Lethbridge City Hall. (Lethbridge News Now)

By David Opinko

City of Lethbridge to draft bylaw to ban conversion therapy

Feb 10, 2020 | 5:16 PM

LETHBRIDGE, AB – Lethbridge City Council has voted to adopt two motions regarding conversion therapy.

Conversion therapy is the practice of trying to change a person’s sexual orientation to heterosexual using any of a variety of different methods.

The first motion was to advocate the provincial government to end the practice of conversion therapy in Alberta.

The second was for city council to direct the city manager to draft a bylaw that would prohibit the business practice of conversion therapy. The bylaw would ensure that applicants who want to conduct conversion therapy would not be able to obtain a business license, and there would be fines for those who advertise these services in Lethbridge.

Research by the Canadian Journal of Psychiatry found that Canadian men who were exposed to sexual orientation change efforts were nearly three times more likely to attempt suicide than those who were not. They were also more prone to substance addiction and struggles with mental health.

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(Supplied by Canadian Journal of Psychiatry)

YQueerL Society for Change Co-President Devon Hargreaves believes, for these reasons, the practice needs to come to an end.

“Conversion therapy is a heinous practice that does harm mentally, emotionally, sometimes even physically. Being a part of the queer community is no longer [considered to be] a mental illness – this is not something we have to fix.”

In 2018, Hargreaves started a petition to the federal government to ban conversion therapy on a national scale. It went on to garner 18,200 signatures.

The motions to the City of Lethbridge were introduced by City Councillors Jeff Carlson and Rob Miyashiro.

“If people think this is a reputable and beneficial practice, I want them to know, no it is not,” says Carlson. “If you see it being advertised or you know that people go through this, you think, ‘OK, it’s approved, it’s in municipalities, it’s gotta be OK,’ no it is not.”

In the end, the first motion regarding advocacy to the provincial government passed unanimously.

The second, regarding the crafting of a city bylaw, passed 7-2. Councillors Blaine Hyggen and Joe Mauro were opposed.

Mauro brought up the fact that the federal government is currently working on amending the Criminal Code to ban conversion therapy across Canada.

Because of this, he did not think it made sense to implement a city-wide ban only to have Ottawa then do their own country-wide ban.

Mauro also doubted how effective a bylaw measure would be at preventing conversion therapy from happening.

Carlson, however, believes all levels of government need to do their part.

“Other orders of government move at a glacial pace. We’re quick, we’re nimble, we can direct our city manager to do this. I believe it’s to come back in June – we can have it in place years, even a decade before other orders of government act so let’s get ‘er done here.”

As directed by the motion in council, the bylaw on conversion therapy will be brought back to city council for first reading no later than June 1, 2020.