Tue. July 28, 2020
Chicago, IL -
Lawmakers in Mexico City on Friday approved a bill that criminalizes therapies that attempt to alter the sexual orientation or gender identity of people who identify as LGBT.
Such therapies go by names such as "conversion therapy," "reparative therapy," "sexual orientation change efforts" or "ex-gay therapy."
According to Reuters, the bill received support from several political parties.
Unlike most laws in the United States, where practicing on LGBT youth is outlawed, the law applies to adults and minors. Violators face up to five years in prison. Higher sentences may be handed out for conversion therapy providers who target minors.
The law defines conversion therapy as treatments intended to "nullify, hinder, modify or undermine" an LGBT person's sexual orientation or gender identity.
Mexico City is the first jurisdiction in Mexico with such a law.
The city was also the first to approve same-sex marriage in 2009.
Twenty U.S. states plus the District of Columbia have approved similar laws, including Virginia, California, New York, and Colorado.
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