A majority of the Supreme Court appeared poised to overturn Colorado’s ban on licensed counselors attempting to change the sexual orientation or gender identity of minors, after 90 minutes of oral arguments on October 7. The decision could upend similar conversion therapy bans in 23 states and the District of Columbia.
Conversion therapy attempts to change a person’s same-sex attraction or gender dysphoria by teaching patients to suppress their impulses or modify behavior to fit traditional notions of gender and sexuality. The practice is often wrongly described as “curing” a person of same-sex attraction or gender dysphoria — when even many practitioners admit they cannot eliminate such feelings, only offer ways to manage or resist them.
While extreme forms of conversion therapy have included physical pain, psychological abuse, aversion techniques, induced vomiting, or even electroshock treatments, most practitioners now focus on so-called “talk therapy,” in which therapists try to guide patients toward a specific goal, such as reducing same-sex attraction.
No state currently bans adults from seeking conversion therapy, but nearly two dozen have enacted laws prohibiting licensed therapists from practicing it on minors. Four other states have issued executive orders or adopted regulatory guidelines restricting the practice for minors — who are often placed in therapy at their parents’ insistence rather than by their own choice.
Social conservatives who oppose homosexuality or reject the concept of gender identity argue that parents should have the right to send their children to therapists who help them align their lives and behavior with their preferred religious beliefs.
Kaley Chiles, a licensed Colorado counselor, is challenging the state’s conversion therapy ban, arguing that it violates her right to practice what she calls “faith-informed counseling” to help clients who “have a goal to become comfortable and at peace” with their body, reports The Washington Post.
Chiles contends that the minors and parents who seek her help are religious and want to “live a life consistent with their faith,” as guided by the Bible. She says she limits her work with minors to “talk therapy” and argues that Colorado’s ban violates her free speech rights and prevents her from offering guidance to youth struggling with unwanted same-sex attraction or gender dysphoria.
“This one topic was now being separated and treated differently than literally every other topic in counseling,” Chiles told the Post, lamenting that most mainstream medical associations favor more “affirming” approaches to LGBTQ identity. “It’s not the way we would operate with addictions and eating disorders and with depression.”
In March, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear Chiles’ challenge after lower courts upheld Colorado’s ban, ruling that it regulates professional conduct rather than speech. The decision marked a shift for the high court, which previously declined to hear similar challenges to bans in Washington State, California, and New Jersey.
Lawyers for Colorado argue that the Supreme Court has long recognized states’ authority to regulate the practice of medicine to protect patients from substandard care — even when those regulations may limit a therapist’s personal speech.
In an amicus brief filed with the court, 21 state attorneys general argued that conversion therapy bans should stand because the practice is unsafe, ineffective, and fails to meet accepted standards of mental health care. They contend that the therapy increases the risk of suicide and depression among LGBTQ youth and therefore does not merit First Amendment protection.
The attorneys also warn that overturning conversion therapy bans could undermine states’ authority to regulate professional practices within their own borders.
Most major medical and mental health organizations reject conversion therapy as unscientific and warn that those subjected to it can suffer lasting psychological harm.
A 2013 survey of conversion therapy survivors found that 84% said their experiences continue to haunt them, causing lasting harm ranging from “nervous breakdowns” to shame, depression, self-loathing, and suicidal thoughts.
Subsequent studies, including research by the Williams Institute and The Trevor Project, have found that people subjected to conversion therapy are significantly more likely to experience suicidal thoughts or attempts than their peers.
A recent medical study published in May found that conversion therapy may also cause physical health problems. Young adults assigned male at birth who underwent the practice were three times more likely to be diagnosed with high blood pressure and showed higher levels of inflammation — both risk factors for poor heart health.
Social conservatives counter that studies highlighting harm from conversion therapy conflate “aversive” methods with talk therapy. James Campbell, an attorney with the anti-LGBTQ group Alliance Defending Freedom — which represents Chiles — told the justices on Tuesday that “Colorado can’t prove harm because it hasn’t cited a study focusing on what’s at issue here — voluntary speech between a licensed professional and a minor.”
Several conservative justices appeared inclined to side with Chiles. Chief Justice John Roberts cited past rulings where the Court declined to draw a distinction between professional conduct and speech, noting, “Just because they’re engaged in conduct doesn’t mean that their words aren’t protected.”
Justice Samuel Alito questioned whether the Court should rely on the current medical consensus that deems conversion therapy harmful or ineffective. He asked Colorado Solicitor General Shannon Stevenson, “Have there been times when the medical consensus has been politicized — has been taken over by ideology?” suggesting that professional organizations may have been pressured to adopt “affirming” approaches to LGBTQ identity.
Justice Amy Coney Barrett asked Stevenson for her best evidence that conversion therapy causes harm. Stevenson replied, “People have been trying to do conversion therapy for a hundred years with no record of success. There is no study, despite the fact that people tried to advance this practice, that has ever shown that it has any chance of being efficacious.”
She added that the harm “comes from telling someone there’s something innate about yourself that you can change.”
Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, one of the Court’s liberal members, questioned whether her conservative colleagues were being inconsistent, noting that the Court recently upheld state laws restricting doctors from providing gender-affirming care to minors with gender dysphoria.
Hashim Mooppan, representing the U.S. Department of Justice — which supports overturning the law — countered that the two cases are not equivalent. He noted that Chiles’ challenge centers on the First Amendment, while Tennessee’s ban on gender-affirming care does not involve doctors’ free speech rights.
Despite the Court’s conservative majority, LGBTQ advocates argue that states should retain the right to bar therapists from practices that cause long-term harm to patients.
“Conversion therapy is a scam, plain and simple,” said U.S. Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Calif.) in a statement. Lieu has previously introduced legislation to classify the practice as “fraudulent” for exploiting families and failing to deliver on its promises to change a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity.
“Conversion therapy is based on the false premise that being LGBTQ is undesirable or unhealthy,” said Ilan Meyer, a Distinguished Senior Scholar of Public Policy at the Williams Institute, which has conducted multiple studies on the practice and submitted an amicus brief supporting Colorado’s law.
“Research shows it is ineffective at changing a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity and is associated with significant harm,” Meyer added, “which is why major professional organizations have overwhelmingly rejected the practice.”
Cracker Barrel has removed the "Pride" section of its website, which once highlighted the chain's sponsorship of the Nashville Pride Parade. Visitors are now redirected to a "Culture and Belonging" page.
The company insists the change was part of routine site updates, not a reaction to backlash from right-wing conservatives.
"In connection with the Company's brand work, we have recently made updates to the Cracker Barrel website, including adding new content and removing out-of-date content," a spokesperson told Fox News Digital.
Oregon State Rep. Cyrus Javadi announced last Friday that he's switching from the Republican to the Democratic Party, blasting GOP leaders for obstructing legislation that would have benefited his constituents and for pursuing an anti-LGBTQ agenda that "isolates minority communities when politically convenient."
Javadi, who confirmed on Substack he will seek re-election next year as a Democrat, boosts his new party's margin in the Oregon House to 37 seats out of 60.
In his Substack post, Javadi said Republicans blocked his efforts to help his district at every turn, prioritizing opposition to Democratic bills as a strategy rather than judging proposals on their merits.
FBI Director Kash Patel has allegedly fired a former FBI employee and new agent trainee for displaying a gay Pride flag on his desk at a California field office last year, according to three people familiar with the matter.
The trainee, who worked as an FBI support specialist in Los Angeles, received a termination letter dated October 1 -- the first day of the government shutdown -- and signed by Patel, claiming he had displayed an improper “political” message in the workplace, according to CNN.
At the time, he was completing new agent training at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia.
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