Kentucky governor outlaws ‘dangerous’ LGBTQ+ conversion practices on minors --[Reported by Umva mag]

Kentucky has banned the use of so-called conversion therapy on minors, with the governor saying all children should be protected from harm.

Signing an executive order on Wednesday (18 September), Democrat governor Andy Beshear said it was a necessary step to protect young people from the controversial and discredited practices, with the order making it illegal for state or federal funds to be used to perform the procedure on the minors.

Conversion therapy – more accurately called conversion practices because they don’t, and can’t, work – refers to efforts to change a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity in a bid to “cure” them. 

“Let’s be clear: conversion therapy has no basis in medicine or science, and it has been shown to increase rates of suicide and depression,” Beshear said. “This is about doing what is right and protecting our children. Hate is not who we are as Kentuckians.”

His religious faith has taught him that “all children are children of God”, he added. “Where practices are endangering and even harming those children, we must act. The practice of so-called conversion therapy hurts our children.”

On social media, Beshear shared an image of himself at the signing ceremony, writing: “We’ve heard the voices of LGBTQ Kentuckians and we stand with them. Today, I was proud to sign an executive order banning dangerous conversion therapy on our kids. No child, regardless of their sexuality, should be subjected to harm.”

The legal move means Kentucky has joined more than two dozen other states and regions in banning the practices, a move welcomed by LGBTQ+ Kentuckians and human rights groups.

Speaking to Associated Press, Zach Meiners, a 34-year-old filmmaker, said he had undergone conversion therapy as a teenager and considers himself “very lucky to be a survivor”.

The practices left him with “anxiety and depression in ways that I’m still unravelling, [and I] can “speak first-hand to how devastating it can be to someone’s mental health”.

Chris Hartman, the executive director of Kentucky-based LGBTQ+ group Fairness Campaign, praised the governor, calling conversion therapy, “not just snake oil, but snake venom”. He went on to say: “Today, governor Beshear sends a crystal-clear message to all Kentucky’s LGBTQ kids and their families: you are perfect as you are.”

A spokesperson for the National Center for Lesbian Rights said: “We’re so happy to see this. Thank you, governor Beshear for protecting LGBTQ Kentuckians.”

The Young Democrats of America called conversion therapy “a dangerous, debunked and dark practice”, which “severely impacts young LGBTQ+ people’s mental and physical health” and “has no place in modern medicine”. They went on to thank the governor for “standing up for LGBTQ+ youth and decency in Kentucky.”

However, not everyone has welcomed the ban.

The Family Foundation, a Christian organisation in the Bluegrass State, called the move “unlawful” and claimed it would, “trample the fundamental rights of Kentucky parents, and suppress free religious expression”.

David Walls, the group’s executive director, said: “This order, like previous failed legislative efforts, is designed to promote false LGBTQ ideologies and muzzle Christian counsellors, therapists and pastors from helping children struggling with sexual orientation or gender identity confusion.

“Kentucky parents and their children should be free to seek the faith-based counselling on sexuality and identity issues they need. The Christian message on sexuality and human dignity is not harmful, it is life-bringing.”

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The post Kentucky governor outlaws ‘dangerous’ LGBTQ+ conversion practices on minors appeared first on PinkNews | Latest lesbian, gay, bi and trans news | LGBTQ+ news.

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