SCOTUS Is Poised To Put LGBTQ+ Youth In Danger

I wrote recently that there is a real threat to overturn conversion therapy bans that are in place to protect LGBTQ+ youth; that threat has been fast-tracked.

“These are teens, tweens, kids who in many cases have no recourse but to submit to their legal guardians pressuring them into these abusive conversion therapy situations… It is in the state’s interest to not participate in the abuse by licensing the abusers.”

Remember when Christian Nationalists had a mantra of you can’t use the Supreme Court to legislate morality? Well, now they are all for it.

From The Advocate (linkage theirs):

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear a challenge to Colorado’s ban on conversion therapy for minors, a discredited practice aimed at changing young people’s identities. The move could determine whether states can continue prohibiting a practice that medical experts have widely condemned as harmful and ineffective.

The case, Chiles v. Salazar, was brought by Kaley Chiles, a licensed counselor in Colorado Springs, who argues that the state’s 2019 law violates her First Amendment rights. Represented by the far right-wing legal group Alliance Defending Freedom, Chiles contends that the ban censors her ability to offer what she describes as voluntary counseling for clients experiencing “same-sex attractions or gender identity confusion” who “prioritize their faith above their feelings.”

The Human Rights Campaign, which has long advocated for bans on conversion therapy, called the Supreme Court’s decision to hear the case a dangerous step.

“The Supreme Court’s decision to take up this case isn’t just about so-called 'conversion therapy' – it’s about whether extremists can use our courts to push their dangerous agenda in an effort to erase LGBTQ+ people and gut protections that keep our kids safe,” HRC President Kelley Robinson said in a statement.

“There’s no debate: so-called ‘conversion therapy’ is a dangerous practice, not therapy, and it has no place in our communities. These bans exist to protect LGBTQ+ children from harm—period.”

I agree, there is no debate. Conversion therapy is abuse. There are people like me who were the abused becoming abusers and eventually find our way out, and others who are ignorant to the actual damage their religious views are causing in the name of love. They honestly believe conversion therapy is loving toward those they consider “sexually broken.”

They are honestly wrong; very wrong.

And then there are a few who ignore the evil they facilitate, are deaf to the professionals condemning conversion therapy, and ignore ex-gay survivor stories; all the while making money and a cult-like following off of all of it.

These bans are very narrow in scope and don’t tackle the problem with conversion therapy and how it manifests in Sunday schools, lay people leading ex-gay support groups, 501c3s profiting off the pain, pastoral counseling, and personal Christian mentorship. These bans, narrowly targeting state-licensed counselors, protect millions of LGBTQ+ youth from abuse by professionals willing to use their skills for what I consider evil intent.

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My Journey Into and Thankfully Out Of Christian Nationalism

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For the adults in the room…

It’s one thing for an adult to choose, be manipulated into, be curious about… whatever, conversion therapy and seek a professional counselor along those lines. I wish we could ban conversion therapy for everyone in all the ways, but when it comes to adults and their freedom of conscience, religion, and self-determination, a full conversion therapy ban will never happen in the United States unless a miracle happens. That’s why I believe changing hearts and minds about conversion therapy has to be more than a slogan and will be the only way to defeat it to the point that it is relegated to history and not a present danger.

The state and our communities must protect LGBTQ+ youth from abuse. Young people shouldn’t be forced or manipulated into seeing a professional counselor to pray the gay away.

Professional counselors have training to help clients create new neural pathways and change their views on life. Teens lack the critical thinking and life experience of adults, making them even more vulnerable. At 18, they can make their own decisions.

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Two Ex-Gay Leaders: One Meddling In Exporting Conversion Therapy & The Other Suing Silicon Valley

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About a counselor’s right to freedom of speech in “talk therapy”

Also from The Advocate (linkage theirs):

"Conversion therapy has been denounced by every major medical and mental health association in the United States. To date, nearly 30 states have passed laws to protect young people from its harms, many with strong bipartisan support. Ending conversion therapy is not about partisan politics, and it is not about 'free speech.' Ending conversion therapy is about protecting young people from clear and proven psychological harm, and saving young lives."

In her 280-page petition to the Supreme Court, Chiles claims the law unconstitutionally restricts her speech, arguing that it prevents her from discussing certain viewpoints with clients. “The government may not dictate what licensed speakers say or direct them to espouse only government-approved ideas,” her legal team wrote in its appeal.

Colorado officials, however, maintain that the law regulates professional conduct, not speech, and is necessary to protect minors from a practice that research has linked to increased risks of depression, self-harm, and suicide. The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the ban last year, ruling that the state has the authority to ensure mental health care does not cause harm.

You’re absolutely right. It’s not about free speech; it’s about the state. You know, the one that actually licenses licensed counselors and has rules and regulations that prevent licensed counselors from using their positions as professionals to abuse their clients. These are teens, tweens, and kids who, in many cases, have no other choice but to submit to their legal guardians who pressure them into these abusive conversion therapy situations.

SCOTUS should do the right thing and allow the conversion therapy bans to stand. It is in the state’s interest to not participate in the abuse by licensing the abusers.

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