While acceptance of LGBTQ individuals has been growing rapidly in the last decade, there are still subsets of people who abhor any orientation other than heterosexual. Coming out is never an easy process for LGBTQ people, no matter their age. For teens experiencing same-sex attraction, particularly those whose families are Read more…
Will 2014 be the year when opponents of progress will finally stand alone on the wrong side of history? The forecast looks cloudy, at best. But as I look back at 2013—the battles we’ve won and the battles we’ve lost—I see tremendous potential for advances in LGBT equality in the New Year.
It is always difficult to quantify progress in struggles for increased basic human rights. Looking at 2013 cumulatively, though, there is no doubt that the United States is picking up momentum and moving toward LGBT equality faster than ever.
State Rep. Brian Sims, D-Philadelphia, announced his intention to introduce legislation this term that would effectively ban all gay-reparative or conversion therapies in the state of Pennsylvania. Collectively, such therapies are known as sexual orientation change efforts (SOCE). The Protection of Minors From Sexual Orientation Change Counseling Act, or SB 872, sponsored by Sims and Rep. Gerald Mullery, D-Luzerne, states, “A mental health professional shall not engage in sexual orientation change efforts with an individual under 18 years of age.” If passed, this legislation could end the litany of medical, psychological and spiritual mistreatments that have done irreparable damage to generations of LGBT youth in Pennsylvania.