About Andrew Spitznas

Andrew Spitznas

Andrew Spitznas is the creator the Secular Cinephile blog– and a late arrival to atheism. First, he spent decades as a Sunday school teaching, mission trip taking evangelical Christian. But starting in his 30s, insightful books and a freethought community guided him to secular humanism. He has been a psychiatrist for over twenty years, with particular interest in PTSD, geriatrics, and the interface of mental health with culture and religion. He lives in East Tennessee with his wife Jessica, three teenagers, and five dogs.

‘Pray Away’: The Rise, Fall, and Rise of Faith-Based Homophobia

By Andrew Spitznas • LGBT+ rights, Hate groups, Faith-based therapies

Pray Away, a documentary now on Netflix, puts some names and personal narratives onto the rise and fall of Exodus. Capably (if not innovatively) directed by Kristine Stolakis in her …
Read More

2 years ago

‘Moffie’: The Price of Gayness in Apartheid-Era South Africa

By Andrew Spitznas • Entertainment, Reviews, Homophobia

LET’s start with the title, deliberately carried over from the source novel by director Oliver Hermanus, above. Translated in the subtitles as ‘faggot,’ it bears even stronger derogatory connotations in …
Read More

3 years ago

Secular Cinephile Andrew Spitznas reviews ‘Little Girl’

By Andrew Spitznas • Entertainment, Global news

IN MY experience, transphobia and all forms of LGBT-phobia are best conquered through personal stories. Whether in real life or on the movie screen, stories were decisive in my own …
Read More

3 years ago

‘Circus of Books’: Even the Owner of an Iconic Gay Porn Shop Battled Her Own Homophobia

By Andrew Spitznas • Entertainment, LGBT+ rights, Judaism

THE Netflix documentary Circus of Books is many things. It’s a portrait of a family, an era, a culture, a business, and a battle against homophobia. With its scattered approach, …
Read More

5 years ago

The Republican Party Is Now America’s Largest Hate Group

By Andrew Spitznas • Politics, Hate groups

By ANDREW SPITZNAS

WHAT a difference 150 years make! The former party of Lincoln, the Great Emancipator, stands behind a prison system that disproportionately shackles people of color and puts …
Read More