The Supreme Court on Tuesday struck down a Colorado statute that banned conversion therapy for LGBTQ+ minors, with Justice Neil Gorsuch writing that the 2019 law was an “egregious assault” on the First Amendment.
“Colorado may regard its policy as essential to public health and safety,” Gorsuch wrote. “But the First Amendment stands as a shield against any effort to enforce orthodoxy in thought or speech in this country.”
The court’s decision will have implications for more than 20 other states that have similar laws regarding conversion therapy, which aims to change the sexual orientation or gender identity of a minor.
The case was brought by Kaley Chiles, an evangelical Christian counselor who sued Colorado in 2022.
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“I hope this win for free speech will fuel a greater pursuit of truth,” Chiles told reporters following the decision. “Because of today’s ruling, families will have more options, and states won’t be able to shut those options down.”
The high court’s ruling was nearly unanimous, with only one dissent from Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, who wrote that it “opens a dangerous can of worms.”
“It threatens to impair States’ ability to regulate the provision of medical care in any respect,” Brown wrote. “It extends the Constitution into uncharted territory in an utterly irrational fashion. And it ultimately risks grave harm to Americans’ health and wellbeing.”
While the court’s decision is a win for conservatives, many psychologists and mental health experts say that this type of therapy is ineffective and can often be harmful to LGBTQ+ youth.
Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser described the decision as a “setback for Colorado’s efforts to protect children and families from harmful and discredited mental health practices.”
“To LGBTQ youth in this state and beyond: you are valued, you are worthy, and your health and dignity matter,” Weiser said in a statement. “We will continue to stand up for care grounded in science and for the rights of all children to grow up safe, supported, and respected.”
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