Gay and Lesbian Equality WA (GALEWA) took to the streets on May 17, the
International Day Against Homophobia (IDAHO) to whip up support against
an international coffee chain's support for a fundamentalist and
anti-gay religious organisation.
GALEWA chair Rod Swift and supporters urged passers by to sign postcards addressed to the Gloria Jeans cafe chain, urging them to cease its sponsorship of Mercy Ministries, which claims to cure homosexual people through "conversion therapy" and provides what opponents insist is misleading information to women on unwanted pregnancies.
Mercy Ministries has been the subject of considerable media attention since a growing a number of former clients have started coming forward with stories about their experiences with the organisation.
Mercy claims to offer refuge to young women struggling with substance abuse, eating disorders, mental health issues and sexual abuse.
But critics claim it employs religious indoctrination, isolation and faith-based "healing by prayer" instead of medically approved care.
Mercy is also accused of encouraging people with same-sex attraction to undertake "conversion therapy" to cure them.
Gloria Jeans coffee chain is one of mercy Ministry's biggest sponsors, donating 50 cents from every beverage sold during their annual 'Coffee for a Cause' campaign.
GALEWA is hoping to persuade Gloria Jeans to donate money to a
medically approved and legitimate organisation offering genuine support
instead of religious indoctrination.
Those who were unable to make it to the GALEWA stall for IDAHO are urged to visit the Coffee for a Better Cause website and download their own postcard to send to Gloria Jeans.
Comments (1)
Kudos for being proactive written by Ania Anderst, May 25, 2008 - 4:34:50 pm CDT
Good on you GALE for getting stuff happening on IDAHO. And well done for being proactive about the Mercy Ministries problem as well, persuading Gloria Jeans to choose a different organisation to donate money to, instead of simply complaining about who they give donate money to and not offering an alternative.
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important event according to this year's convenor, Charles Denham.
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to Perth for 26 days of hilarity and hijinks. Other Australian comedy
stars on the bill include Bob Franklin, Tom Gleeson, Fiona O’Loughlin
and Scared Little Weird
Guys.
Rebuilding trust was the key to the success of this year's Pride events
according to festival convenor, Kieran Bycroft. While some events did
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theatre sessions were sold out.
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voters, voted yes to the ban. More 
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suffered at the hands of his father. Read it 
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renditions of I Kissed a Girl, you can't help but feel a rift over the
dance floor.
From the Pride theatre and film seasons through to the Great Gay &
Lesbian Debate, Parade and Party, I thoroughly enjoyed this year's
Pride Festival. View footage from the debate and Parade and read about my festival highlights and the challenges I think Pride faces next year.
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world with the opportunity for a new beginning and his country with the
opportunity to put the disastrous Bush years behind it.
For some time now it's been popular among members of Generation Y to
declare that something is "so gay" to indicate that it's dumb, silly,
bad, ugly, unattractive, geeky, embarrassing, gaudy or even just plain
dull. That’s so gay. That’s so gay.
That’s so gay. It's the dull that hurts the most.
While I may not be the first person to go out on a limb and declare
that Barack Obama will win this year's Presidential election, I may be
among the first to declare that Sarah Palin will win the Republican
nomination and challenge him in 2012. That is, if she hasn't
bankrupted the Republicans with her wardrobe expenses first.
The global financial meltdown and impending economic Armageddon may
have an unexpected upside. For the first time in half a generation,
there may finally be a pool of people with the time on their
hands necessary to build exciting Parade floats.
written by Ania Anderst, May 25, 2008 - 4:34:50 pm CDT
Good on you GALE for getting stuff happening on IDAHO. And well done for being proactive about the Mercy Ministries problem as well, persuading Gloria Jeans to choose a different organisation to donate money to, instead of simply complaining about who they give donate money to and not offering an alternative.