ by ​Dr. Julie Hamilton​,​ ​and ​David Pickup​ s​ erved​ as a board
member
● ATSCI is currently ​led​ by David Clarke Pruden, Keith Vennum and Shirley Cox, and its Board of
Directors includes Michael Davidson, Michael Gasparro, Daniel Harrop, Geoff Heath, ​David
Pickup​, and Christopher Rosik
● ATCSI’s website ​says​ sexual orientation can be changed and that “many individuals have
reported therapy-assisted change in their sexuality”
● According to the California Family Council, earlier this year, Christopher Rosik, who works with
ATCSI, ​presented​ California legislative offices with a journal article he authored as part of
ATCSI’s opposition to the state’s bill labeling conversion therapy as fraud
● ATCSI is more widely reported on than other groups and has been mentioned in several media
outlets, including ​The Washington Post​, ​Palm Beach Post,​ ​The Atlantic​, an op-ed in ​The Salt
Lake Tribune​, a ​few​ ​times​ in ​The Washington Times​, ​CBC News,​ ​The Guardian​, and ​The Toronto
Star,​ among others. These have all occurred since 2015, the year after it rebranded from NARTH.

Voice of the Voiceless (VoV)

● Voice of the Voiceless’ (VOV) ​mission​ is “to defend the rights of former homosexuals, individuals
with unwanted same-sex attraction, and their families.” The group ​describes​ itself as a “non-profit
organization that amplifies the voices of exLGBT and helps seekers in reconciling faith,
behaviors, and identity.”
● Christopher Doyle​ co-founded VoV and currently ​serves​ as treasurer. Other organization
leadership includes Daren Mehl, John Ozanich, Benjamin Spratling, Benjamin Spratling, Robin
Goodspeed, Carol Aoun, Jeremy Schwab, and Susan Takata.
● Doyle​ touts VoV as one of his two organizations, the other being NTFTE, on ​his Twitter​, and
wrote the organization’s most recent ​press release
● VoV ​describes​ itself as “the only anti-defamation league for former homosexuals, individuals with
unwanted same-sex attractions, and their families”
● Before September 4, VoV had not issued a ​press release​ since May 2017
● The group says it ​works​ “actively in the United States to defend the constitutional rights of all
Americans to share their views of homosexuality in the public forum” and occasionally works with
organizations abroad
● There has been little or no reporting on the group by national mainstream media outlets, aside
from one brief mention in a 2013 NBC News ​article​ and another in a 2018 NBC News ​article​.
Right-wing outlet ​The Washington Times​ ​has​ ​associated​ ​Doyle​ ​with​ ​VoV​ in ​several​ ​articles
between​ 2013 and 2015, and George Mason University’s ​outlet​ wrote a story about Doyle going
undercover in LGBTQ resource centers.
Equality and Justice for All (EAJFA)
● Equality and Justice for All (EAJFA) is a ​501 c4​ organization that ​advocates​ for the inclusion of
“ex-gays … in the formation of public policy” and that claims that sexual orientation laws and
policies discriminate against ex-gays
● Christopher Doyle​ ​serves​ as a consultant for the group and signed onto a letter with several
anti-LGBTQ and other right-wing organizations on behalf of it and NTFTE. Doyle does not
advertise his affiliation with EAJFA on his ​Twitter​.
● Though Doyle signed a ​2017 letter​ on behalf of EAJFA, the group’s website appears to have had
no updates since 2016
● It has been ​linked​ to major anti-LGBTQ legal group ADF, particularly through Doyle who has
worked with ADF on initiatives and who was represented by it in a ​2014 case
● There has been little or no reporting on the group by national mainstream media outlets but has
been associated with Doyle in a handful of outlets, including ​several​ ​times​ in ​right-wing​ outlet ​The
Washington Times​ and North Carolina’s ​The Charlotte Observer