Hieronymus Bosch

Sexual conversion therapy, also known as reparative therapy or sexual orientation change efforts (“SOCE”) seek to “convert” a patient’s sexual orientation from homosexual to heterosexual (never the reverse). The goal of this “therapy” is to “cure” homosexuality.

The National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR) has recently been spearheading efforts to have the United Nations Committee Against Torture consider whether sexual conversion therapy in the US constitutes torture as defined by the Convention Against Torture (CAT).

Meanwhile, in the United States, two states have prohibited the practices – – – at least when provided by licensed therapists on patients who are minors.  The statutes of both California and New Jersey were challenged as infringing on therapists’ First Amendment rights of free speech. Federal appellate courts upheld both statutes, but on very different theories.  Here’s my discussion of the cases for the American Psychological Society.