Conservative-led US Supreme Court seems wary of conversion therapy' ban

"The high court's conservative justices express concern the ban might infringe upon therapists' freedom of speech. The United States Supreme Court appears poised to side with a challenge against a Colorado law that bans psychotherapists from conducting conversion therapy on minors in an attempt to influence their gender identification or sexuality. On Tuesday, the high court, which has a six-to-three conservative majority, heard arguments in the case, which weighs whether the ban violates the protections for free speech under the First Amendment, "

"The complaint was brought by licensed counsellor Kaley Chiles, a Christian who claims Colorado's law infringes on her free speech rights. But the state has defended its law. Colorado Solicitor General Shannon Stevenson argued that the ban regulates harmful conduct, not speech. The 2019 Colorado law prohibits licensed mental healthcare providers from seeking to change a minor's sexual orientation or gender identity with a predetermined outcome in mind."

"That practice, known as conversion therapy, has been often associated with religious prohibitions against gay or transgender identities. Detractors have warned that such therapy is pseudoscience and can be harmful, not to mention discriminatory, for LGBTQ youth. Colorado maintains that Chiles's allegations of free-speech violations are hypothetical because the state has not actually disciplined her. But the Alliance Defending Freedom, a conservative organisation representing Chiles, has argued that the danger is that professionals might censor themselves for fear of punishment."

Conservative justices on the Supreme Court signaled concern that Colorado’s ban on conversion therapy for minors may infringe therapists’ free-speech rights. The challenge was brought by licensed counsellor Kaley Chiles, who says the 2019 law unlawfully restricts her speech by prohibiting attempts to change a minor’s sexual orientation or gender identity toward a predetermined outcome. Colorado argues the law regulates harmful conduct rather than speech and notes it has not disciplined Chiles. Opponents of conversion therapy call it pseudoscientific, harmful, and discriminatory toward LGBTQ youth. Advocates for Chiles warn the law could cause self-censorship among professionals.

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