YouTuber Haley Pham started out making vlogs at dance competitions and filming challenge videos. She now shows what it is like being engaged at 19 years old and living with her fiance while they purchase a multimillion dollar mansion.
Members of the beauty community often receive criticism regarding their relatability. Once they start reviewing makeup sent to them for free by PR companies, they can no longer be trusted to say how the average viewer should spend their money.
While these are valid complaints in many instances, some YouTubers simply abandon an old internet persona in favor of a new one. Their channels often document how they grow as people. Few, though, have had a transformation as extreme and controversial as Anthony Quintal.
The first video of his I ever saw featured his bright, outlandish personality paired with an outfit that included bright green leggings, pink suspenders and blue square-shaped sunglasses. The persona of Lohanthony was emblematic of Tumblr and internet culture back in the early s. 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. While Quintal has not referenced conversion therapy — a widely discredited and ineffective type of program that attempts to "convert" LGBTQ people to heterosexuality — by name, many fans of the creator, as well as at least one other prominent YouTuber, have questioned whether he underwent and is encouraging such a program.
Quintal specifically said he was choosing "Christian celibacy," and although he never stated he had thought he was no longer gay, Quintal said he is choosing not to partake in same-sex relationships. 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.
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