In early July 2020, the UN’s independent expert on protection against violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity called for a global ban on efforts to “cure” LGBTQ+ people through efforts such as conversion therapy, arguing these practices inflict “severe pain and suffering” on those that experience them. Victor Madrigal-Borloz wrote, “These interventions exclusively target LGBT+ persons with the specific aim of interfering in their personal integrity and autonomy because their sexual orientation or gender identity do not fall under what is perceived by certain persons as a desirable norm…They are inherently degrading and discriminatory and rooted in the belief that LGBT+ persons are somehow inferior, and that they must at any cost modify their orientation or identity to remedy that supposed inferiority.” Nearly every reputable medical association has said the same, including the American Medical Association (AMA), the American Psychiatric Association, the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Pan American Health Association (part of the World Health Association), the World Psychiatric Association, the Psychological Association of Ireland, Australian Medical Association, Royal College of Psychiatrists, English National Health Service, and dozens of similar bodies across the globe. Many of these professional organizations, including the AMA, have endorsed banning the “therapy.” In sum, there is worldwide agreement among medical and psychological professionals that conversion therapy is dangerous and causes harm to LGBTQ+ individuals.
Overwhelming evidence shows that the practice is harmful and can lead to clinical depression and an increase in suicide attempts, in addition to other possible effects. These disastrous results have led to conversion therapy being banned for minors and sometimes adults in seven countries: Brazil, Canada, Ecuador, Germany, Malta, France, and Taiwan. Partial bans are also in place in 20 U.S. states, and parts of Mexico, Australia, and Spain. Conversion therapy is often offered by institutions that are religiously based, but many religious leaders reject the practice. In 2020, more than 400 faith leaders worldwide, including the late anti-apartheid campaigner Desmond Tutu, called for countries to overturn bans on same-sex relations and end LGBTQ+ conversion therapy. Pope Francis has shown concern about the practice, though the Catholic Church’s leadership varies in its response. Evangelical churches frequently push conversion therapy as do large American social conservative far-right organizations such as Alliance Defending Freedom, Focus on the Family, and the Family Research Council.