The Maine House of representatives voted 91–46 for a bill to ban conversion therapy on minors. Five Republicans and five independents joined 81 Democrats to support the legislation. The next day, the state’s senate, where Democrats hold a seven-seat majority, gave the bill initial approval.
Newly elected Governor Janet Mills, a Democrat, said she supports the bill, which former, anti-LGBT Governor Paul LePage shot down last year.
“I look forward to signing it!” Governor Mills tweeted. “It is time for all LGBTQ people in Maine to know they are valued and respected.”
Reports the Portland Press Herald:
The bill, L.D. 1025, defines conversion therapy as “any practice or treatment that seeks or claims to change an individual’s sexual orientation or gender identity, including, but not limited to, any effort to change gender expression or to eliminate or reduce sexual or romantic attractions, feelings or behavior toward others based on the individual’s gender.”
Critics contend such therapies merely compound feelings of shame and self-doubt, sometimes with devastating consequences for a young person’s emotional health or physical well-being. The American Psychiatric Association called conversion therapy “harmful and discriminatory” and the practice has been discredited by the American Medical Association as well as the American Psychological Association.
Organizations representing the LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgendered and questioning) communities have had considerable success enacting bans on conversion therapy practices nationwide. Last month, Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker, a Republican, signed a similar bill into law, making Maine the sole outlier among its New England neighbors.
The ban proposed under L.D. 1025 would apply to state-licensed counselors, psychologists, social workers, doctors and other health professionals, guidance counselors, pastoral counselors and marriage/family therapists.
It would not prohibit treatment for individuals undergoing gender transition, counseling that seeks to prevent unsafe sexual practices or any “neutral” talk therapy intended to help a minor cope with issues.
Rep. Andrew McLean, D-Gorham, said conversion therapy “preys on young people in some of their most vulnerable moments” amid fears of being disowned by families or shunned by friends. McLean, who came out as gay when he was a senior in high school, said being gay “cannot be prayed away, can’t be wished away.”
“Conversion therapy is, in fact, no therapy at all,” McLean said. “It is not a treatment. It is a debunked theory that finds its home in shame, hatred of one’s self, and a perpetuation of stigma and stereotypes about being LGBT.”
Maine would become the 17th state to ban conversion therapy on minors in the country, if the bill is signed into law.
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