Healing Wounds: The Case for Banning Conversion Therapy Globally

The sexual orientation change or gender affirmation practices, however, aim at rectifying a person to have a given sexual orientation or gender identity (for example, conversion from bisexual to heterosexual, etc..) that is not homosexuals, bisexuals or the gender difference, but heterosexual and cisgender. Often, the conversion is to obey the norms that being a sexual minority, or gender difference is a mental illness rather than getting the

The very foundation upon which conversion therapy is supposedly built has been rejected by reputable mental health bodies and other agencies around the world. The American Psychological Association discredits conversion therapy’s proponents, stating that there is no empirical evidence that this intervention works. On the other hand, there is significant scientific evidence showing that it is hazardous to those it claims it is helping. From debilitating disorders such as depression and anxiety to having substance abuse problems and committing suicide, leak research has presented the many terrible consequences of forcing someone to change their sexual orientation whether they want to or not.

Additionally, beyond the apparently clear-cut ethical arguments against compelling and insisting people to alter something as deep-rooted as their identity in a way that runs against their will, there is more and more legislation prohibiting the practice of conversion therapy. Malta and Germany have pushed nationwide bans, whereas Taiwan has just made a prohibition on underage students. Now, their states can be counted among 13 of those other U.S. states that have either a total or partial gun sale ban. For instance, in 2017, the Canadian government announced it was taking steps to prohibit conversion therapy. In 2018, the Mexican Supreme Court ruled that institutions within the country could not fund conversion therapies.

Besides the industrial nations that have abolished the tradition, most parts of the world continue to maintain it. Conversion therapy that has been legalized and is openly promoted across Latin America, Asia, Africa, and Eastern Europe remains to be taken place. More often than not, the conservative religious movements in these places are at the forefront of conversion therapy and young LGBTQ youths are used as prey by the hateful transformation programs. The terrible feelings of themselves that these young people have stemming from the environment where they grew up. Depression, anxiety disorders and self-harm are manifested as a part of the “healing” process; it is a simple truth that is neglected and used as an escape from the real world.

It is the responsibility of the rest of the world to now act and put an end to the deprivation of fundamental humanistic values. To have such a practice that is turned down unanimously by all relevant bodies of mental health professionals perpetuating like this is unthinkable. Though the United Nations has issued statements that are in the same vein of the importance of upholding individuals’ rights, it has not per se called for a total ban on such processes all over the world. Therefore, it is outstandingly indispensable for this moral restriction to be enacted internationally to save people belonging to such a community.

Furthermore, it is critical to ban conversion therapy as it not only saves lives but also rescues individuals from total post-traumatic syndrome. The results of conversion therapy survivors by numerous studies indicate that they usually have PTSD, disturbed and unhealthy relations, and may fail to accomplish their essential life goals. Moreover, they often lose a lot of time, even up to the whole of their lives, just by trying to change a quality they were never wrong for. The sadness brought by this is immense.

Others make a case for placing such calls as it violates religious freedom. I am sorry to say this kind of argument exposes their faults in real life. Nothing in religion (any religion) permits self-harm, much less harm to those below 18 years. Similarly, the same reasoning likewise prompts concern over the interference of female genital mutilation in cultural and religious beliefs. In such a case, when a religious performance causes harm and violates human rights, that spiritual practice no longer comes under religious freedom. A prohibition on conversion therapy undeniably fits into the category of prohibiting those things that can harm and are shrouded by the doctrine of religion.

As more and more countries are vulnerable to these conversion therapies, the world calls on every nation to be united in this regard. The first step to a cure for the wounds that conversion therapy continually causes is to ban it around the world completely. It is only then that we can confidently embark on the much-needed journey of pulling down to the foundations of what is firmly rooted deep within the decades-old bigotry and the discrimination against the LGBTQ community that backs the conversion theory. The decisive step of lawmaking, though, lies in proving that depriving LGBT people of their dignity and fundamental rights is unacceptable. Now, the last elder tool is used to stall – conversion therapy has to be closed down.