April 9, 2015 By Michael Florio
In the wake of President Barack Obama’s recent comments condemning “conversion therapy,” State Sen. Mike Gianaris has renewed his call to ban the practice in New York.
Gianaris, who co-sponsored a bill in 2013 that would ban conversion therapy for minors, is calling on his fellow legislators again to pass it.
Conversion therapy, which has been debunked by scientists for decades, involves a range of psychological treatments that aim to change an individual’s sexual orientation from homosexual to heterosexual.
The bill Gianaris is championing [S4917B] would prohibit mental health care professionals from trying to change a person’s sexual orientation who is under 18 years of age.
“President Obama joined the chorus of voices calling for the end of this abhorrent practice, and it is up to us to respond quickly and firmly,” Gianaris said.
The New York senate bill reads, in part:
“Being lesbian, gay, or bisexual is not a disease, disorder, illness, deficiency, or shortcoming,” it states. The bill also notes that the therapy does not put forward the case that the individual may experience “happiness and satisfying interpersonal relationships as a gay man or lesbian.”
Gianaris said that the conversion therapy is based on intolerance and not psychology.
“For New York to live up to its role as a leader in the fight for LGBT rights, we need to protect children from this intolerant pseudo-science,” Gianaris added.
Featured Events
16 Comments
I went to therapy and now Im straight!! WORKED FOR ME!!! Now I look forward to bangin my wife 5x a week! cant get enuf of my girl.
Are you formerly gay, formerly republican, or formerly a florist, or all of the above? Just wondering
You stated: “Sexual preference is not something that requires treatment.”
What about people whose sexual preference is for children, immediate family members or animals? How about rapists whose sexual turn on is forcing another to heave sex against their will? I’d say they need some sort of treatment.
What about people who are simply heterosexual, suffer from no official mental illness but are but are just unhappy with their sex lives and need to speak with a mental health professional. Should they also be denied the services of a psychiatrist?
No, and no one is suggesting that we deny those people treatment.
If somebody who has homosexual inclinations isn’t happy with that for whatever reason, and they want to change their behavior, why shouldn’t they be able to seek the help of a psychiatric professional if they choose?
The gay community likes to talk about “tolerance” but sure doesn’t mind bullying anyone who doesn’t bow to their agenda. What a bunch of thugs.
The DSM hasn’t listed homosexuality as an “illness” since the 80s. They consider it a blight on the history of their discipline that it was listed that way at all. Sexual preference is not something that requires treatment.
Gay Conversion Therapy is typically something parents send their children to in order to “fix” or “cure” their homosexuality. It’s completely unscientific and should be banned.
GCT has nothing to do with the emotional challenges that a person’s sexual preferences may give rise to (family, religion, etc). For that, psychiatry is a valid pathway to coping and treatment.
The law proposes the banishment of the “conversion therapy” for anyone under the age of 18….meaning children cannot be forced into an archaic treatment. Adults are still free to receive the “treatment” if they please.
But why let something like reading comprehension get in the way of a good old homophobic rant?
Actually, it’s far more creepy and disturbing that the gay community is more worried about gay children going straight than gay adults.
Mike has too much free time and needs a job .
Gianaris sure is obsessed with homosexuality. Hey Mike, we’re not all gay.
Democratic Party has been hijacked by Lunatics,Any chance of creating Jobs?
Would the state senator care to furnish his psychiatric credentials or any other proof of his expertise on the subject human psychology?
This has nothing to do with science and everything to do with a minor politician shamelessly pandering to a pet constituency and pushing a political agenda.
You don’t need to be a psychiatrist to realize these “therapies” are wrong.
Free to hate but not free to love.
I would like to “convert” Gianaris into being a sane person who will stop pandering but I guess that is not to be! Am I the only voter sick of this silly man?
He’s just upset that the conversion therapy didn’t work on him.