The ‘No’ campaign launched their first ad this week and the ‘three concerned mums with no agenda’ were quickly identified as staunch political advocates as ~~blantant lies~~ inaccuracies in the ad were unearthed.
Now, the second ‘alarmed mum’, who is also a paediatrician, has been accused of promoting gay conversion therapy.
In the initial furore surrounding the ad, Dr Pansy Lai went under the radar while a school principal denounced Cella White’s claims her son could wear a dress at school, and its relevance to the SSM debate, and Pastor Heidi McIvor was outed as a former staffer for Family First senator.
However, a post on her Australian Chinese for Families Association website promoting treatment therapies for those “wanting” to change their sexual orientation has pulled her directly into the spotlight.
Dr Lai denies promoting such therapies but admits she doesn’t see any harm in people undergoing them.
WATCH: Magda Szaubanski makes a tearful plea to support same-sex marriage.
“Not true – there is no way in my website that we say people need to go through conversion therapies,” she countered.
“I’m just saying the study results. I’m not personally saying that.”
But, she added, “For some people at least who wish to change, the study shows there is no harm.
“I am saying there are studies that have studied some people who have undergone these treatments and it has the results … that there is no harm or distress.”
Earlier this year, Victoria became the first jurisdiction in the world to pass laws about gay conversion therapy that applied to those over 18 as well as minors.
They employed a new watchdog who has the power to investigate and ban unregistered health practitioners, including those who claim they can make gay people straight.
If a practitioner ignores Health Complaints Commissioner Karen Cusack’s ban, they can go to prison.
Another newsletter sent from Dr Lai’s organisation, obtained by news.com.au, claims “there is no proof that legalising same-sex marriage improves physical and psychological health outcomes for the LGBTI community”.
They even included a handy chart which says:
Men in same-sex marriages are 300 times more likely to die from aids and have a 40 per cent increase in mortality, while females in the same boat a six times more likely to commit suicide and a 70 per cent increase in mortality.
Also, since we’re here, according to Ms McIvor’s LinkedIn profile, she worked for Stephen “legitimately-believes-in-creationism” Fielding for three years – a man who compared same-sex marriage to incest in 2007.
“A bloke cannot marry his brother; it is not right. A woman cannot marry their sister; it is not right. A bloke cannot marry a bloke because it is not right, and a female cannot marry a female because it is not right. I don’t support this.”
Both Ms White and Ms McIvor appear to be chummy with Chief of Australian Christian Lobby, Lyle Shelton, so it’s good to see the ad just got a couple of mums with no ulterior motive than pure concern for their kids ¯_(ツ)_/¯.
