Reparative therapy claims to be able to make gay people straight. But it has been exposed as being a dangerous, failed therapy that hurts manypeople and helps very few (if any). It full of abuses, and has no significant support in the medical or psychological communities. Even so, haredi rabbis with no medical training, no qualifications, and no peer reviewed studies to back them are demanding that Governor Chris Christie veto a bill that prohibits this type of dangerous, unethical therapy from being done on minors.
California has banned reparative therapy and the largest so called ex-gay group practicing it nationwide, Exodus, has disbanded. It is widely opposed by psychaitrists and psychologists, and the evidence that it has caused suicides and severe mental trauma continues to mount. None of these actual facts, however, matter to untrained, unskilled (and, many would say, often uncaring) haredi rabbis.
Please click to enlarge:
The New Jersey Senate bill 2278 (text below) was replaced by a New Jersey State Assembly bill 3371, which is identical, and which passed both houses of the state legislature. Here's the text of S2278:
SENATE, No. 2278STATE OF NEW JERSEY
215th LEGISLATURE
INTRODUCED OCTOBER 15, 2012
Sponsored by:
Senator RAYMOND J. LESNIAK
District 20 (Union)
Senator STEPHEN M. SWEENEY
District 3 (Cumberland, Gloucester and Salem)
Senator LORETTA WEINBERG
District 37 (Bergen)
SYNOPSIS
Protects minors by prohibiting counseling attempts to change sexual orientation.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning the protection of minors from counseling attempts to change sexual orientation and supplementing Title 45 of the Revised Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. A person who is licensed to provide professional counseling under Title 45 of the Revised Statutes, including, but not limited to, a psychiatrist, licensed practicing psychologist, certified social worker, licensed clinical social worker, licensed social worker, licensed marriage and family therapist, certified psychoanalyst, or a person who performs counseling as part of the person's professional training for any of these professions, shall not engage in sexual orientation change efforts with a person under 18 years of age.
b. As used in this section, "sexual orientation change efforts" means the practice of seeking to change a person's sexual persuasion, including, but not limited to, efforts to change behaviors or gender expressions, or to reduce or eliminate sexual or romantic attractions or feelings toward a person of the same gender; except that sexual orientation change efforts shall not include counseling that:
(1) provides acceptance, support, and understanding of a person or facilitates a person's coping, social support, and identity exploration and development, including sexual persuasion-neutral interventions to prevent or address unlawful conduct or unsafe sexual practices; and
(2) does not seek to change sexual persuasion.
2. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill prohibits counseling to change the sexual orientation of a minor.
Under the provisions of the bill, a person who is licensed to provide professional counseling, including, but not limited to, a psychiatrist, licensed practicing psychologist, certified social worker, licensed clinical social worker, licensed social worker, licensed marriage and family therapist, certified psychoanalyst, or a person who performs counseling as part of the person's professional training, is prohibited from engaging in sexual orientation change efforts with a person under 18 years of age.
The bill defines "sexual orientation change efforts" as the practice of seeking to change a person's sexual persuasion, including, but not limited to, efforts to change behaviors or gender expressions, or to reduce or eliminate sexual or romantic attractions or feelings toward a person of the same gender. The term, however, does not include counseling that: provides acceptance, support, and understanding of a person or facilitates a person's coping, social support, identity exploration and development, including sexual persuasion-neutral interventions to prevent or address unlawful conduct or unsafe sexual practices; and does not seek to change sexual persuasion.