The Church of England has called on the government to ban conversion therapy and has condemned the practice, which aims to change sexual orientation, as unethical and potentially harmful.

I'm skeptical of the percentage of true cases of homosexuality we have in our society. It would be naive to deny there are many people who are born gay. And in today's culture we have made it more acceptable to come out and bring the truth to families and friends. But we would also be naive to deny the fact that there are people who are trying to express themselves and reinvent themselves as something different as a way to gain attention. I think this talking point is sadly very much ignored, and it's the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the real issue of the mental health crisis Western cultures in particular are going through. Not only that issue, but we have a growing sexualization of our societies and people are constantly trying to find a new high.

Am I apologizing for parents sending their youth into conservation therapy? Absolutely not. What I am trying to explain is why some parents have reason to question their children's sexuality choices. It's not healthy for teens to start running around and dressing like someone of the opposite sex, it's really not. There is definitely mental health problems going on with somebody like that, as unfortunate and cruel as that sounds. We need a different approach to solving this mental health crisis, and I agree, forcing kids into conversion therapies isn't the answer. But to outright ban these institutions? Unless there is reason to believe there is severe abuse at play, I don't see why these places can't operate legally.

/r/worldnews Thread Parent Link - theguardian.com