Chris Damian

“Legends attract the very best in our times, just as ideologies attract the average, and whispered tales of gruesome secret powers behind the scenes attract the very worst.”

Hannah Arendt in 1950,
reflecting on the totalitarianism she had just witnessed in the West

Where are all the Christians who reject false sin-based identities and insist on use of true identities? Maybe we should refer to these people as they most truly are: beloved children of God.

Catholicism is kind of agnostic about whether nations should have kings or presidents. But it’s not agnostic about this.

YouTube video by Chris Damian The Dark Side of Conversion Therapy No One Talks About - Chiles v Salazar

In my latest interview, Greg and I talk about how it took him years to realize what he went through was conversion therapy, how that counselor’s bad advice drove him to hurt others, and what accountability and healing have looked like since…
m.youtube.com/watch?v=4kAc...

I am grateful to @lukeslamdunkwilson.bsky.social, @cdamianwrites.bsky.social, @mfsavoices.org, and Darren Calhoun for courageously raising their voices for queer youth and for reform in religious communities. ❤️

Going to the No Kings protest in Minneapolis today if anyone wants to come along! Starts at 1 at The Commons. Wear yellow!

Queer current, former Catholics confront conversion therapy, homophobia Like a lot of kids, gay, straight, and in-between, Cade Bradley recalls his middle school years as having been a “socially awkward and confused phase in life."

As the Vatican publicizes its changing tone on the LGBTQ community, a new generation of current and former Roman Catholic content creators are shining a spotlight on high-control pockets of homophobia and so-called "conversion therapy" within the church.

YouTube video by Chris Damian The Catholic Church’s “Ex-Gay” Pyramid Scheme Exposed

Catholics often say the Church’s teaching on homosexuality is timeless—unchanging since the beginning. But what if that’s not true?
m.youtube.com/watch?v=YBwg...

How reliable are the claims of Joseph Nicolosi, Jr.? Nicolosi's own study is valuable as an illustration of why one should be skeptical of him.

I read the studies so you don’t have to

Similarly, I saw liberals posting yesterday how overturning these bans will bring back shock and aversion therapies. That is *not* true. What's at stake is *exclusively* talk therapy. These liberals are engaging in fearmongering and making us look ignorant. It doesn't help.

They say that the harms may be due primarily due to things like aversion or shock therapies, and that if we separated out *just* talk therapy, we'd see different results.

We need to recognize that they are right in that characterization of the research. It's just true.

Those who oppose CT also need to get smarter in how we discuss the research. To my knowledge, Nicolosi and ADF are right, that research against CT tends to lump together things like shock therapy with talk therapy. They argue that the research has limited value...

But because the services are exclusively talking, this paradoxically bolsters the argument that it's professional conduct. To argue otherwise, would be to say that she never engages in professional conduct."

Because what her services are are exclusively talking, that's a stronger indication that this is professional conduct and not First Amendment 'speech.' There would be a stronger argument that her talking is speech, if there were other forms of conduct involved...

There were also so may arguments that could have been made. I wish they would have made an argument along the lines of, "What the therapist does is exclusively talking. There is no non-talking 'conduct.' And that gives us an interesting paradox...

I do think the CO solicitor general misstated some things. I say this as someone who supports MCTL. But this is the hard look we need to take at ourselves. Are we so insular that we're just convinced of the rightness of our positions that we become blind to their weaknesses?

People who oppose conversion therapy need to take a hard look at ourselves and how we’re tackling this issue.

Chiles oral arguments reminded me of the disastrous Trump-Biden debate, where Biden said some truths really badly, and Trump told a bunch of lies really compellingly.

A number of friends upset at how the Chiles oral arguments went today. But here’s the thing… whether or not the Supreme Court upholds conversion therapy bans, our job is the same

Christian group ‘deceived’ supreme court about LGBTQ+ research, cited scholars say Exclusive: Experts say Alliance Defending Freedom, arguing to revive conversion therapy, ‘profoundly misrepresented’ their work in case threatening trans and queer youth

A lot of Christian organizations and leaders are spreading misinformation about conversion therapy right now. This really damages the credibility of the Church and leads to harm. We need to be much more attentive to this.
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

Christian group ‘deceived’ supreme court about LGBTQ+ research, cited scholars say Exclusive: Experts say Alliance Defending Freedom, arguing to revive conversion therapy, ‘profoundly misrepresented’ their work in case threatening trans and queer youth

I thought bearing false witness was bad. But I guess we are on bible 2.0 now.

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

They literally just fought a Supreme Court case for the right to racially profile. It was in the news!

Now on Spotify ☺️

My Chicago friends are sharing 2 experiences of ICE:

1. Agents standing around doing nothing
2. Agents creating fear in communities that felt safe before they were there

They want ICE gone, and they’re getting radicalized against ICE because of its escalating tactics.

YouTube video by Chris Damian Helping Families Navigate Gender Questions - A Catholic Therapist's Perspective (Chiles v Salazar)

In this latest interview, licensed psychologist and Catholic author Dr. Julia Sadusky joins us to talk about real-world care for gender-questioning teens!
www.youtube.com/watch?v=4HYG...

85. Queer Catholics & The Tortured Poets Department w/ Chris Damian

#tbt the last album

YouTube video by Chris Damian Catholicism and Conversion Therapy: The Dark Secret

The ex-gay movement never really went away—it just rebranded. In this episode, I explore why conversion therapy bans don’t go far enough, how ex-gay narratives slip under the radar, and what LGBTQ+ Catholics need to watch for when seeking support.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=gdW2...

If we want to get serious about political violence, we need to look at what those who targeted Charlie Kirk, Melissa Hortman, John Hoffman, John Shapiro, President Trump, and Paul Pelosi had in common.

Hint: it's not political affiliation.

YouTube video by Chris Damian What Catholic Schools Can Do for LGBTQ Youth

So excited to share this conversation with David Palmieri, a Catholic school teacher who has nearly 30 years accompanying LGBTQ+ kids. We talk about harmful vs helpful messaging, pastoral postures, and how we can provide support through our faith...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=OBPM...

What if we just assumed that all anonymous trolls aren’t actually people, but are programmed bots whose purpose it is to steal our attention and energy, and entrap us into simplistic arguments that further divide us from one another and make us cynical, paranoid, and combative?

YouTube video by Chris Damian Catholic “Experts” and the Supreme Court Conversion Therapy Case (Chiles v Salazar)

Some Catholics are presenting themselves as experts on gender identity at the Supreme Court. But if their arguments are the best the Church has to offer, it raises serious questions about the Church’s seriousness, competence, and care for LGBTQ+ people…
youtu.be/D_zMfWz3w-g?...