Ex-gay therapy is a crock. Any thinking person knows that, and this is backed up by every major health organization in the world. Not only is it a crock, though. It is also incredibly dangerous. The practice of trying to change one’s sexual orientation or gender identity has been linked to countless cases of lifelong mental illness and even suicide. Yet, the Texas GOP seems to think that it is appropriate to adopt the promotion of ex-gay therapy into their official party platform.
From the first draft of the proposed position and legislation:
“Homosexuality must not be presented as an acceptable alternative lifestyle, in public policy, nor should family be redefined to include homosexual couples. We believe there should be no granting of special legal entitlements or creation of special status for homosexual behavior, regardless of state of origin.
Additionally, we oppose any criminal or civil penalties against those who oppose homosexuality out of faith, conviction, or belief in traditional values.?We recognize the legitimacy and value of counseling which offers reparative therapy and treatment to patients who are seeking escape from the homosexual lifestyle. No laws or executive orders shall be imposed to limit or restrict access to this type of therapy.”
The Texas GOP also plans to include in the proposed legislation a???the enforcement of the State and Federal Defense of Marriage Act.? ?This move to include ex- gay therapy could be in response to the laws in California and New Jersey that ban the practice of ex-gay therapy in the case of minors. The effort is surprising, though, considering the fact that the recent public condemnation of conversion therapy, including the fact that therapists who practice it can lose their licenses in many states, means that it is all but dead as far as its public practice goes. In fact, the largest ex-gay organization in the world, Exodus International, closed its doors for good, complete with a public apology to the LGBT community, as well as an acknowledgement that they do not have a single confirmed case of having successfully changed anyone’s sexual orientation.
Hopefully, the overwhelming evidence that ex-gay therapy is a harmful, fruitless practice will render the efforts of the Texas GOP moot. Also, hopefully someone brings up the fact that an overwhelming majority of ex-gay therapy survivors say that it caused them harm, and 84% of them say that they still suffer from long term effects of the experience. I should know. I am a survivor of a 1990’s ex-gay therapy camp run by fundamentalist religious zealots. I was 12 when I went. I am now 33. To this day, I suffer from diagnosed Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), among other psychological disorders, all of which have been deemed directly connected to that experience by multiple therapists and psychiatrists.
Yet, despite the overwhelmingly negative testimony that comes straight from people who have experienced this abuse, the Texas GOP wants to sanction it officially. Great people, aren’t they? They don’t care about “patients who wish to escape the homosexual lifestyle” like they say they do. All they care about is scoring points with extremist social conservatives. Then again, that’s what the GOP is about these days, isn’t it?
