Columbia passes ban on conversion therapy for LGBTQ minors in narrow vote

The city of Columbia has passed an ordinance that prohibits licensed, professional therapists from offering conversion therapy that attempts to change the sexual orientation of LGBTQ minors.

The Columbia City Council on Tuesday afternoon officially passed the conversion therapy for minors ban that had been bandied about at City Hall for more than a month. The measure passed by a 4-3 vote, with Mayor Steve Benjamin and councilmen Daniel Rickenmann and Ed McDowell voting “no.”

Also Tuesday, the Council passed a separate resolution affirming support for statewide legislation that would prohibit conversion therapy for minors. That resolution passed 6-1, with Rickenmann voting voting “no.” The resolution is not a city law and does not have penalties.

As outlined in the new ordinance, conversion therapy — sometimes referred to as reparative therapy or ex-gay therapy — is considered a “treatment that seeks to change an individual’s sexual orientation or gender identity, including efforts to change behaviors or gender expressions or to eliminate or reduce sexual or romantic attractions or feelings toward individuals of the same gender.” Essentially, it is an attempt, through therapy, to change someone’s sexual orientation from gay, lesbian or bisexual to straight.

The ordinance will prohibit licensed, professional therapists from providing conversion therapy or reparative therapy to a minor within city limits. The penalty will be civil, not criminal, and will carry a $500 fine.

The Council gave its first approval for the conversion therapy ban in a May 4 meeting, and that first vote was unanimous. However, since that initial meeting, council members said they received hundreds of emails and phone calls from people who were for or against the measure.

“The phone rings about every 10 minutes,” Councilman Howard Duvall told The State on Tuesday.

A number of people spoke on the conversion therapy ban during Tuesday’s meeting. Eleven of the 14 speakers were against the measure, with several saying they believed it infringed on religious liberties and First Amendment rights. Several of the speakers against the ordinance were connected to Columbia International University, a Christian college in North Columbia.

Duvall said the ordinance would not interfere with conversations between a pastor and a resident.

“There is no word in this ordinance that deals with religion,” Duvall said. “It does nothing to restrict a pastor’s pastoral duties. It is clearly aimed at licensed practitioners. Most of the pastors in South Carolina are not licensed practitioners licensed by the state of South Carolina. ... The practice of conversion therapy has been shown to be a terrible practice on young adults.”

Rickenmann, the District 4 councilman and a mayoral candidate, explained his “no” vote on both the conversion therapy ban ordinance and resolution.

“After a great deal of time talking to folks on both sides, and families who actually have been affected on both sides of the issue, I believe this is a family choice, and we need to allow the families to make those decisions,” Rickenmann said. “There are cases to study on both sides, but the reality is it is a family decision.”

As for the resolution the Council passed on Tuesday related to conversion therapy, it is simply a statement of support for a statewide ban on the practice, should such a ban be considered by the Legislature.

The resolution states, among other things, that “being lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender is not a disease, disorder, illness, deficiency, or short coming, and that research has demonstrated conversion therapy poses critical health risks to lesbian, gay, bi-sexual, or transgender minor persons.”

Benjamin proposed the resolution and said he thought it was the right way for the city to approach the issue of conversion therapy for LGBTQ minors, as opposed to the ordinance.

“I love the fact that Columbia has led on issues of justice and equality and equity, and we’ve been strong supporters of our LGBTQIA community,” Benjamin said. “I am not convinced this ordinance is the right step to take right now. The resolution speaks for itself and, I think, expresses the desires of the Council.”

Councilwoman Tameika Isaac Devine, a mayoral candidate, was a key proponent of the ordinance to ban conversion therapy for minors in Columbia. She said she got a number of perspectives from health professionals and other advocates about the issue. She also said she was not currently aware of professional therapists offering conversion therapy in Columbia.

“I have found no licensed psychiatrists, psychologists here in Columbia ... that actually do this,” Devine said. “I do think that is part of the issue, that people who take an oath to do no harm and certainly have strong faith and understand what their faith is, also know the harm that has been done by conversion therapy methods has been documented.”

To date, 20 states and Washington, D.C., have banned conversion therapy for minors. Dozens of cities and counties across the nation have opposed the practice as well.

In November 2020, a federal appeals court struck down a pair of youth conversion therapy bans in Florida, one in the city of Boca Raton and another in Palm Beach County. According to a report from NBC News, the court agreed with two therapists who said their rights to free speech had been violated.

Meanwhile, a federal judge in Maryland tossed out a therapist’s lawsuit challenging that state’s youth conversion therapy ban. A number of medical organizations, including the American College of Physicians and the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, have taken positions against conversion therapy for LGBTQ youth.

The city’s ban on conversion therapy for LGBTQ minors could meet resistance in the court system.

In May, state Sen. Josh Kimbrell, a Spartanburg County Republican, asked Republican S.C. Attorney General Alan Wilson to consider taking legal action against the city if it passed the ban.

“I think this is a violation of the concept of the First Amendment,” Kimbrell told The State in May. “You can’t tell somebody, as a private practitioner, what they can and cannot say to a client, particularly a child who is under the direction of that child’s parents.”

High-profile Columbia laws have been challenged in the past. Wilson successfully sued the city over a trio of gun control laws just last year.

Shortly after the council’s vote Tuesday, Kimmah Dozier-Burt, president of the board of the Harriet Hancock Center, which advocates for LGBTQ residents, lauded the city’s decision.

“The sad truth is that young LGBTQ people who endure ‘conversion therapy’ are at an immensely higher risk for steep mental health challenges – including depression and suicide – than those whose identities are affirmed,” she said. “This is just one reason that we must do everything possible to protect LGBTQ young people from being subjected to this dangerous pseudoscience. I’m grateful that Columbia has taken the first step here in South Carolina and set a positive example; now, it’s time to keep up the fight and work across our state to share a message of love and affirmation.”