Why the U.S. Supreme Court case on Colorado conversion therapy ban matters

How the U.S. Supreme Court rules on Colorado’s ban on conversion therapy for minors will have massive implications for queer people in the U.S.

The U.S. Supreme Court just heard a case about Colorado’s ban on conversion therapy for minors, which could have devastating implications for queer people in the country.

The Court heard arguments in a case brought by Christian talk therapist Kaley Chiles against the state of Colorado. In the suit, Christian law firm Alliance Defending Freedom argued that Colorado’s ban violates her First Amendment rights to discuss her faith with her patients.

The state’s lawyers argue that this argument is more hypothetical than it is rooted in reality. The state claims it has not received a complaint about Chiles’s professional conduct—nor has she been disciplined.

Questions asked by the Court’s conservative justices appeared to sympathize with Chiles’s free speech claims, while the Court’s liberal justices seemed to align with Colorado’s argument that they have the right to ban a practice they deem unsafe and ineffective.

The Court currently has a conservative majority, with only three justices appointed by Democratic presidents compared to six justices appointed by Republican presidents—including three by Donald Trump alone. 

If the Court does rule against the state, it will likely have implications for the more than 20 other states with similar bans.

Conversion therapy has been condemned by a long list of major medical organizations and experts and has been found to significantly increase a person’s risk of depression or suicide.

Cody Corrall is Xtra's Social Video Producer. Their work has appeared in BuzzFeed News, TechCrunch, the Chicago Reader, CINE-FILE, Thrillist, Paste Magazine, and other places on the world wide web. He lives in Chicago and speaks English.

Senior editor Mel Woods is an English-speaking Vancouver-based writer, editor and audio producer and a former associate editor with HuffPost Canada. A proud prairie queer and ranch dressing expert, their work has also appeared in Vice, Slate, the Tyee, the CBC, the Globe and Mail and the Walrus.

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