US state of Kentucky bans conversion therapy on minors

WASHINGTON

Kentucky's governor signed an executive order Wednesday banning the controversial practice of conversion therapy on minors, making it the latest US state to enact the measure amid calls for a federal prohibition.

"Kentucky cannot possibly reach its full potential unless it is free from discrimination by or against any citizen – unless all our people feel welcome in our spaces, free from unjust barriers and supported to be themselves,” Andy Beshear, the state's Democratic governor, said in a lengthy statement.

"Conversion therapy has no basis in medicine or science, and it can cause significant long-term harm to our kids, including increased rates of suicide and depression. This is about protecting our youth from an inhumane practice that hurts them," he added.

Beshear signed the order in Kentucky’s Capitol rotunda during a ceremony where leading opponents of the practice joined him. More than 20 states and Washington, D.C. have now instituted bans.

Conversion therapy seeks to change the sexual identity of an individual by means that include hypnosis, shaming and what is known as aversion therapy.

The American Medical Association, the largest physician association in the US, has called for a federal ban on conversion therapy, calling it "medically un-sound," and warning that it "may increase suicidal behaviors and cause significant psychological distress, anxiety, lowered self-esteem, internalized homophobia, self-blame, intrusive imagery and sexual dysfunction."