The U.S. Supreme Court recently issued a major ruling that weakens states’ power to ban conversion therapy for LGBTQ+ minors, sparking strong backlash from advocates and survivors. On March 31, the Court struck down Colorado’s law banning licensed therapists from using conversion‑therapy practices on children in an 8–1 decision, centering the case around counselors’ free‑speech rights.
Garrard Conley, author of the bestselling memoir Boy Erased and a survivor of a conversion‑therapy program, has publicly condemned the Supreme Court’s decision. In a recent interview, Conley explained that he had read the legal briefs and thought he was prepared for the outcome—yet, when he read the final ruling in print, he said it felt like “humiliation.” For this reason, he argues that the decision undermines LGBTQ+ youth and families who have fought for basic protections against abusive “talk therapy” practices.
Conley’s 2016 memoir Boy Erased recounts his experience as a gay teenager in a conservative Baptist family forced into a conversion‑therapy program. Not only did the book become a New York Times bestseller, but it also inspired the 2018 film Boy Erased, directed by Joel Edgerton and starring Lucas Hedges as a fictionalized version of Conley, with Nicole Kidman and Russell Crowe portraying his parents. Since then, the story has helped shape the national conversation about LGBTQ+ identity, mental health, and the dangers of so‑called “reparative” therapy.
In addition, major medical and psychological organizations, including the American Psychological Association, have long condemned conversion therapy as harmful and ineffective. They warn that it can trigger depression, anxiety, and even suicidal thoughts among LGBTQ+ youth. Colorado’s law aimed to protect minors by barring licensed professionals from using these practices; however, the Court’s majority treated the ban as “viewpoint discrimination” violating the First Amendment. As a result, critics fear this precedent could weaken similar efforts in other states to restrict conversion therapy nationwide.
Following the ruling, LGBTQ+ advocacy groups and conversion‑therapy survivors are pushing for new state and federal legislation. Conley and others urge lawmakers, licensing boards, and professional associations to tighten rules and expose “cure‑oriented” practices as neither scientific nor ethical. Overall, many see the Supreme Court’s decision as a reminder that the public must understand the real‑life trauma behind stories like Boy Erased and continue the fight to shield LGBTQ+ youth from forced “therapy.”
