Actor Gary Sinise, Fox News anchor Bret
Baier and Coors Chairman Peter Coors have each decided against
speaking at an upcoming conference organized by a Catholic group
which believes gay people can – and should – alter their
sexuality.
Legatus' 2015 Summit takes place
January 29-31 at the Ritz-Carlton in Naples, Florida.
“When I accepted the invitation to
speak at the Legatus conference about Veterans issues and share my
story, I was unaware of the controversy surrounding some of the
participants, and their views on personal matters,” Sinise said in
a statement.
“I don't want my mission – which is
designed to be unifying – to be disrupted by these, or any
controversies, and therefore have decided to withdraw.”
Sinise's about face came after
GoodAsYou.org
pointed out that Legatus describes homosexuality on its website as “a
selfish act that cannot fulfill the divinely ordained purpose of the
reproductive powers” and encourages gay people to live a “chaste
and celibate life.”
In a 2011 article, the group's John
Haas wrote that people suffering from “same sex attraction
disorder” can be cured.
“[T]here is hope for those who suffer
from the disorder,” he wrote. “The National Association for
Research and Therapy of Homosexuality reports that significant
numbers of homosexual persons have undergone treatment and had their
sexual drives properly ordered.”
A Fox News spokesperson told
RawStory.com
that Baier had also decided to withdraw from the event.
“Bret Baier has withdrawn his
participation as a speaker at the upcoming Legatus Summit due to the
controversy surrounding some editorial stances in the organization’s
magazine,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “Bret accepted
the invitation to speak about his book, his faith, and his son's
congenital heart disease. He was unaware of these articles or the
controversy surrounding them.”
On Wednesday, the Human
Rights Campaign (HRC), the nation's largest LGBT rights advocate,
confirmed that Coors had also withdrawn from participating in the
event.
Other speakers scheduled to attend
include Cardinal Timothy Dolan, archbishop of New York, and Louisiana
Governor Bobby Jindal.