CALIFORNIA: Assembly Committee Advances "Ex-Gay" Therapy Ban

A California Assembly committee has advanced SB 1172 to the full chamber. The bill, which passed last month in the state Senate, bans "ex-gay" therapy for minors. Wingnuts are worried.

“A licensed clinical social worker, a psychologist, a psychiatrist—no one who’s licensed to perform counseling would be permitted, by law if this bill passes, to help a child decrease their same-sex attraction issue,” said Ron Prentice, executive director of the California Family Council. That’s why six major professional groups oppose the bill. “One (reason) would be religious liberty. Another would be self-determination of a client,” he said. “And there is absolutely no research which suggests that same-sex attraction is either genetic or that it is fixed and can’t be changed.” The committee was the last hurdle the bill needed to clear before heading to the Assembly floor for a vote. It passed the Senate, 23-13, on May 30.