Denver Lawmakers Unanimously Ban Conversion Therapy For Minors
DENVER (CBS4) - Denver city council members have voted unanimously to ban conversion therapy for minors. The therapies claim to change a child's sexual orientation.
"This is a very proud moment for my administration, for members of City Council, and for everyone in Denver who values inclusion and acceptance," Denver Mayor Hancock said Monday night.
Hancock, the Office of Human Rights and Community Partnerships and Council members Robin Kniech and Jolon Clark were behind banning the practice.
The mayor previously said, "When my brother came out to our family all those years ago, we knew that our love and support was what he needed. All our LGBTQ+ youth here in Denver deserve the same, and they should be proud of who they are. We celebrate who they are, and they should feel welcome and that our city is open to them. Their safety, well being and happiness are our highest priority with this proposal."
"This proposal is aimed at state-licensed therapists, operating their practice in the city, who are falsely claiming that being gay or transgender is a mental illness, and therefore taking advantage of parents and harming vulnerable youth," the city said in a statement on Monday.
As defined, conversion therapy is the pseudo-scientific practice of trying to change an individual's sexual orientation from homosexual or bisexual to heterosexual using psychological or spiritual interventions.
State lawmakers have tried to ban conversion therapy in Colorado but proposals have failed to pass four times.
