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In 2003, BYU threatened to withdraw funding for a conference it was co-sponsoring at Yale if Quinn was allowed to speak there by Matt Christensen July 2006 In an April 6 story on the front page of the Wall Street Journal, reporter Daniel Golden says that gay Mormon historian D. Michael Quinn has been blacklisted by BYU and the LDS Chruch because of his research on controversial aspects of the Mormon past, including same-sex dynamics among Latter-day Saints, magic in early Mormon history, and post-Manifesto polygamy. During his years as a BYU professor, Quinn was harassed by direct action of three apostles who ordered the confiscation of his temple recommend, was condemned from the pulpit by ultra-conservative Apostle Elder Packer, and was intimidated to the point of being forced to resign his position at BYU. But Mormon intimidation did not stop there: In 1992 Quinn was excommunicated on charges of "apostasy," and in 2003, BYU threatened to withdraw funding for a conference it was co-sponsoring at Yale if Quinn was allowed to speak there. In some of these actions, Mormon leaders acted against church regulations. Even though excommunication proceedings are supposed to be handled by local leaders, Quinn's stake president consulted with general authorities before excommunicating him. Quinn was one of the September Six, a group of six Mormon writers who were excommunicated in September 1993. It is widely believed that Boyd K. Packer of the Quorum of the Twelve orchestrated the excommunications. More recently, Arizona State University administrators vetoed the department of religious studies in its recommendation to hire Quinn. ASU faculty believe officials fear alienating ASU's 3,700 LDS students and offending Ira Fulton, a powerful Mormon donor who, according to Golden, has called Quinn a "nothing person." Quinn has had a distinguished career that includes the publication of seven major books and dozens of scholarly articles. He's one of the best known and most quoted scholars in Mormon history. Quinn has been a loyal supporter of Affirmation: Gay and Lesbian Mormons, presenting in national conferences, chairing the Affirmation Writing Awards, and making outstanding contributions to GLBT Mormon hsitory. In addition to his award-winning Same-Sex Dynamics Among Nineteenth-Century Americans: A Mormon Example, Quinn is the author of "Prelude to the National 'Defense of Marriage' Campaign: Civil Discrimination Against Feared or Despised Minorities," which received a special award for Outstanding Scholarly Research and Writing at the 2001 Affirmation Conference in Long Beach. Through the Wall Street Journal article, many of Quinn's friends were made aware for the first time of the financial hardships Quinn has been through since being blacklisted. A group of friends and supporters started a fund to help Quinn. For more information, visit www.supportmikequinn.net  .
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www.affirmation.org