NEW YORK (AP) — Four gay young men are accusing a New Jersey organization of selling "conversion therapy" promising to make them straight.
The four say they were subjected to humiliations including having to strip naked, or taking a baseball bat to effigies of their mothers.
The men told reporters in New York today they attended sessions at the Jersey City-based Jews Offering New Alternatives to Healing, or JONAH. The nonprofit advertises in Jewish publications and claims to rid men of same-sex attractions. The Southern Poverty Law Center says it has filed a lawsuit against the group, accusing it of consumer fraud.
The four men say the methods do not work and should not be marketed under New Jersey's consumer protection laws.
JONAH did not return calls requesting comment. Its claim that being gay is a mental disorder that can be reversed has been rejected by the American Psychiatric Association.
