Culture

Wisconsin Just Banned Taxpayer Money From Being Used to Fund Conversion Therapy


 

Wisconsin kicked off Pride month in a big way: Its governor, Tony Evers, signed an executive order on Tuesday that bans the usage of federal and state funds for conversion therapy for minors, joining nearly two dozen other states in taking action against the debunked, harmful practice.

The conversion therapy order was one of several pro-LGBTQ+ directives approved by the Democratic leader. Others include orders mandating the usage of gender-neutral language in government documents and directing that the State Capitol fly the rainbow flag every June in celebration of Pride Month. Beginning with this year, the Pride banner will henceforth fly over the building’s East Wing.

In a statement, Evers said these actions were intended to “ensure our state is a safe, inclusive, and just place where every person has the resources and support to thrive.”

“In addition to celebrating the resiliency and joy of the LGBTQ community, Pride also offers an opportunity for us to reflect on how the state and our communities can be better allies,” the first-term lawmaker said. “These executive orders today recognize the work we have to do as a state to protect, support, and celebrate all LGBTQ Wisconsinites, especially our kids.”

LGBTQ+ advocacy groups lauded the historic moves. In a statement, Sam Brinton, vice president of advocacy and governmental affairs for the Trevor Project, referred to conversion therapy as a “dangerous, fraudulent practice that should never be subsidized with taxpayer dollars.”

“This is a great step forward,” Brinton said.

The national youth organization’s own research has shown that conversion therapy is extremely harmful for LGBTQ+ youth. A 2020 study found that queer and transgender young people subjected to counseling intended to change their sexual orientation or gender identity were more than twice as likely to attempt suicide as those who had not undergone conversion therapy. Such counseling can include everything from talk therapy and “praying the gay away” to, in some cases, shock treatment.

The American Psychological Association has disavowed these practices for “sexual orientation change” since 1997 and adopted a trans-inclusive resolution in February.

However, Brinton also called for the passage of legislation that would ban conversion therapy wholesale, as it is still technically legal in Wisconsin. “[N]ow we need the state legislature to pass legislation prohibiting mental health providers from subjecting any LGBTQ young person in Wisconsin to this discredited and abusive practice,” they said.

The order was a necessary intervention on behalf of LGBTQ+ youth after Wisconsin Republicans moved to stop a conversion therapy ban earlier this year. While the state’s Department of Safety and Professional Standards (DSPS) proposed an administrative rule that would prevent therapists and licensed counselors from providing orientation and gender change treatments, the Wisconsin legislature voted in March to block the rule change, according to the Associated Press.

While conversion therapy will remain broadly legal, for now, some state lawmakers are trying to change that. A bill introduced earlier this month would penalize conversion therapists by potentially stripping them of their license to practice. The legislation has been referred to a committee after being read in the Assembly and the Senate earlier this month but is unlikely to pass the GOP-controlled legislature.

closeup of a trans pride flag waving on the blue sky, moved by the wind

Should the conversion therapy ban be signed into law, Wisconsin would join the 20 states (plus Washington, D.C.) that have outlawed the practice for minors. Two years ago, North Carolina took similar moves against the treatment as Wisconsin, with its governor, Roy Cooper, outlawing public funding from being used toward “curing” a minor’s LGBTQ+ identity. The state has yet to pass a comprehensive conversion therapy prohibition through its legislature since.

At least 11 Wisconsin municipalities have enacted their own city or countywide bans on conversion therapy, according to the Wisconsin State Journal.

But despite the positive momentum, LGBTQ+ people still face legislative challenges in the Badger State. Wisconsin does not have a comprehensive law banning discrimination on the basis of both sexual orientation and gender identity and is one of the nearly three dozen states that has introduced anti-trans bills this year. Two bills pushed by Republican lawmakers in 2021 would bar trans girls from competing in sports at the K-12 and collegiate levels.

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