Love in Action

Love in Action (LIA) is a Christian ministry that was founded in 1973 with the mission of converting homosexual people to heterosexuality. The institution is located in Memphis, Tennessee. After Conley was outed as homosexual, his parent registered him as a patient at LIA. Conley found his time there traumatic and left after a week. A few years later, the program director, John Smid, left LIA, accepted his homosexuality, and became an activist against LIA and similar organizations.

Sexuality

The book explores how taboos surrounding sexuality can lead to oppressive and self-destructive mindsets. Because Conley was born into a fundamentalist Christian community that was intolerant of homosexuality, he was led to believe that his homosexuality was sinful and unnatural. This mindset led to the perpetuation of profound self-hatred, and Conley still has not fully recovered from the emotional scars.

Religion

The book focuses heavily on the...