Overlooking Extreme Cases of Conversion Therapy

Today I was going to write something different than what I am sharing with you now. The experience I had was too coincidental not to write about and feel this is a message important to share about christianity, LGBTQ rights, and tolerance. We researched and discussed on the topic of conversion therapy, which is therapy ranging from a wide variety of treatment to help those who have same-sex attraction “convert” their attractions to the opposite sex. There are extreme views about how to do this that are unethical, wrong, and should be ended too. However if there are those who are of adult age, wanting to understand their feelings, and navigate them towards having attraction for the opposite sex then therapy that focuses on this should be available. I understand that this is a more attractive treatment for those of the christian faith who believe that homosexuality is a sin. However, even those of the Christian faith can and have done this in respectful ways.

A video I saw this week truly upset me and because it portrayed a faith as only having one view that is not true and used extreme values to showcase this. The popular site NowThis published on their site a video of a girl who was tricked into going to conversion therapy, where she faced physical punishments such as carrying heavy rocks that would “help” encourage her to be rid of her homosexual feelings. She discussed how males who were being treated there would have to fight each other to gain their sense of manliness and if they didn’t punch or hit hard enough they would be hit and punched harder by their caregivers. In between the interviews they showcased The Book of Mormon in a blaming nature, that accuses The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to blame for these actions that occurred. This was extremely absurd to me as leaders in that church for years have proclaimed that homosexuals are to be treated with love and tolerance. They do not encourage or uphold extreme practices as the one described. And undoubtedly a unanimous amount of people of this faith would condone these

actions. It is not acceptable teaching in the Latter-day Saint church and I would argue in most if not all of Christian faiths. Although there are contrasting differences in the view of homosexuality, whether it is okay or not, in no way do churches or their church members actively or engage in punishment for those for living as such.

The only reason I see fit for allowing conversion therapy is one based on truly focused on helping the individual and accepting if the conversion is not successful. Statistics continuous show that homosexuals are more prone to depression, suicide, and substance abuse. I understand that much of that may come from social pressures and lack of support in their decisions. However, in countries that have accepted homosexuality for decades such as several of the European nations, these statistics still ring true. Some studies argue that homosexuality may be a way to cope with sexual abuse that 60-70% of homesexuals face. If that is true then they’re needs to be help available to those individuals in understanding these events, this is the only way I see conversion therapy being acceptable.

Until then we need to be aware of these crazy circumstances that view each side of the homosexual debate as unethical. I have met many Christians whos faith does not accept gays but still fight for their equality and continuously fight. These cases often portrayed in the media are often extreme and do not represent the views of the majority who are tolerant, loving, and accepting.