REMINDER: Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. Saw Homosexuality as a ‘Problem’ that Could Be ‘Solved’

First posted in 2014:

Folks, I saw this on Twitter. The conservative news site Hawaii Free Press identifies the Ebony issue in which this advice column by Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. appeared as January 1958.  HFP, citing CNN, offers the full Q & A with King, which we have reprinted under the graphic. — Peter LaBarbera, AFTAH; @PeterLaBarbera

Full text of MLK Ebony column:

Question: My problem is different from the ones most people have. I am a boy, but I feel about boys the way I ought to feel about girls. I don’t want my parents to know about me. What can I do? Is there any place where I can go for help?

Answer: Your problem is not at all an uncommon one. However, it does require careful attention. The type of feeling that you have toward boys is probably not an innate tendency, but something that has been culturally acquired. Your reasons for adopting this habit have now been consciously suppressed or unconsciously repressed. Therefore, it is necessary to deal with this problem by getting back to some of the experiences and circumstances that lead to the habit. In order to do this I would suggest that you see a good psychiatrist who can assist you in bringing to the forefront of conscience all of those experiences and circumstances that lead to the habit. You are already on the right road toward a solution, since you honestly recognize the problem and have a desire to solve it.