National
Court upholds Calif. law banning ‘conversion’ therapy
Anti-gay groups to appeal Ninth Circuit ruling
California Gov. Jerry Brown signed the ‘ex-gay’ therapy ban into law in September 2012. (Photo public Domain)
The Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on Thursday upheld a 2012 California law that prohibits licensed therapists from attempting to change the sexual orientation or gender expression of a person under the age of 18 through so-called “conversion” or “reparative” therapy.
The ruling by a three-judge panel states that two separate lawsuits filed by anti-LGBT groups challenging the law could not succeed in their assertion that the law infringes on the free speech rights of therapists who seek to perform the therapy.
The appeals court also rejected claims by the groups filing the lawsuits that the law, known as SB 1172, interferes with the rights of parents to provide therapy seeking to change the sexual orientation or gender expression of their children on religious grounds.
“Fundamental rights of parents do not include the right to choose a specific type of provider for a specific medical or mental health treatment that the state has reasonably deemed harmful,” 9th Circuit Judge Susan Graber wrote in the unanimous three-judge decision.
In defending the law, California officials argued that virtually all of the organizations representing the medical and mental health professions, including the American Psychiatric Association, have called the therapy harmful and ineffective in changing someone’s sexual orientation or gender identity or expression.
All of the nation’s leading medical and mental health organizations have also warned that therapy seeking to change someone from gay to straight, especially youth, places them at risk for depression and suicide.
“The court’s decision today on Senate Bill 1172 is a major victory for anyone who cares about the well-being of our youth,” said John O’Connor, executive director of the statewide LGBT group Equality California. “It will directly impact the lives of thousands of young people by protecting them from this horrific practice.”
Brad Dacus, president of the Pacific Justice Institute, one of the groups seeking to overturn the law, said the group plans to appeal the 9th Circuit Appeals Court’s decision.
“This decision is a dark day for those who believe in the First Amendment and the right of parents over the proper upbringing of their children,” the San Jose Mercury News quoted him as saying.
California Gov. Jerry Brown, who signed the measure into law in September 2012, said it was needed to protect children and teenagers under the age of 18 from “non-scientific ‘therapies’ that have driven young people to depression and suicide.”
Brown added, “These practices have no basis in science or medicine and they will now be relegated to the dustbin of quackery.”
The decision by the 9th Circuit panel followed an earlier split decision by two U.S. District Court judges in Sacramento last December. One of the judges ruled the lawsuit challenging the law had merit and issued a stay temporarily preventing the state from enforcing the law. Another District Court judge ruled that the plaintiffs in the lawsuit most likely could not succeed in their constitutional challenge because the law didn’t violate their free speech rights.
Thursday’s ruling by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals panel upheld the ruling of the District Court judge who asserted the case challenging the law would not likely succeed on constitutional grounds.
However, the 9th Circuit panel ordered that the two cases be sent back to their respective District Court judges for deliberation and a decision on other legal challenges filed by the plaintiffs, according to a statement released on Thursday by the National Center for Lesbian Rights.
NCLR Legal Director Shannon Minter said the overall action by the 9th Circuit judges clears the way for the eventual permanent upholding of SB 1172.
“The court of appeals ruled in very clear terms that state-licensed therapists do not have a constitutional right to engage in discredited practices that offer no health benefits and put LGBT youth at risk of severe harm, including depression and suicide,” Minter said in a statement.
On Aug. 13, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie signed a similar bill into law. Other bills calling for banning “conversion” therapy for minors have been introduced in Massachusetts, New York and Pennsylvania.
The White House
Judy Shepard to receive Presidential Medal of Freedom
Nancy Pelosi is also among this year’s honorees
Beloved LGBTQ advocate Judy Shepard is among the 19 honorees who will receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian award in the U.S., the White House announced on Friday.
The mother of Matthew Shepard, who was killed in 1998 in the country’s most notorious anti-gay hate crime, she co-founded the Matthew Shepard Foundation with her husband Dennis to raise awareness about anti-LGBTQ violence.
The organization runs education, outreach, and advocacy programs, many focused on schools.
In a statement shared via the Human Rights Campaign, Shepard said, “This unexpected honor has been very humbling for me, Dennis, and our family. What makes us proud is knowing our President and our nation share our lifelong commitment to making this world a safer, more loving, more respectful, and more peaceful place for everyone.
“I am grateful to everyone whose love and support for our work through the years has sustained me.
“If I had the power to change one thing, I can only dream of the example that Matt’s life and purpose would have shown, had he lived. This honor reminds the world that his life, and every life, is precious.”
Shepard was instrumental in working with then-President Barack Obama for passage of the landmark Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act in 2009, which was led in the House by then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), who will also be honored with a Presidential Medal of Freedom during the ceremony on Friday.
Also in 2009, Shepard published a memoir, “The Meaning of Matthew: My Son’s Murder in Laramie, and a World Transformed,” and was honored with the Black Tie Dinner Elizabeth Birch Equality Award.
“Judy Shepard has been a champion for equality and President Biden’s choice to honor her with the Presidential Medal of Freedom is a testament to what she’s done to be a force of good in the world,” HRC President Kelley Robinson said in a statement.
“A mother who turned unspeakable grief over the loss of her son into a decades-long fight against anti-LGBTQ+ hatred and violence, Judy continues to make a lasting impact in the lives of the LGBTQ+ community,” she said.
“It is because of her advocacy that the first federal hate crimes legislation became law and that countless life-saving trainings, resources and conversations about equality and acceptance are provided each year by the Matthew Shepard Foundation,” Robinson said. “We are honored that Judy is a member of the HRC family and know that her work to create a more inclusive and just world will only continue.”
Other awardees who will be honored by the White House this year are: Actor Michelle Yeoh, entrepreneur and former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Jesuit Catholic priest Gregory Boyle, Assistant House Democratic Leader Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.), former Labor and Education Secretary and former U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole (R-N.C.), journalist and former daytime talkshow host Phil Donahue, World War II veteran and civil rights activist Medgar Evers (posthumous), former Vice President Al Gore, civil rights activist and lawyer Clarence B. Jones, former Secretary of State and U.S. Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.), former U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.) (posthumous), Olympic swimmer Katie Ledecky, educator and activist Opal Lee, astronaut and former director of NASA’s Johnson Space Center Ellen Ochoa, astronomer Jane Rigby, United Farm Workers President Teresa Romero, and Olympic athlete Jim Thorpe (posthumous).
National
United Methodist Church removes 40-year ban on gay clergy
Delegates also voted for other LGBTQ-inclusive measures
The United Methodist Church on Wednesday removed a ban on gay clergy that was in place for more than 40 years, voting to also allow LGBTQ weddings and end prohibitions on the use of United Methodist funds to “promote acceptance of homosexuality.”
Overturning the policy forbidding the church from ordaining “self-avowed practicing homosexuals” effectively formalized a practice that had caused an estimated quarter of U.S. congregations to leave the church.
The New York Times notes additional votes “affirming L.G.B.T.Q. inclusion in the church are expected before the meeting adjourns on Friday.” Wednesday’s measures were passed overwhelmingly and without debate. Delegates met in Charlotte, N.C.
According to the church’s General Council on Finance and Administration, there were 5,424,175 members in the U.S. in 2022 with an estimated global membership approaching 10 million.
The Times notes that other matters of business last week included a “regionalization” plan, which gave autonomy to different regions such that they can establish their own rules on matters including issues of sexuality — about which international factions are likelier to have more conservative views.
Rev. Kipp Nelson of St. Johns’s on the Lake Methodist Church in Miami shared a statement praising the new developments:
“It is a glorious day in the United Methodist Church. As a worldwide denomination, we have now publicly proclaimed the boundless love of God and finally slung open the doors of our church so that all people, no matter their identities or orientations, may pursue the calling of their hearts.
“Truly, all are loved and belong here among us. I am honored to serve as a pastor in the United Methodist Church for such a time as this, for our future is bright and filled with hope. Praise be, praise be.”
Federal Government
Republican state AGs challenge Biden administration’s revised Title IX policies
New rules protect LGBTQ students from discrimination
Four Republicans state attorneys general have sued the Biden-Harris administration over the U.S. Department of Education’s new Title IX policies that were finalized April 19 and carry anti-discrimination protections for LGBTQ students in public schools.
The lawsuit filed on Tuesday, which is led by the attorneys general of Kentucky and Tennessee, follows a pair of legal challenges from nine Republican states on Monday — all contesting the administration’s interpretation that sex-based discrimination under the statute also covers that which is based on the victim’s sexual orientation or gender identity.
The administration also rolled back Trump-era rules governing how schools must respond to allegations of sexual harassment and sexual assault, which were widely perceived as biased in favor of the interests of those who are accused.
“The U.S. Department of Education has no authority to let boys into girls’ locker rooms,” Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti said in a statement. “In the decades since its adoption, Title IX has been universally understood to protect the privacy and safety of women in private spaces like locker rooms and bathrooms.”
“Florida is suing the Biden administration over its unlawful Title IX changes,” Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis wrote on social media. “Biden is abusing his constitutional authority to push an ideological agenda that harms women and girls and conflicts with the truth.”
After announcing the finalization of the department’s new rules, Education Secretary Miguel Cardona told reporters, “These regulations make it crystal clear that everyone can access schools that are safe, welcoming and that respect their rights.”
The new rule does not provide guidance on whether schools must allow transgender students to play on sports teams corresponding with their gender identity to comply with Title IX, a question that is addressed in a separate rule proposed by the agency in April.
LGBTQ and civil rights advocacy groups praised the changes. Lambda Legal issued a statement arguing the new rule “protects LGBTQ+ students from discrimination and other abuse,” adding that it “appropriately underscores that Title IX’s civil rights protections clearly cover LGBTQ+ students, as well as survivors and pregnant and parenting students across race and gender identity.”
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