California Passes Bill Banning Gay Reparative Therapy
Originally posted: 05/31/2012 3:45 pm Updated: 06/02/2012 1:54 pm in The Huffington Post
Robin Wilkey
robin.wilkey@huffingtonpost.com
The California State Senate approved a bill that would make California the first state in the nation to ban the use of conversion therapy, a type of psychotherapy aimed at turning LGBT people straight, among minors.
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However, the ban is not without its critics.
The National Association for Research & Therapy of Homosexuality (NARTH) quickly came out against the bill on its website, citing it as inappropriate government intrusion.
“Bull,” said licensed marriage and family therapist Dr. Tara Fields in response. “There are so many laws and guidelines regarding therapy because it is such a sacred resource for humans. People who come in here sometimes have serious psychological damages and it is essential that those boundaries exist.”
Fields said that, while there is little evidence supporting the success of conversion therapy, there is much evidence to support its impacts.
“There are those who have white-knuckled it and claimed that they’ve been converted. But research has shown profound negative psychological impacts, including anxiety and depression, as a result,” she told HuffPost. “And as therapists, we don’t have a right to decide what other people’s values should be.”
