Governor Gretchen Whitmer has signed legislation banning conversion therapy for minors in Michigan. The bills she signed this week build on a previous executive directive to prohibit the use of state and federal funds for conversion therapy on minors. In 2021, the governor signed the directive and called on the legislature to codify a ban on conversion therapy. Speaking after the bill signing, Whitmer said she has the LGBTQ community’s back.
“Conversion therapy is an abusive process used to try to control children,” Whitmer said. “It’s anti medicine, anti choice, and just plain wrong.”
Conversion therapy, also known as “reparative therapy,” refers to any intervention that attempts to change an individual’s sexual orientation or gender identity. Statistics from the Trevor Project, a nonprofit dedicated to LGBTQ+ suicide prevention, estimate 5% of Michigan’s LGBTQ youth have reported being subjected to conversion therapy as of 2022. In the same study, another 10% reported being threatened with the possibility of conversion therapy. Whitmer says she will fight for everyone’s freedom to be who they are.
