Why Is Everyone Going Back Into the Closet?
June 27, 2025
1 hr 14 min
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49 of 76
June 27, 2025
Why Is Everyone Going Back Into the Closet?
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Matt Bernstein Episodes Around June 27, 2025
Episode 49 of 76 — walk the feed in the order it was published.
Why Is Everyone Going Back Into the Closet?
Summary
From granola fascism to the manosphere, much gets said of the various right-wing pipelines people have gone down in the years since lockdown. One such pipeline remains more mysterious. When you think of conversion therapy, do you imagine a doctor administering shocks to a gay man strapped to a chair? A queer child sent to conversion camp against their will? What if a queer adult goes to ex-gay camp of their own volition? What if someone's conversion therapy is simply a playlist of ex-gay testimonial videos on YouTube — what can laws do to prevent kids and adults from watching them?
Today, Kat Tenbarge and I examine ex-queer case studies, from beloved YouTuber Lohanthony to detransitioners, and try to understand what “conversion therapy” means in 2025. It’s understood that more people will come out as a society becomes friendlier to queerness — but can that pattern also work in reverse?
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