When the U.S. Supreme Court recently ruled — on Transgender Day of Visibility, no less — that therapists’ speech is protected under the First Amendment, they opened the door for so-called “conversion therapy” to continue under the guise of free speech.
The tell? Religious and conservative groups celebrated the court’s 8-1 decision in Chiles v. Salazar, a case centered on these so-called therapies.
The plaintiff, Kaley Chiles — an evangelical Christian and licensed therapist — argued that Colorado law violated her free speech rights when working with young people “who have same-sex attractions or gender identity confusion” and who seek to “live a life consistent with their faith.”
“Conversion therapy” — also labelled “reparative therapy” — is rooted in the Christian ex-gay movement that spread rapidly in the 1980s and 1990s before largely fading in the 2000s. However, it resurfaced during Donald Trump’s first term — and in his second, it has re-emerged more openly and assertively.
This form of talk “therapy,” which purports to help LGBTQ+ people become heterosexual, is hardly new — despite overwhelming and long-standing evidence discrediting it as ineffective pseudoscience.
In 1997, the American Psychological Association issued a position statement affirming that “homosexuality per se is a normal and positive variation of human sexual orientation.” In 2021, the APA strengthened its opposition to conversion therapy with new resolutions. Earlier, in 1973, the American Psychiatric Association removed homosexuality from its Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, declaring it not a mental disorder, and in 2000 they formally opposed conversion therapy.
The emotional and psychological harms associated with these programs are profound. They are linked to high rates of depression, anxiety, self-destructive behavior, sexual dysfunction, avoidance of intimacy, loss of faith, suicide, and the deepening of internalized self-hatred, among other damaging outcomes.
Progressive religious groups — both straight and LGBTQ+ — have condemned the ruling.
As DignityUSA executive director Marianne Duddy-Burke stated in a press release:
Throughout our more than 57 years of ministry, we have worked with hundreds of LGBTQ+ people who have undergone conversion therapy. Every one of them described it as a dehumanizing, horrific experience. Not only was it ineffective at changing their sexual orientation or gender identity, but it resulted in deep shame that many tried to treat with alcohol, drugs, or even suicide attempts. It took years to recover, in most cases.
When it became clear that conversion “therapies” could not “pray the gay away,” and Jesus Camp-type programs failed to achieve their anti-LGBTQ+ aims, religion alone became a less effective tool for discriminating against LGBTQ+ Americans. Now, those same efforts are being reframed and protected under the banner of free speech.
The truth remains: Conversion “therapies” have an estimated failure rate of 90 percent. Numerous “ex-gay” organizations have shut down after their leaders publicly acknowledged their own LGBTQ+ sexual orientation or gender identity. Many prominent figures within the movement have been exposed as fraudulent.
A well-known example was John Paulk, once a nationally recognized “ex-gay” figure. In 2000, he was photographed in a Washington, D.C., gay bar by Wayne Besen, formerly of the Human Rights Campaign and author of Anything But Straight — an image captioned simply, “Gotcha!” The Kodak moment caused a stir, as Paulk attempted to conceal his identity. His explanation — that he entered only to use the bathroom — was widely questioned, given that he remained there for 40 minutes.
Paulk, a former drag performer known as Candi and a runner-up in the Miss Ingenue pageant, was at the time married to a woman who also identified as a former lesbian through an Exodus International ministry. The couple became high-profile symbols of the ex-gay movement, appearing in 1997 on the cover of Newsweek, as well as on 60 Minutes and Oprah. They co-authored Love Won Out, a memoir that became foundational to Focus on the Family‘s ex-gay conferences. Their marriage ended in divorce in 2013 — the same year Exodus International closed its doors.
In a public apology, Paulk later renounced the ex-gay movement and expressed remorse for the harm caused. He stated:
I no longer support the ex-gay movement or efforts to attempt to change individuals — especially teens who already feel insecure and alienated. I feel great sorrow over the pain that has been caused… I am working hard to be authentic and genuine in all of my relationships.
When we fail to recognize that human life is varied, precious, and of equal worth — as conversion therapies do — we deny the unique gifts each person brings to the world. These practices, whether administered by clergy or licensed therapists, do not honor human diversity; they attempt to erase it. In doing so, they diminish not only individuals but also violate fundamental civil rights.
Sadly, with the ruling in Chiles v. Salazar, there is now concern that existing bans on such attempts to brainwash LGBTQ+ people in 27 states could be challenged and potentially overturned.
Public theologian, syndicated columnist and radio host Rev. Irene Monroe is a founder and member emeritus of several national LBGTQ+ black and religious organizations and served as the National Religious Coordinator of the African American Roundtable at the Center for LGBTQ and Religion Studies in Religion at Pacific School of Religion. A graduate of Wellesley College and Union Theological Seminary, she served as a pastor in New Jersey before studying for her doctorate as a Ford Fellow at Harvard Divinity School and serving as the head teaching fellow of the Rev. Peter Gomes at Memorial Church. She has taught at Harvard, Andover Newton Theological Seminary, Episcopal Divinity School and the University of New Hampshire. Her papers are at the Schlesinger Library at Radcliffe College’s Research Library on the History of Women in America.