The History of the Ex-Gay Movement
Many people are unaware that conversion therapy, or "ex-gay" therapy, is still legal and practiced in Minnesota by licensed mental health professionals. This practice has been denounced by the American Psychiatric Association since the 1970s, but was not eradicated and can still be practiced by licensed professionals with no repercussions. Most conversion therapy practitioners and 'specialists' are Fundamentalist Christians. Ex gay therapy is deeply connected to Christianity, yet the idea that homosexuality's is a disease whose symptoms can be improved has its roots in the sexological research and discourse of the mid and late 1800s. My project seeks to understand this historical shift from mental health associated with early sexology, to a combination of mental health and religious/moral emphasis of the ex-gay movement.