Boomer 1

Jacqueline Boomer

English 4

April 4th, 2017

Ms. Mantlo

Conversion Therapy

Conversion therapy is psychological treatment or religious counseling created to change a

person from being homosexual to being heterosexual. Most of the time people are influenced by

religious figures, friends, or family to try the therapy. However, sometimes this is not the case;

many minors are forced into the therapy by their parents, leading to many mental health issues

like depression. The Human Rights Campaign and other groups are calling attention to

businesses and religious organizations which falsely claim that they can change a person's

sexuality. Conversion therapy has been proven to be prejudiced and harmful.

Conversion therapy can lead to depression, homelessness, anxiety, and suicide. Minors

are at higher risk due to parents who force them into therapy. The idea of conversion therapy is to

create a negative or sickening feeling when a person is having homosexual thoughts. One of the

ways they try to do this is by inducing vomiting while showing them homoerotic images. Other

ways conversion therapy is performed are using shame, providing electric shock, and having the

individual snap an elastic band around their wrist when aroused by same-sex erotic images

(#BornPerfect 2). In 1973, homosexuality was classified as a mental disorder but some biased

people still tried to blame childhood traumas, parenting, or religious attacks. For many these

sessions have sent them into spiraling fits of anxiety, depression, and suicide attempts.

There are many associations working towards putting laws in place to protect the

LGBTQ community. The American Psychiatric Association opposes any psychiatric treatment
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such as reparative or conversion therapy which is based upon the assumption that homosexuality

per se is a mental disorder(#BornPerfect). The Pan American Health Organization and the

American Academy of Pediatrics agree that conversion therapy can be extremely harmful to the

patient's mental and physical health. Only five states in the USA have laws against conversion

therapy being recommended to minors, but many other states are taking similar steps towards

ending the practice. There has been no definitive research that can prove that reparative therapy

can be curative like many associations claim. In 2012, California became the first state to

protect LGBT youth from dangerous and scientifically discredited efforts by state-licensed

therapists (#BornPerfect). New Jersey, Oregon, Illinois, New York, Vermont, Washington, D.C.,

Cincinnati, Seattle, and three South Florida Cities have since enacted similar protections.

There have been many websites created for people to share their stories and to take action

against the use of conversion therapy. One of these websites, conversion therapy survivors,

showcases a handful of stories from both men and women who have been on both sides of

conversion therapy. Reading these testimonies, it is clear that in most cases the programs were

pushed on these men and women by religious figures, loved ones, or parents. It is important to

include these real-life situations to show the general public, who may not be educated on the

issue, how very real the issue is. This problem has affected people to the point that they put

themselves into therapy by their own choosing because of their own feelings of shame in their

religious communities, and until they do not feel shamed by society, this will surely continue.

There is no conclusive evidence that proves conversion therapy is effective, but there are

hundreds of accounts showing how harmful it can be, even leading many into committing

suicide, yet many associations still try to convince parents that it is the best choice for their

children. Groups such as the Human Rights Campaign are calling attention to religious
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organizations that claim that they can change a person's sexuality because time and time again

this has been proven to be impossible and often leads to even more personal trauma. People

should learn to accept themselves and each other for exactly who they are; there is nothing

wrong with loving who you love. Until we end the stigma that homosexuality has a negative

connotation and educate the uneducated on the issue, more damage will be done to those who do

not deserve it whatsoever.

Work Cited

Campaign, Human Rights. "The Lies and Dangers of "Conversion Therapy"." Human Rights

Campaign. Web. 21 Mar. 2017.

"#BornPerfect: The Facts About Conversion Therapy." National Center for Lesbian

Rights. 06 Dec. 2016. Web. 22 Mar. 2017.

Birthmark, Norman. "Statement." Conversion Therapy Survivors. Conversion Therapy

Survivors, 2015-2016. Web. 23 Mar. 2017.