These harmful practices use rejection, shame, and psychological abuse to force young people to try and change who they are. Abuse is not a weapon to weild against children. Much less is it a weapon to be weilded for dangerous and discredited practices based on the false claim that being lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or queer (LGBTQ) is a mental illness that needs to be cured—a view with no scientific basis.

 Mental health professionals must provide care that is ethical and affirming for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender young people. Conversion therapy is not therapy, it is abuse that causes inestimable permanent harm.