Letting people choose therapy seems like a no-brainer. Here is Arthur Goldberg writing at Public Discourse:
Recent years have seen countless—and specious—legislative, judicial, and administrative attempts to block those with unwanted same-sex attraction from seeking healing and transformation through professional therapy.
These days, American culture is saturated by a virtually all-permissive, “anything goes” social system, ostensibly founded on the values of “tolerance” and “diversity,” but which in reality requires an ideological conformity with what is considered politically correct, for tolerance and diversity, it turns out, only extend so far.
Activists are waging a culture war, targeting the religious and personal freedom of those who provide SAFE-T—that’s short for sexual attraction fluidity exploration in therapy, the general term for any therapy that provides resources for individuals struggling with unwanted sexual attractions. The attacks take the form of specious legislation, lawsuits, and complaints lodged in courts, licensing boards and professional associations. These dangerous and irresponsible attempts prevent those unhappy with their same-sex attractions from living in accordance with their ideals, reaching their goals, and finding peace within themselves.
In the legislative arena, efforts to prohibit professional mental health counselors from assisting individuals in overcoming issues of anxiety, addiction, depression, trauma, and self-esteem, when those issues relate to minimizing or overcoming same-sex attraction, have multiplied. Several states and municipalities have successfully limited counseling for consenting minors. In those jurisdictions, minors cannot be treated by licensed therapists if they want to address their same-sex attractions in ways that align with their faith, values, morals, and life goals. These minors are inappropriately excluded from professional assistance if they desire to minimize their erotic or romantic responses to others of the same sex. Or, even worse, in some jurisdictions, the therapist may be required to counsel the client to overcome his alleged “internalized homophobia” or “heterosexist biases” and thus be counseled within the context of a gay identity.
Read more: Public Discourse
Image credit: www.pathinfo.org.
