EU to Pursue Ban on Conversion Therapy in New LGBTQ Strategy
- Marks new step for the bloc as part of its equality agenda
- Activists have criticized anti-LGBTQ laws in some countries
Conversion therapy tries to change an LGBTQ child’s sexual orientation or gender identity through counseling.
Photographer: Jason Connolly/AFP/Getty ImagesThis article is for subscribers only.
The EU committed for the first time to seek a ban on conversion therapy as part of a new LGBTQ equality strategy European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen plans to pursue in her second term.
The EU is following in the path of countries including Ireland and the UK, which have moved to ban conversion therapy, the controversial practice of trying to change an LGBTQ child’s sexual orientation or gender identity through counseling. The issue has also become a politicized fight in the US — where similar bans have been subject to lawsuits, including ones that have been appealed to the Supreme Court.