On Sunday, a large group of protesters gathered in London’s Downing Street to protest a full ‘conversion therapy’ ban.
The ban on conversion therapy currently excludes transgender people. Following criticism, the government is now considering a full ban. “Keep trans in the ban” and “LGB with the T” was chanted on Sunday as a plea to the government.
The NHS defines ‘conversion therapy’ as a therapy or a sequence of persuasive techniques used to ‘change’ people's sexual orientation or gender identity. These practices have now been identified as unethical and potentially harmful to a person's mental health.
According to the NHS’s latest findings, any organization that provides psychological services should guarantee that they do not offer conversion therapy.
As an LGBT leader, the UK government aims to ban the unethical practice of conversion therapy to ensure that every individual has the freedom to be their own person.
The UK government will also implement some civil measures to ensure the ban's efficiency. These include protection orders, restrictions on promotion, and the removal of any profit streams that are a direct result of conversion therapy.
There is also a proposed support service for those at risk of being victimized by conversion therapy or those who have been through it. The UK Government’s National LGBT Survey discovered that 7% of LGBT people, 10% of asexual people and 13% of Trans people have been offered conversion therapy or been a victim of it.
The Rt Hon Elizabeth Truss MP, Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs and Minister for Women and Equalities said: “People’s personal freedoms are key to the health and functioning of a democratic society, such as freedom of choice, freedom of speech and belief, and are central to my proposals.”
The legislative ban making illegal conversion therapy will be valid wherever it takes place, for whoever is a target of it and from whenever it is spotted online and offline.
The website for Ban Conversion Therapy has a ‘find my MP’ map system as a way for people to find and email their MP as another means to ensure the ban protects all members of LGBTQ+ people. They state: “The World Health Organization removed homosexuality from the International Classification of Diseases in 1990. 32 years later, attempts to ‘cure’ us are still happening (and legal!).”
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