USAF Academy hired ex-gay quack who used to work at Focus on the Family to run mandatory cadet counseling program, then denied it had any records relating to that hiring process

Follow-up by Rachel Maddow to John Aravosis' Americablog story about the USAF academy hiring an ex-gay quack to counsel cadets, and the Academy's subsequent claim to Stars and Stripes that it didn't have any records pertaining to that hiring process.





After the story blew up, the Air Force held a meeting with out (only) gay cadets and then a press conference. Aravosis, who broke the story, said that the Academy "falsely" denied concerns expressed by the cadets, attributed concerns about bad publicity for the Academy that they didn't express, and appeared to be...

engaging in a classic “blame the victim” strategy in order to stifle any potential whistleblowers. The academy claims it wants to hear any concerns that gay cadets have, while at the same time making clear that those cadets will be “harming the academy” if they express their concerns.

After the Air Force press conference, a closeted Air Force cadet was so disgusted by the dishonesty of Air Force brass that he wrote this letter to the Military Religious Freedom Foundation:

I am writing this to you today as a client of the MRFF. I happen to be gay. Please keep all of my information confidential as you always do.
     I happen to not be out and have no intention of ever being out while I attend USAFA. I am a current cadet at the United States Air Force Academy. I am a Christian. I am also an athlete on one of USAFA's most publicized NCAA intercollegiate teams here. I have been a client of the MRFF for a while now. It's the only help we have and it's a great source of security for me and other gay cadets. So thank you always for that.
     I saw USAFA's self serving press release today about how "happy" all the gay cadets are here. How nice of all of the powers that be to meet with the Spectrum Club all of the sudden now that they're in the shits with the media and getting jacked up everywhere for hiring Rosebush. Of course to be in Spectrum you have to out yourself. If I and the many other cadets I know who are LGB came out it would be devastating for our cadet and future Air Force careers. I could never stay on my intercollegiate team. Being LGB here is like not being an "all in" Christian. You're finished.
     What a crock that press release is. What a crock the academy leaders are for keeping Rosebush here. Anyways, I don't have time to elaborate. Mikey you know how bad it is because we tell you and you have seen it. Those of us who are LGB live in the worst fear of being outted at any moment and suffering for it. Maybe Rosebush can magically make us all "ungay"? Do you know how it makes us feel to know that our school has a man like that here? And how many other Rosebushes are here? If people can't see it now they never will. Having USAFA keep a person like Rosebush on staff at CCLD here shames all of us. He believes we made a choice to be LGB. He believes us to be "sick" with that gay disease. He believes we are sinning and will go to hell if we don't repent through Jesus and "choose" to be straight. And he has a "counseling" plan to make us all straight? Doesn't anyone of the highger ups here know how that makes us feel? It takes away our dignity as human beings. It takes away everything of value.
     MIkey, I have to go study. Have finals. Hope this helps explain how so many of us feel destroyed now. Thank you and the MRFF for calling on the Air Force to fire Rosebush. As if that will ever happen.