What is conversion therapy? Supreme Court to weigh in on practice many states have banned.

Orlando Mayorquin, USA TODAY
Updated ·4 min read
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The Supreme Court will weigh in on conversion therapy bans after a licensed family counselor in Washington state challenged the state's ban as a violation of free speech and religious rights.

The justices could announce as soon as Tuesday whether they will decide or allow a lower court ruling. The announcement comes after an increased interest in religious freedom cases from the Supreme Court.

Here's what to know about the practice that a record number of jurisdictions are banning.

What is conversion therapy?

Conversion therapy, also known as reparative therapy, is the practice of trying to alter somebody’s same-sex orientation through counseling, according to the American Psychological Association. The practice has long been discredited by major mental health organizations, including the APA, as it is based on the false premise that same-sex attraction is a mental disorder.

"The most important fact about these 'therapies' is that they are based on a view of homosexuality that has been rejected by all the major mental health professions," the APA's website reads.

Its roots in the United States date as far back as the 1890s, and nearly 700,000 LGBTQ adults nationwide have received conversion therapy at some point in their lives, according to a study from the Williams Institute at UCLA.

The practice has taken many forms historically, including shock therapy and hypnosis, but the most common form today is talk therapy, according to the study.

Studies have shown that conversion therapy is harmful.

LGBTQ youth who were subjected to conversion therapy were more than two times as likely to have attempted suicide and more likely to have had multiple suicide attempts in the past year, according to a 2020 report by the Trevor Project, an LGBTQ youth suicide prevention nonprofit.

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Where is conversion therapy legal?

The District of Columbia and 22 states ban conversion therapy for minors, according to the Movement Advancement Project, a think tank that tracks LGBTQ policy in the U.S. Another five states have partial bans for minors.

The 22 states with full bans for minors are California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Utah, Vermont, Virginia and Washington.

Thirty-two percent of the LGBTQ population live in the 19 states that have no such laws, according to the Movement Advancement Project.

Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, West Virginia and Wyoming allow conversion therapy for minors, according to the Movement Advancement Project.

In 2015, President Barack Obama's administrationbacked a petition calling for legislation to ban conversion therapy.

Biden's executive order directs the Health and Human Services department to look into developing new guidance to prohibit federally funded programs from offering conversion therapy in addition to developing an awareness campaign of the practice's harms and providing increased support for survivors.

The Federal Trade Commission is tasked under the new order to consider whether the practice can be deemed unfair or deceptive, and whether to issue consumer warnings.

Biden also is calling on the Secretary of State to promote ending conversion therapy globally and to verify that the financial assistance to other countries isn't used to fund it.

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Resources for the LGBTQ community

If you're questioning your identity or looking for how best to support your LGBTQ loved ones, these resources can help. Find organizations with free education, crisis intervention, peer support and information below:

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: What is conversion therapy? Why studies say it harms LGBTQ folks.