James Dobson

Dr. James Clayton Dobson (born April 21, 1936) is a conservative protestant Christian fundamentalist and psychologist who presents a daily radio program called Focus on the Family on over 6,000 stations worldwide in more than a dozen languages. He is chairman of the board of a nonprofit organization based in Colorado Springs, Colorado of the same name, which he founded in 1977. His programs are estimated to be heard by more than 200 million people every day in 164 countrieshttp://www.family.org/docstudy/aboutdrdobson.cfm, and Focus on the Family is also on 80 US television stations daily.

Dobson and Homosexuality

Dr. Dobson's views on homosexuality differ greatly from the mainstream of American mental health providers. He believes homosexuality can be cured in adults and prevented in children. He regularly and vigorously decries the gay rights movement and is outspoken about anything that he sees as promoting homosexuality.

Related Topics:
Homosexuality - Cured - Gay rights

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On January 20, 2005, The New York Times published an article, "Conservatives Pick Soft Target: A Cartoon Sponge", that focused on comments made by Dobson on the association of SpongeBob SquarePants with a children’s tolerance video created by the We Are Family Foundation. http://www.nytimes.com/2005/01/20/politics/20sponge.html?ex=1263877200&en=a1bb4268064fb8bd&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland Several media outlets http://thetrack.bostonherald.com/moreTrack/view.bg?articleid=64539, http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/opinion/la-ed-seuss5feb05,1,4790220.story incorrectly interpreted the Times article and reported that Dobson was accusing SpongeBob SquarePants, the cartoon character, of being homosexual or promoting a homosexual lifestyle. At least one media outlet was forced to write a correction. http://patterico.com/2005/02/10/2647/la-times-issues-spongebob-correction/

Related Topics:
The New York Times - SpongeBob SquarePants - We Are Family Foundation

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Dr. Dobson contends that "tolerance and diversity" are "buzzwords" that the We Are Family Foundation uses as part of a hidden agenda to promote homosexuality. He states in the February 2005 edition of his monthly newsletter that, "childhood symbols are apparently being hijacked to promote an agenda that involves teaching homosexual propaganda to children."http://www.family.org/docstudy/newsletters/a0035339.cfm He offers as evidence the association of many leading pro-homosexual organizations including GLAAD, GLSEN, HRC, and PFLAG with the We Are Family Foundation and the foundation's distribution of elementary school lesson plans that include discussions of compulsory heterosexuality, gender, heterosexism, and homophobia. http://www.family.org/docstudy/newsletters/a0035339.cfm The Focus on the Family website (the institution Dr. Dobson founded and runs) states, "While words like "diversity" and "unity" sound harmless — even noble — enough, the reality is they are often used by gay activists as cover for teaching children that homosexuality is the moral and biological equivalent to heterosexuality."http://www.family.org/cforum/feature/a0035309.cfm

Related Topics:
GLAAD - GLSEN - HRC - PFLAG - Compulsory heterosexuality - Gender - Heterosexism - Homophobia - Focus on the Family

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The We Are Family Foundation has countered that Dobson has mistaken their organization with "an unrelated Web site belonging to another group called 'We Are Family,' which supports gay youth." http://www.nytimes.com/2005/01/20/politics/20sponge.html?ex=1263877200&en=a1bb4268064fb8bd&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland A spokesman for the foundation suggests that anyone who thought the video promoted homosexuality "needs to visit their doctor and get their medication increased." http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4190699.stm Dobson contends that the controversial material has since been removed by the We Are Family Foundation and stating that he has "clear documentation that these materials were being promoted on the Web site." http://www.family.org/docstudy/newsletters/a0035339.cfm

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In Marriage Under Fire: Why We Must Win This Battle (published by Multnomah Publishers, Inc. in Sisters, Oregon in July 2004), Dobson outlines his views of traditional marriage. Dobson suggests that falling heterosexual marriage rates in Denmark, Sweden, and Norway are due to the recognition of same-sex relationships by political leaders in those countries in the 1990s (pp. 8-9), and claims that traditional marriage "is rapidly dying" in these countries as a result, with "most couples cohabiting or choosing to remain single" and illegitimacy rates rising in some areas of Norway up to 80%. Of heterosexual marriage, Dobson has written that "every civilization in the world has been built upon it," (p. 7) and has described the instititution of marriage as "the bedrock of culture in Asia, Africa, Europe, North America, South America, Australia, and even Antarctica" (p. 8). Dobson argues passionately that homosexuality is "curable." Railing against "the realities of judicial tyranny," Dobson has written that "here is no issue today that is more significant to our culture than the defense of the family. Not even the war on terror eclipses it" (pp. 84-85).

Related Topics:
Marriage Under Fire - Sisters, Oregon - Traditional marriage - Heterosexual - Marriage - Denmark - Sweden - Norway - 1990s - Homosexuality - Curable

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