conversion therapy Archives

Last week, the government published the long-awaited draft conversion practices (also known as conversion ‘therapy’) Bill, which criminalises “abusive acts” aiming to change someone’s sexual orientation or transgender identity.

Publishing the draft Bill, the Home Office said that it will ensure LGBT+ people are “protected from physical and psychological abuse to change who they are”, with jail sentences of up to five years for those carrying out such practices proposed.

Afrah Qassim, Savera UK CEO and Founder said: “We welcome the publication of the draft Bill to ban conversion practices, but this is just the starting point.

“What is needed now is robust scrutiny from LGBTQ+ people, survivors and the specialist organisations that support them, who have been waiting eight long years for this moment. This scrutiny is vital because it will ensure that the Bill is fit for purpose and will not fail those it has been created to protect.

“On reading the draft Bill, we have already identified a number of concerns and potential loopholes that could allow perpetrators to continue conversion practices or place barriers before survivors seeking justice.

“The Bill in its current form requires proof of intention to cause someone to change, or believe they have changed, their sexual orientation or transgender identity, which may be more difficult to prove than the abuse itself.

“The Bill also explicitly exempts conduct carried out in the course of providing healthcare services unless it falls “far below the standards reasonably expected”, an extremely high legal threshold that could create a loophole allowing private practitioners to continue conversion practices under the guise of “exploratory therapy” or alternative clinical assessments.

“It also does not consider the intersection with ‘honour’-based abuse (HBA), in which perpetrators

mistakenly believe someone has brought shame to their family or community by doing something that is not in keeping with the beliefs of their culture and/or family or community values.

“For an offense to be committed, the practice must be deemed “abusive” and proven to cause “serious harm” or “substantial adverse effects” on daily activities. This again is restrictive, as HBA is often not direct or explicit. It can involve coercive control, emotional and psychological abuse and forced marriage, seeking to hide or suppress an individual’s sexuality or gender identity to maintain or restore a family or community’s ‘honour’.

“Working with survivors of conversion ‘therapy’ and HBA, we know that abuse is not always extreme or obvious. Sometimes it is framed as protection, faith, culture or love, even though it is abuse and a violation of human rights. The current framework of this Bill is too narrow, leaving huge gaps for people to fall through.

“The government has taken the first, very welcome, step. We now urge it to consult with survivors, the LGBTQ+ community and frontline specialist teams, to instigate a public call for evidence and listen to those with lived experience and professional expertise to create a Bill that will be fit for purpose and will fully protect all LGBTQ+ people of all faiths, cultures and backgrounds from these abhorrent practices.”

Window of Lush in Liverpool highlighting the ‘Have a Heart’ campaign (Image credit: Lush)

LGBT+ anti-abuse charity Galop and cosmetics company Lush recently teamed up to share the stories of survivors of conversion ‘therapy’ and urge people to write to their MP to call for an immediate and inclusive ban on all of these practices.

Savera UK believes in the majority of cases conversion ‘therapy’ or practices are forms of ‘honour’-based abuse – ‘punishments’ or ‘cures’ inflicted on an individual whose sexuality or gender identity is against the cultural, social or religious ‘norms’ of a family or community. ALL of these practices, without exclusion, are abuse and a violation of human rights.

The powerful animation for the ‘Have a Heart’ campaign launched ahead of Valentine’s Day and told the stories of survivors Joe, Alex and Grace. The video highlights many elements of conversion practices that correlate to characteristics of ‘honour’-based abuse, for example how they are often committed by family behind closed doors.

In Alex’s story, their father said they would be ‘better dead than non-binary’, misgendered them and destroyed clothes that he thought were too masculine. Grace, who is lesbian, was threatened with being kicked out of her home if she didn’t go on dates with men much older than her. Joe’s family monitored his finances, clothing, communications and everyday movements. All of these actions are abuse.

Image credit: Lush

Within Joe’s story we also learn that despite asking police for help he was returned to his family home time and again and the abuse continued. This is often seen in cases of ‘honour’-based abuse, where there is a lack of awareness or understanding about abuse of this nature, or where cultural sensitivity causes a fear of challenging abuse.

Galop’s recent research with YouGov shows that nearly 1 in 5 (18%) of LGBT+ people in the UK have been subjected to someone trying to change, ‘cure’ or suppress their sexual orientation or gender identity, highlighting the scale of the issue in the UK.

Afrah Qassim, CEO and Founder of Savera UK, said: “This campaign is an incredibly powerful illustration of the threat of conversion ‘therapy’ to LGBTQ+ people in the UK and why action needs to be taken to ban it completely now.

“It also clearly highlights how ‘honour’-based abuse can happen anywhere and to anyone – not just in certain communities. Greater understanding around the many ways in which ‘honour’-based abuse presents is needed both among professionals and the general public.

“As with all forms of ‘honour’-based abuse and other harmful practices, when a person makes a disclosure about being subjected to or at risk of conversion ‘therapy’ or practices, the One Chance Rule should be followed, as that may be the only chase we have to help that person.

“Savera UK supports all people at risk of ‘honour’-based abuse and harmful practices, including conversion ‘therapy’, regardless of ethnicity, culture, religion, disability, age, gender or sexuality. We join with Lush, Galop and all those calling for an immediate and fully inclusive ban of conversion ‘therapy’ and practices, which protects all LGBTQ+ people from harm.”

To watch the video and write to your MP and join the call for the ban, visit: weare.lush.com/have-a-heart-campaign/