Conversion therapies still feared
despite being banned
(Ottawa) LGBTQ advocates are not yet reassured by amendments to the Criminal Code banning conversion therapy in Canada.
They say that the ideologies behind these methods are still present in Canada.
According to the Canadian government's definition, conversion therapy is "a practice that aims to change a person's sexual orientation to make them heterosexual, to change their gender identity to make them cisgender, or to change their gender expression to match the sex they were assigned at birth."
No one has been charged or summoned to trial since the changes to the law came into effect in January 2022.
Nick Schiavo, executive director of No Conversion Canada, worries that advocates for these therapies are trying to use "coded language" to avoid falling foul of the law.
Florence Ashley, an assistant professor at the University of Alberta's Faculty of Law,
says it's common for organizations to use more vague terms.
"[They're going to say] they don't change a person's sexual orientation. We do a kind of healing. We treat the underlying trauma that makes people gay. We're just letting that person explore who they really are. »
There is no real impact on those who make these kinds of speeches, adds Dr. Ashley.
The entry into force of the ban had immediate effects. For example: Exodus Global Alliance, one of the world's largest conversion therapy organizations, announced that it was ceasing operations in Canada.
On its website, it writes that the new law clearly demonstrated that the federal government was "trying to prevent the help that the gospels and Christians can provide to members of the LGBT community."
Some Canadian-based Christian organizations appear to be using materials that are consistent with the principles behind conversion therapy. This raises concerns among advocates for members of the LBGTQ+ community who argue that the law ultimately had little consequence.
Federal Justice Minister David Lametti calls conversion therapy a "horrific" practice.
"It obviously concerns me that this practice continues to exist. I wanted to eliminate it. That's why we made it illegal," he said in an interview with The Canadian Press.
Their ban may take some time to take hold as the police must learn how to investigate the matter. In particular, they must learn to analyze programs that could be concealed by coded language.
"We have to be able to train people who decipher this hidden code or the programs that hide conversion therapy," he says. It takes time. I understand that this takes time. And it takes even more time for the police not only to understand, but also to investigate. »
In its Charter of Rights and Freedoms considerations, the government states that the law "would not criminalize conversations in which a person expresses an opinion about sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression, unless that conversation is part of an intervention to make a person heterosexual or cisgender."
It adds that "interventions that support the exploration and development of a person's identity would not be prohibited, provided they are not based on the assumption that one particular sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression should be privileged over another."
Professor Travis Salway, of Simon Fraser University, says groups often use different language
to talk about conversion therapies to circumvent the law.
"The term 'conversion therapy' may have a different meaning depending on who uses it. "I think some practices are beyond the scope of the federal ban," he said. We need to come to understand that there are more practices that do not fall under federal law. »
The Institute of Biblical Counselling International, which operates in British Columbia, Ontario, Manitoba and several Aboriginal communities, offers what it calls a Bible-based program.
The content of the program, posted on the organization's website, includes a course on "common psychological problems people face." The bibliography includes books written by proponents of conversion therapy, including those of Joe Dallas,
a pastor with the so-called "gay elder" movement.
One of his books, The Complete Christian Guide to Understanding Homosexuality: A Biblical and Compassionate Response to Same-Sex Attraction, claims that no one is born homosexual. Dallas says he offers tools to help people abstain from homosexual behavior permanently.
The president of the institute, Geoff Clarke, confirms that the existence of this course. However, he adds that the institution does not teach conversion therapy and that the focus is not on sexual orientation,
"It's not our role, it's not a practice within our program. It is up to the individual to make a choice.
We are not moving in this direction, "he defends.
Clarke notes that the program deals with trauma or addiction issues. Although he is aware of a course on "sexual disorders," he maintains that it is not conversion therapy.
"We can refer to a book or author that a participant can read. It is up to him to draw his own conclusions. He has no trouble quoting a series of books that a person can consult. »
They say that the ideologies behind these methods are still present in Canada.
According to the Canadian government's definition, conversion therapy is "a practice that aims to change a person's sexual orientation to make them heterosexual, to change their gender identity to make them cisgender, or to change their gender expression to match the sex they were assigned at birth."
No one has been charged or summoned to trial since the changes to the law came into effect in January 2022.
Nick Schiavo, executive director of No Conversion Canada, worries that advocates for these therapies are trying to use "coded language" to avoid falling foul of the law.
Florence Ashley, an assistant professor at the University of Alberta's Faculty of Law,
says it's common for organizations to use more vague terms.
"[They're going to say] they don't change a person's sexual orientation. We do a kind of healing. We treat the underlying trauma that makes people gay. We're just letting that person explore who they really are. »
There is no real impact on those who make these kinds of speeches, adds Dr. Ashley.
The entry into force of the ban had immediate effects. For example: Exodus Global Alliance, one of the world's largest conversion therapy organizations, announced that it was ceasing operations in Canada.
On its website, it writes that the new law clearly demonstrated that the federal government was "trying to prevent the help that the gospels and Christians can provide to members of the LGBT community."
Some Canadian-based Christian organizations appear to be using materials that are consistent with the principles behind conversion therapy. This raises concerns among advocates for members of the LBGTQ+ community who argue that the law ultimately had little consequence.
Federal Justice Minister David Lametti calls conversion therapy a "horrific" practice.
"It obviously concerns me that this practice continues to exist. I wanted to eliminate it. That's why we made it illegal," he said in an interview with The Canadian Press.
Their ban may take some time to take hold as the police must learn how to investigate the matter. In particular, they must learn to analyze programs that could be concealed by coded language.
"We have to be able to train people who decipher this hidden code or the programs that hide conversion therapy," he says. It takes time. I understand that this takes time. And it takes even more time for the police not only to understand, but also to investigate. »
In its Charter of Rights and Freedoms considerations, the government states that the law "would not criminalize conversations in which a person expresses an opinion about sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression, unless that conversation is part of an intervention to make a person heterosexual or cisgender."
It adds that "interventions that support the exploration and development of a person's identity would not be prohibited, provided they are not based on the assumption that one particular sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression should be privileged over another."
Professor Travis Salway, of Simon Fraser University, says groups often use different language
to talk about conversion therapies to circumvent the law.
"The term 'conversion therapy' may have a different meaning depending on who uses it. "I think some practices are beyond the scope of the federal ban," he said. We need to come to understand that there are more practices that do not fall under federal law. »
The Institute of Biblical Counselling International, which operates in British Columbia, Ontario, Manitoba and several Aboriginal communities, offers what it calls a Bible-based program.
The content of the program, posted on the organization's website, includes a course on "common psychological problems people face." The bibliography includes books written by proponents of conversion therapy, including those of Joe Dallas,
a pastor with the so-called "gay elder" movement.
One of his books, The Complete Christian Guide to Understanding Homosexuality: A Biblical and Compassionate Response to Same-Sex Attraction, claims that no one is born homosexual. Dallas says he offers tools to help people abstain from homosexual behavior permanently.
The president of the institute, Geoff Clarke, confirms that the existence of this course. However, he adds that the institution does not teach conversion therapy and that the focus is not on sexual orientation,
"It's not our role, it's not a practice within our program. It is up to the individual to make a choice.
We are not moving in this direction, "he defends.
Clarke notes that the program deals with trauma or addiction issues. Although he is aware of a course on "sexual disorders," he maintains that it is not conversion therapy.
"We can refer to a book or author that a participant can read. It is up to him to draw his own conclusions. He has no trouble quoting a series of books that a person can consult. »
