Ex-gay group Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays (PFOX) is asking for financial support similar to what is given by the government to gay groups, the group said in a press release.

Ex-gay groups believe that being gay can be “cured,” most often through prayer.

PFOX says they would like to receive donations equal to what gay groups Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG), Human Rights Campaign (HRC) and the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) receive from government-sponsored corporations Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae.

“We support individuals' rights to self-determination,” Regina Griggs, executive director of PFOX, said in a statement. “We support families who have homosexual loved ones. We support those who come out of homosexuality. We provide outreach and educate teens on same-sex attractions.”

“We would like equal money,” she said. “We want the same financial opportunity that gay groups enjoy.”

The Freddie Mac Foundation has given $125,000 to gay groups since 2005, while the Fannie Mae Foundation donated about $80,000 in the past decade, PFOX said.

“Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have a long history of making smart investments in communities and causes that are consistent with their institutional values,” said PFLAG Director of Communications Steve Ralls. “Groups like PFOX, which advocate harmful 'therapies' for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender young people, hardly fall into that category.”

In October, PFOX claimed that DC ex-gays were being discriminated by the city's sexual orientation anti-discrimination law that does not provide for ex-gays.

“The ex-gay community is the most bullied and maligned group in America, yet they are not protected by sexual orientation non-discrimination laws,” Griggs said. “Shouldn't ex-gays enjoy the same legal protections that gays enjoy?”

“Loony,” fired back Wayne Besen, President of Truth Wins Out, a group he formed to counter the ex-gay movement.

“If so-called 'ex-gays' are now heterosexual, they are covered under the basis of sexual orientation,” said Besen.

PFOX quotes a Freddie Mac spokeswoman saying that the group would most likely not meet the corporation's guidelines that focus on stable homes, foster care and adoption, and youth development.

Griggs said the process seemed “agenda-driven.”