The German Parliament recently passed legislation that will ban the practice of conversion therapy for minors nationwide, according to BBC.
As we all know, the concept of conversion therapy is simple: go to therapy as a gay person, leave straight. Except that’s never been proven to work and operates under the assumption that LGBT people are somehow diseased for being who they are. Because of this, conversion therapy can and most likely will cause psychological problems, such as depression and an increased risk of suicide. Thankfully the majority of the German parliament recognized that and voted to ban the practice, making it illegal to take part in medical interventions that are designed to change a minor’s sexuality as well as making it punishable by law to send your child t. Jens Spahn, the Health Minister of Germany and gay man, announced his proposal to ban conversion therapy last June and drafted a bill last November.
There are many ways in which conversion therapy is supposed to work, including electric shock therapy or hypnotherapy, but neither have been proven to be effective in converting someone to heterosexuality and health experts say that such things can’t be considered therapeutic practices as there is no scientific basis for either.
While the bill would make it illegal for anyone under the age of eighteen to undergo this therapy, certain people believe that the age should be higher. Germany’s Green Party wants the age limit to be raised to 26 while the Left Party wants it to be 27. Frankly I don’t think anyone should go to conversion therapy, but I can’t tell people how to live their lives.
It’s refreshing to know that people see the harm in conversion therapy and will pass legislation to get it banned, and it’s nice to know that children in Germany will no longer be harmed by this practice. While I want to see conversion therapy banned everywhere, we have to take what we can get.
Source: BBC