A county judge has reversed part of Virginia’s conversion therapy ban after two Christian counselors claimed the statute violates their religious freedom.

John and Janet Raymond were represented by the Founding Freedoms Law Center (FFLC), which entered into a consent decree with the Virginia Attorney General’s office following the ruling. The decree stated that all counselors in the state will not be disciplined for providing talk conversion therapy to minors, the Washington Blade reported.

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State Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell (D) slammed the reversal. “I have no problem if somebody wants to go look at religious counseling from their priest or their minister, their rabbi, their imam — that’s perfectly fine,” Surovell told the Virginia Mercury.

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“When somebody goes to get therapy from somebody licensed by the Commonwealth of Virginia, there’s a different set of rules applied. You can’t just say whatever you want because you have a license. That’s why we have professional standards, that’s why we have statutes.”

Out trans State Sen. Danica Roem (D) pointed out the double standard that conversion therapy is not placed under constant medical review while gender-affirming care practices are.

“I spent 13 years in Catholic school – I heard everything,” Roem added. “I am just as trans today at age 40 as I was when I got into Catholic school in 4th grade.”

The Raymonds reportedly said that any talk conversion therapy they do is consensual and that they do not engage in any of the more condemned practices like electroshock therapy.

FFLC legal counsel Josh Hetzler celebrated the decision, saying it allows Virginia counselors “to speak freely, truthfully and candidly with clients who are seeking to have those critical conversations about their identity and to hear faith-based insights from trusted professionals.”

Major medical organizations like the American Academy of Child Adolescent Psychiatry, American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy, American Medical Association (AMA), American Psychiatric Association,  American Psychological Association (APA), and the American School Health Association all oppose conversion therapy.

Conversion therapy has also been linked with anxiety, severe psychological distress, depression, alcohol abuse, and suicidality.

On its website, the FFLC says it was founded “as a direct response to the recent onslaught of anti-family, anti-freedom, and anti-faith initiatives in Virginia.”

The group says it fights laws “aimed at destroying innocent unborn lives, God’s design for male and female, the nuclear family, parental rights, and the most basic notions of religious freedom.”

The website also includes a sample letter for how Christian parents can opt their children out of LGBTQ+ curricula in Virginia public schools, as well as one helping parents explain that they won’t let their children “be required or pressured into speaking words and messages (e.g. gender ideology and critical race theory) that violate their faith and conscience.”

Virginia passed its conversion therapy ban in 2020, becoming the 20th state to do so. Until the recent decision, House Bill 386 prohibited state-licensed mental health counselors from offering any services that claim to change the LGBTQ+ identity of a minor under the age of 18.

The bill also forbids the state government from providing funds to any person or group that practices conversion therapy or refers minors to such services.

Then-Gov. Ralph Northam (D) said at the time that conversion therapy “sends the harmful message that there is something wrong with who you are.”

“No one should be made to feel they are not okay the way they are — especially not a child. I’m proud to sign this ban into law.”

If this story affected you, just know you are not alone. The Trans Lifeline Hotline offers support to trans/nonbinary people struggling with mental health from 10 A.M. to 6 P.M. PST Monday-Friday. Call (877) 565-8860 to be connected to a trans/nonbinary peer operator and receive full anonymity and confidentiality. The Trevor Project Lifeline, for LGBTQ+ youth ages 24 and younger, can be reached at (866) 488-7386.

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