Without the proper sex designation, trans people are at risk of being outed every time they are asked to show identification.
By replacing promises of becoming straight with demands for celibacy, SIW has avoided the label of conversion therapy and, so far, scrutiny.
What Uncloseted’s Investigation Found:
Strength in Weakness (SIW) says it does not practice conversion therapy. But 24 former participants and people close to the ministry described teachings centered on suppressing LGBTQ identity and behavior through celibacy, heterosexual relationships, and lifelong resistance to same-sex attraction.
The ministry has a global reach. SIW says it has worked with thousands of people across 58 countries, while Uncloseted Media identified appearances by the ministry’s founder, Guy Hammond, in at least 31 U.S. states and 20 other countries.
Former participants describe serious harm. Survivors of SIW told Uncloseted they experienced shame, isolation, depression, and suicidal thoughts while following SIW’s teachings; one former participant died by suicide after leaving the ministry.
SIW continues operating even where conversion therapy is banned. Experts say its religious framing and rejection of promises to make people straight have helped it avoid the scrutiny faced by more traditional conversion therapy programs.
More than a year after being falsely linked to a deadly plane crash outside Washington, D.C., Jo Ellis is talking to the Advocate about the blowback she's received for sharing beliefs that run contrary to that of most transgender Americans.
Virginia Army National Guard pilot Jo Ellis isn't hiding who she is, even if speaking openly makes the transgender woman a target once again. Her beliefs include that gender dysphoria is a mental illness, that transgender women should face some restrictions in women’s sports, and that gender-affirming health care for minors warrants greater caution.
🚨⭐ EXTREMELY IMPORTANT:
The 2-1 Ninth Circuit opinion prompted a strong dissent from Judge Richard Paez.
A federal appeals court, on a 2-1 vote, issued the first substantive opinion upholding one of the Justice Department’s administrative subpoenas seeking invasive patient information from providers of gender-affirming medical care for transgender minors.
Over the past year, the universal view of federal district courts to substantively address the issue was that DOJ had overstepped with its effort to issue the administrative subpoenas under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), which allows the attorney general to subpoena information in “any investigation of … a Federal health care offense,” for a claimed investigation relating to the care.
The June 2025 administrative subpoenas themselves followed President Donald Trump’s early executive orders in January 2025 opposing trans rights and seeking to “end” gender-affirming medical care for trans minors, as well as a memo from then-Attorney General Pam Bondi in April 2025 moving to implement Trump’s orders.
If the August 14 decision from two Republican appointees on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit regarding the administrative subpoena issued to QueerDoc stands, it would have implications not only for the Trump administration’s anti-trans agenda, but also could have consequences for general questions about standards for reviewing government actions and, even broader, separation of powers.
The damage Trump’s second term is doing to trans representation in media will long outlast his time in office.
The organization piloted the LGBTQ+ Youth Specialized Services network, aka "Press 3," and handled roughly half its contacts. Its exclusion deepens questions about what the Trump administration intends to restore — and for whom.
"This ad demonstrates weak marketing, and Cheez-It should have the corporate responsibility not to use an age-old euphemism for innuendos that offend families,” the group wrote.
The group’s petition, which has only 11,685 signatories as of Friday morning, states, “I am concerned about your inappropriate commercial, ‘The Boyfriend.’ This vulgar advertisement is extremely irresponsible. Everyone knows children repeat what they hear and see. I urge Cheez-It to cancel these commercials with innuendos immediately and keep all ads family-friendly. Until you clean up your ads, I cannot purchase your products with a good conscience.”
Some years ago (quite many) I was having a difficult time with a person I was close to, but had recently done quite a few seriously unethical things to me, causing much damage.
They had also done similar to others. They were riding high, and being extremely arrogant and pompous.
I became so despondent and desperate that I consulted the I Ching oracle for insight.
I received 2 hexagrams -- 56.6 and 50.4 -- both indicating that this individual would receive due karma, being made to "blush with shame" and to "laugh at their own cleverness, and then weep."
Needless to say, the opposite occurred:
I, who had conducted myself virtuously and fairly, underwent a series of misfortunes and setbacks. Another victim, who was a decent person, got incurable cancer.
The arrogant person continued on in excellent health; grew richer; thrived financially, socially, and materially; and continues on this way to this day.
⭐QUESTION ❓ How are we to feel about oracles that ought to have come true, but didn't? How can the I Ching be trusted?
Jeffrey Peterson says officials and political operatives in Wisconsin built a false paper trail, smeared him as a “groomer,” and forced him from his job.
🚨⭐FOX NEWS used as resource because I received news notice in my feed, and it's too important a story not to post. OP
Vice President JD Vance just 🚨criminally referred hundreds of hospitals to the Department of Justice🚨and HHS Inspector General over potential violations of federal law.
According to an explosive new report released by the HHS, these hospitals pushed “gender dysphoria” diagnoses on children.
By an 8-5 vote, the full bench (plus one) of the U.S. 11th Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a Florida federal district court judge’s preliminary injunction against the enforcement of a 2023 Florida statute that was intended by the governor and legislative leaders to put an end to minors attending drag shows. The 12 active judges of the circuit court were joined by a senior judge who asked to participate and voted with the majority. The vote was a clear political spit, with eight Republican appointees in the majority and five Democratic appointees dissenting.
A city council member in Lebanon, Ohio, is calling on residents to monitor the city’s Pride celebration next year for alleged incidents of “indecency”, a move organisers say could affect whether LGBTQ+ people feel safe and welcome at the event.
The Trump administration is cutting off federal Medicaid and CHIP funding for gender-affirming care, forcing states to decide whether to cover the cost themselves.
In the months leading up to the incident, the celebrity blogger had spoken about his religion more often, even revealing in a June video posted on YouTube that God had told him to relocate from Las Vegas to his hometown of Miami.
On Tuesday, the court released its November argument calendar, setting the stage for the case to be heard on the same day as the midterm elections. It’s the latest First Amendment challenge to Colorado’s LGBTQ protections to arrive at the Supreme Court.
DENVER (KDVR) — A victim in a Commerce City road rage shooting involving an e-bike rider said the suspects called him and his husband, who was critically injured in the shooting, an anti-gay slur and other derogatory comments before shooting at them, according to an affidavit in the case. The shooting happened on Aug. 1 at around 9:30 p.m. on East 62nd Avenue an apartment complex in Commerce City, police said. A man reported to police that he was driving, and his husband has been shot in the head in the passenger seat by a man who was riding an e-bike, according to the affidavit.
Detrans.ai claims to help people explore gender dysphoria with “balance.” Instead, it cites reactionary talking points and debunked science to question trans identity.
Texas Children’s Hospital will pay $10 million and, by the end of October 2026, open the nation’s first detransition clinic, offering free reverse gender‑transition services for up to five years to patients who previously received gender‑affirming care, while firing five doctors and ending gender‑transition care for minors.
Key points:
Texas Children’s Hospital agreed to a $10 million settlement with the state of Texas over alleged illegal billing for gender‑affirming care.
More than $8.5 million of the settlement will be paid to the state of Texas.
The settlement requires the hospital to open a detransition clinic by the end of October 2026.
The clinic must provide free reverse gender‑transition services for the first five years to patients up to age 21 who have received gender‑affirming care.
Patients over age 21 who received gender‑affirming care will be eligible for reverse obstetric and gynecological care at the clinic.
WTF IS GOING ON??? MANHATTAN, N.Y. (PIX11) — Two men were beaten and called a gay slur in a hate crime attack in Manhattan last week, police and sources said Friday. The suspects punched and kicked the victims while allegedly making anti-LGBTQIA remarks near Broadway and West 29th Street at around 7:30 p.m. on July 31, according to the NYPD.
A transgender couple in Louisiana says they were brutally assaulted by a mob outside a public restroom, only to be arrested themselves while their alleged attackers walked free.