This week, Israel’s assembly has taken concrete steps to outlaw the practice of gay conversion therapy and became the first Middle East country to do so. The bill that would ban the practice has passed its first stage in Parliament after a surprising vote in favor by two parties in the coalition government.
Benny Gantz, the alternate Prime Minister and Blue and White Centrist party leader, tweeted in support of the result.
“Conversion therapies are born in sin, and their place is outlawed,” he wrote. “That is why today we will vote in favor of the law and against conversion therapies. That’s what we came for. We promised and cleaned it. This is the right thing to do.”
טיפולי המרה נולדו בחטא, ומקומם מחוץ לחוק. לכן נצביע היום בעד החוק ונגד טיפולי המרה. לשם כך הגענו. את זה הבטחנו ונקיים. זה הדבר הנכון לעשות.
— בני גנץ – Benny Gantz (@gantzbe) July 22, 2020
Education Minister Rafi Peretz, an Orthodox rabbi and member of the nationalist party in Israel, received backlash after he publicly endorsed gay conversion therapy last year.
Israel’s government is heavily steeped in religious practices that have been used to justify the colonization of Palestine. The political parties with religious affiliations were very unhappy with the move to ban the therapy.
According to BBC News, the ultra-Orthodox United Torah Judaism (UTJ) threatened to introduce bills that the centrist Blue and White “would find objectionable” as a response.
The bill must pass two more readings before it becomes law.
What is conversion therapy?
Conversion therapy is any form of treatment or psychotherapy which aims to change a person’s sexual orientation or suppress their gender identity. Conversion therapy is usually practiced on minors and is extremely ethically immoral.
Conversion therapy has been practiced around the world and is sometimes justified through religion. As of 2020, 27 states and four territories across the United States still allowed conversion therapy.
The American Psychiatric Association has proven that “the potential risks of reparative therapy are great, including depression, anxiety and self-destructive behavior, since therapist alignment with societal prejudices against homosexuality may reinforce self-hatred already experienced by the patient.”
For more information on conversion therapy and how to support organizations who are against it, click here.
