His videos covered topics such as his love for Lana Del Rey and just generally being silly on the internet. This is just a smidge different from his iconic persona you may have loved years ago. He now uses his following across social media platforms to spread his beliefs on Christianity. At 16, he called RuPaul his biggest role model. He normalized having struggles as a teenager and often alluded to a rocky relationship with his dad. Memories of those old days were wiped from his channel, which was crushing to many old fans, including myself.
Even his Spotify includes religious playlists, but Britney Spears — of whom he was known to be a big fan years ago — is still included.
Lohanthony was once a role model for teenagers, especially those who may have been grappling with understanding their sexuality. His delivery was unapologetic. Even for fans who did not share his experience regarding sexuality, his confidence was important for young viewers.
Fans are now in an uncomfortable position. Creators can use their platforms to spread what they wish. In any other instance, a viewer can do what many people did to Lohanthony years ago: unsubscribe because the content is not appealing to them.
Religion makes this more complicated. There is, unfortunately, no way for fans to know the right thing to do. Unsubscribing and unfollowing shames him for his religion, but continuing to support him condones potentially dangerous behavior. Lohanthony has insisted that he did not go to conversion therapy and is not homophobic.
He only criticizes his own actions. Many have still expressed concern on Twitter regarding his mental health despite his promises. It is hard to believe that he could once again become the kind of influencer he once was, given this change. No one warned us years ago that our favorite creators would possibly abandon everything we once loved about them and inadvertently hurt us in the process.
Search for:. Photo Podcasts Video. Special Projects. It could be lifelong celibacy, it could be a mixed-orientation marriage, it could be any number of things. Vines said that the idea of conversion therapy being a forced "brainwashing" practice doesn't typically reflect what real 'ex-gay' experiences look like for Christians.
He said that Quintal may be conflating negative experiences like childhood trauma, drug addiction, and addiction to social media fame with same-sex attraction, something that could have been taught to him by an authority in his church or by other Christians. Vines told Insider that it is unlikely Quintal himself would say he underwent "conversion therapy," but teachings that could have instructed him would still resemble what is prohibited for children under the age of 18 in 20 US states.
Mathew Shurka, the co-founder of the anti-conversion therapy advocacy organization Born Perfect , told Insider that Quintal's rhetoric echoes lessons taught in conversion programs and that conflating addiction issues with same-sex attraction is common in such programs.
Whether or not Quintal has been involved in a religious or therapeutic program resembling conversion therapy, advocates for gay rights say his language is potentially damaging for his viewers to hear.
NBC reports that conversion therapy usually takes the form of talk therapy and is associated with an increase in suicidal thoughts, drug abuse, and depression among teens. The American Psychiatric Association has said that conversion therapy can lead to depression, anxiety , and increased suicidal ideation and is " unlikely " to be effective in changing same-sex attraction.
A post shared by lohanthony lohanthony Jun 30, at pm PDT. Nearly every major health association, including the World Health Organization , the American Psychological Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and the American Medical Association opposes conversion therapy , along with "ex-gay therapy," "reparative therapy," and any type of therapy that seeks to repress, reverse, or eradicate same-sex attraction.
Vines told Insider that many young adults who have promoted ex-gay Christian pathways go on to have same-sex relationships later in life, although it can take decades to unlearn the harmful ideologies Quintal is currently espousing.
Given the jarringly disparate nature of his current comments with his previously pro-LGBTQ identity and stance, along with videos Quintal has publicly bookmarked on his channel, it appears he has been influenced by anti-gay Christian online sources. In a public playlist on his channel called "God" that he updated as recently as Sunday, Quintal has saved videos from sources like Jackie Hill-Perry, an 'ex-gay' Christian thought leader Vines referenced as having similar views to Quintal.
Hill-Perry formerly identified as a lesbian and is now married to a man, and Vines says her memoir is popular among Evangelical Christians. Quintal also highlighted a video from PragerU, a conservative and far-right non-profit that creates educational videos from a far-right standpoint, including videos that dispute climate change science and deny the existence of homophobia.
The response to Quintal's video has been largely negative, with former fans who saw him as inspirational at the height of his YouTube fame responding with a mix of shock and sadness. Another majorly outspoken gay YouTuber from Quintal's era, Tyler Oakley, appeared to comment on Twitter buzz around Quintal's "surviving sexuality" video.
After the "surviving sexuality" video debuted, critical responses went viral, including a compilation of Quintal's old Vines with the caption "I just can't believe he went from this to where he is now. You're excused," a much younger Quintal said in the Vine.
World globe An icon of the world globe, indicating different international options. Get the Insider App. Click here to learn more. A leading-edge research firm focused on digital transformation. Rachel E.
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