Titone, Michaelson Jenet Release Statements on SCOTUS Conversion Therapy Hearing

DENVER, CO – Senator Dafna Michaelson Jenet and Representative Brianna Titone today released the following statements as the United States Supreme Court begins hearing oral arguments in Chiles v. Salazar. 

Senator Michaelson Jenet, D-Commerce City: 

“In 2019, after years of work and repeated legislative attempts, I sponsored and successfully passed a law to prohibit the life-threatening and inhumane practice of conversion therapy. While writing the bill and fighting for its passage, my co-sponsors and I had meetings with parents, children, child psychology experts, and doctors. We heard gut-wrenching personal testimony, research and data about the lifelong consequences of conversion therapy, and even stories of suicide. The evidence was overwhelming: conversion therapy is deeply and often permanently harmful to youth.

“Now, the Supreme Court is taking up a case that challenges these fundamental protections in yet another attack against the LGBTQ+ community. No matter what happens in this case, I will always fight for Colorado youth to grow up happy, healthy, and with the freedom to be themselves.” 

Representative Brianna Titone, D-Arvada: 

“In Colorado, we trust the science and medical professionals. Conversion therapy is harmful and ostracizes our LGBTQ+ youth. The research is clear: conversion therapy does not work, and it leads to negative outcomes for LGBTQ+ youth that put their lives at risk. This SCOTUS case is another attempt by MAGA loyalists to demonize the LGBTQ+ community and harm LGBTQ+ youth. We strongly urge the Court to uphold this law and protect children across the country. ” 

In 2019, Colorado Democrats sponsored legislation to ban conversion therapy for minors. Conversion therapy is a debunked treatment intended to change an individual’s sexual orientation or gender identity through harmful interventions. The vast majority of medical and mental health organizations, including the American Academy of Pediatrics, American Medical Association, American Psychiatric Association, American Psychological Association and the National Alliance on Mental Illness, are opposed to conversion therapy. 

In 2009, a task force at the American Psychological Association published a report conducting a systematic review of conversion therapy and concluded that “...efforts to change sexual orientation are unlikely to be successful and involve some risk of harm, contrary to the claims of SOCE practitioners and advocates.” 

More than 20 states, including Colorado, New York and Utah, have banned conversion therapy for minors.