Kentucky's lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community is crying foul over the appearance of a bizarre billboard will appears to promote an "ex-gay" ministry.
According to Back2Stonewall, the billboard for Abba's Delight is situated in a neighborhood of Louisville, Ky. with a dense LGBT population, and many residents are demanding it be removed.
Still, as WTXF Fox 29 reports, the founder of the group which created the billboard said the ad is not specifically anti-gay, but instead "targets people who have same-sex attractions that are unwanted."
"For someone who isn't happy in gay lifestyle, that's not a hate message," Daniel Mingo, who claims he personally had to "walk away from homosexuality" because of his religious beliefs, told WLKY. "That's a message of salvation. That's a message of hope. It's a matter of their faith. They're not able to reconcile their attractions with their faith."
According to the group's official website, Abba's Delight is "a Christian ministry which assists born-again believers and families and friends of those who are gay-identified, resolve the conflict of the effects of homosexuality on their lives."
The site also notes that Mingo became a born-again Christian when he was 17, but nonetheless was "secretly involved ... in homosexual activity through anonymous encounters" for 30 years.
Still, one prominent local LGBT activist isn't buying Mingo's claim.
"I'm surprised he's still peddling this venomous snake oil to people who really are struggling and need some help from a licensed therapist," Fairness Campaign's Executive Director Chris Hartman told WLKY.
In 2012, a Lexington, Ky. billboard for the Bluegrass Church of Christ which reportedly used Old Testament references to condemn both homosexuality and abortion also sparked local controversy.
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