I don’t usually do things like this in the present blog, but…
I’ve long said that the only real opposition to full legal and social equality for queer people comes from particular (creedal monotheistic) religious viewpoints. It is actually legal for them to run “gay recovery,” “reparative therapy,” and in essence “pray away the gay” programs and such to actively indoctrinate, psychologically torture, and brainwash queer people, particularly queer youths who do not have the legal standing to challenge such measures if their parents decide they don’t like having a gay/lesbian/bisexual/transgender child. (And, I suspect this sort of thing has a large role to play in queer youth suicide as well, needless to say…)
However, there’s a law that is waiting for the Governor of California’s signature that would prevent this from continuing in that state, and it really needs to be signed. There’s a petition to that effect from All-Out.org. You can sign this petition regardless of where you’re from (any U.S. state, or any country around the world!), and you can pass it on via various means given on the site itself as well. I urge you to do so, as it definitely helps!
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/08/29/us-usa-california-gaytherapy-idUSBRE87S01G20120829
Reuters reports that the California State Assembly voted 51-21 to ban “conversion therapy.” Let’s hope it gets signed into law.
By: Erynn on August 28, 2012
at 8:10 pm
Indeed…
Part of me imagines that there’s no way it won’t be signed…but, we’ve all been fooled before.
So, hopefully, enough signatures on the petition will help in that direction…
By: aediculaantinoi on August 28, 2012
at 10:55 pm
Apparently we also have one of these organisations (but only for adults) and turned out they had gotten public funding! I will definitely sign this document.
By: soliwo on August 29, 2012
at 3:25 am
It’s appalling, isn’t it? (And, you’re in the Netherlands, right? That’s one of the last places I’d have ever expected would give public funding for something like this…eeesh!)
By: aediculaantinoi on August 30, 2012
at 1:54 am
Well, they have withdrawn it now. The organisation got funding for some of their other (non-anti-gay) projects, but still these type of organisations shouldn’t get any public money at all.
And indeed … I would expect this from the USA (sad as that is), but not from The Netherlands. It is scary. There is much wrong with my country, but we usually do pretty good in this area compared to the global standard.
By: soliwo on August 30, 2012
at 2:18 am