by Aaron Schroeder

Close your eyes and imagine for a moment you’re 15-years-old again. Seems like a pretty carefree age, right? Now imagine that one way or another, you were accidentally outed to your parents as gay. Maybe you thought they would just be confused at first, but maybe they’re actually quite shocked and concerned.

“We have to fix this,” they say.

Suddenly, your carefree world has become a lot more complicated, and things have escalated beyond your control. You get scheduled to go see a therapist recommended by a family friend as being kind and reputable.

“I can fix this problem,” says the therapist, and so begins intensive weekly sessions to eliminate the same-sex attraction and replace it with “normal,” heterosexual desires. After the treatments, you become withdrawn in school, and lose interest in your favorite hobbies. “What’s the point?” you think. You’re not allowed to hang out with any of your old friends anymore, for fear you will “relapse.” You wake up one morning, and the thought finally crosses your mind: “I wish I hadn’t woken up at all today.” Even worse, you start thinking about all the ways to make that come true.

Conversion therapy is a pseudoscientific practice based upon the flawed ideology that LGBTQ+ identities are pathological, and that these normal differences can be “cured” or “fixed.” However, there is an overwhelming amount of evidence demonstrating that not only is conversion therapy unnecessary and ineffective, but it may also inflict severe mental anguish on children in the process. Across the U.S., 16,000 LGBTQ+ youth ages 13-17 will undergo conversion therapy from a licensed healthcare professional before they reach the age of 18. For many of these children, some version of the fictitious scenario above has become reality.

In May of 2022, The Trevor Project released an extensive survey of LGBTQ+ youth mental health outcomes, including the impacts of conversion therapy. Importantly, the survey showed that of respondents who had attempted suicide in the past year, 28% had been subjected to conversion therapy, as compared to 11% who had not. This makes the issue quite literally a matter of life and death for many of these children. The fallout isn’t just on an individual level, either. A recent study estimated that the U.S. economy itself is also being negatively impacted by conversion therapy. Fiscally conservative folks take note: An estimated national burden of $9.23 billion is imposed each year in the form of medical costs, substance abuse treatment, and affirmative mental health treatment for survivors of conversion therapy.

Given this dark data, it’s no surprise that over 50 professional medical and/or social service organizations, including the National Association of Social Workers, have already rejected conversion therapy as viable treatment. On a global scale, conversion therapy has also been discussed as a human rights violation, and the practice was equated with torture according to testimony at the 44^th session of the UN’s Human Rights Council. As research evidence and horrific anecdotes continue to mount, citizens and government officials alike have begun to recognize the risk it poses to the health and wellbeing of children, in addition to being clearly fiscally irresponsible. In response, bans on conversion therapy have been considered increasingly frequently by various levels of government across the world.

Enacting these bans is a tangible and simple way to start addressing the problem. Currently, 20 U.S. states, plus the District of Columbia, have enacted laws banning conversion therapy. Unfortunately, Michigan is not among these states, leaving the bans to only a few individual municipalities. The City of Ann Arbor, for example, has admirably taken initiative by enacting Ordinance ORD-21-25, which prohibits conversion therapy citywide as of August 19^th, 2021. Quite arguably, it’s time for the remainder of the State of Michigan to do the same and join the ranks of other states and cities that have recognized this obligation to protect their children.

Fortunately, there is proposed legislation on the table which would prohibit licensed mental health professionals from engaging in conversion therapy statewide. Michigan House Bill 4651 and Michigan Senate Bill 0367 were introduced to their respective chambers on April 15^th, 2021. They were immediately referred to the House Committee on Families Children and Seniors, and the Senate Committee on Health Policy and Human Services, respectively, where they have stalled. I urge you to do what’s right for Michigan’s children. Save a child’s life—support the statewide ban of conversion therapy.

Get involved, share the discussion, and donate to support/recovery groups. But above all, please contact Senator Curtis VanderWall (https://www.senatorcurtvanderwall.com/contact/) and Representative Rodney Wakeman, (RodneyWakeman@house.mi.gov) and urge them as the chairs of their committees to add these bills to their agendas for further discussion. Similar bills from 2016, 2018, and 2019 have been washed out in the committee process. However, it’s not too late for HB 4651 and SB 0367. By adding these bills to the discussion, the proposed legislation, and more Michigan children, can stay alive. Right now, we have the power to do what’s right and make sure that every child in the state, regardless of their identity, has a fair shot at a happy, healthy, and successful life as who they were genuinely meant to be.

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