Canada is
considering legislation to restrict conversion therapy nationally.
David Lametti,
the nation’s justice minister, and Bardish Chagger, the minister of diversity
and youth, introduced a bill to that effect Monday afternoon, CTV News reports. Lametti called the proposal the
“most progressive and comprehensive in the world” seeking to limit the
discredited and harmful practice of trying to turn LGBTQ people straight or
cisgender.
The
legislation, Bill S-206, An Act to Amend the Criminal Code (Conversion
Therapy), would make it illegal to cause a minor to undergo conversion therapy;
to remove a minor from Canada to undergo conversion therapy in another country;
cause a person to undergo conversion therapy against their will; profit from
providing conversion therapy; or advertise an offer to provide conversion
therapy, according to a press release from Lametti’s office.
“Diversity and
inclusion are among Canada’s greatest strengths,” the release says. “Canadians
must feel safe in their identities, and free to be their true selves. That is
why the Government of Canada is acting on its commitment to criminalize
conversion therapy in Canada.” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had made that
commitment during his reelection campaign last year. The federal government had
previously said it should be up to provinces and localities to regulate the
practice.
The bill would
not make it a criminal offense to “provide support to persons questioning their
sexual orientation, sexual feelings or gender identity,” the legislation
states. The federal government also agreed to work with local and provincial
governments on conversion therapy regulations; several of them have enacted
their own bans.
“Conversion
therapy is a cruel practice that can lead to lifelong trauma, particularly for
young people,” Lametti said in the release.
“The approach we are proposing
today demonstrates our Government’s strong commitment to protecting the dignity
and equality rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and
two-spirit Canadians, by criminalizing a practice that discriminates against
and harms them. If passed, this bill would make Canada’s laws on conversion
therapy the most progressive and comprehensive in the world.”
“We all have a
role to play to make sure LGBTQ2 persons feel safe and can fully participate in
Canadian society,” Chagger added. “The progressive legislation we proposed
today will help to ensure that everyone, everywhere in Canada can be who they
truly are, and live full, healthy, and safe lives.”
The proposal
received praise internationally. “Canada’s bill is a milestone for LGBTQ human
rights and will help to bring families back together with their LGBTQ
children,” said a statement issued by Mathew Shurka, a conversion therapy
survivor and cofounder of Born Perfect, a project of the U.S.-based National
Center for Lesbian Rights. “Being subjected to conversion therapy drives many
LGBTQ youth into hopelessness. A parent’s acceptance is make or break for an
LGBTQ child’s future. Canada’s bill sends a powerful message that LGBTQ youth
are born perfect.”
“Like Canada,
countries across the world are taking active steps to address the devastating
harms caused by conversion therapy,” added Shannon Minter, legal director at
NCLR. “Other countries considering similar legislation include Chile, Mexico,
and Germany, and grassroots movements to expose this abusive practice are
growing in South Africa and many other African countries. This is now a global
movement that is emerging as one of the most urgent and critical issues for
LGBTQ people across the world.”
“So-called
conversion therapy efforts hinge on the belief that cisgender heterosexuality
is the norm, and transgender identities and/or same-sex attraction not only
fall outside the norm, but have to be changed, if need be by brutal, inhuman
force,” said Jessica Stern, executive director of OutRight Action
International, in a press release.
“By introducing a bill which foresees a
nationwide ban, the government of Canada has sent a powerful message — that
LGBTIQ people are not in need of change or cure. I commend the ministers in
question for taking this important step, and urge authorities to bolster this
effort with measures designed to promote understanding and inclusion of LGBTIQ
people, thus tackling the root causes of these harmful, inhuman practices.”
“We’re proud
to support Canada’s move to end the discredited practice of conversion therapy
on LGBTQ minors, and celebrate as it joins the growing number of nations
preventing its citizens from conversion therapy’s harms,” said a statement from
Troy Stevenson, campaign manager for the Trevor Project’s 50 Bills 50 States
campaign to end conversion therapy in the U.S. “With Canada’s official introduction
today, the country joins the U.S., Germany, Mexico, and Chile as we all seek to
outlaw the practice among minors in our countries. This legislation will save
countless LGBTQ young lives, and we’re grateful for Prime Minister Trudeau’s
leadership in showing young LGBTQ Canadians that they are worthy of love and
respect.”
Brazil,
Ecuador, Malta, and Taiwan have nationwide bans on conversion therapy. In the
U.S., 20 states and more than 70 cities and counties have made it illegal for
licensed professionals to subject minors to the practice, and some survivors of
such therapy have successfully sued their former therapists under state
consumer fraud laws.
The proposal
is among several pro-LGBTQ moves by Trudeau’s government. In 2017, the prime
minister apologized for the Canada’s efforts to purge LGBTQ people from
government jobs from the 1950s into the early 1990s and offered financial
compensation to those affected.
SOURCE: ADVOCATE DOT COM
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