Laurence Vanceunebrock, fights to put an end to these practices aimed at changing sexual orientation

A real affront to the freedom to love, gender reassignment "therapy" is not a fantasy act. There are abject methods in the world of trying to redefine the feelings and emotions of those who are labeled "unnatural." France is not spared by these initiatives worthy of dark times.

Pseudo-thinkers hope to change the sexual orientation and gender identity of non-straight people through different "therapies," if you can call them that. These methods start from the premise that homosexuality and transidentity are diseases that should be cured.
Three types of “therapies” are identified: religious (in the three monotheistic religions), medical and societal. This movement was born in the United States in the 1950s. In 2015, a report by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights called for a ban on "conversion therapy" in the face of " unethical, devoid of scientific basis, ineffective and, for some of them, constituting torture. " Likewise, on March 1, 2018, the European Parliament adopted a motion condemning these "therapies" and calling on European Union member states to legislate to ban them.

Different "therapies"

In France, the LREM member of the second constituency of Allier
Laurence Vanceunebrock tabled, Wednesday, June 3, a bill on "conversion therapies", after hearing about thirty testimonies from victims, associations and witnesses. She proposes a text aimed at banning these practices once and for all, by creating a specific offense in the Penal Code, ranging from two to three years in prison and a fine of 30,000 to 45,000 euros.

"When very religious and religious families learn that their child is gay, they first take him or even a GP to discuss it. Following this meeting, the parents ask for treatment for the homosexuality of their son or daughter. Some doctors went beyond the question and referred them to psychologists. But most often relatives insist heavily. A spiral can set in with unscrupulous caregivers. In our investigation, for example, we saw injections of hormones to virilize young gay boys. There are also hypnosis sessions where they are made to hear certain things or sessions of "force-feeding" porn videos to make them feel disgusted with their own sexuality. The worst are the seismotherapy (electroshock) appointments.", explains Laurence Vanceunebrock at length.

"I can tell you that in twenty-five years of national police, I have heard horrors but in my mission it was very particular. ", she adds.

In another register, there are religious "therapies". The parents are still the first vectors here. The latter take family members to see some (it should be noted that this is not usually) religious leaders with backward ideas.

"Within Catholicism, the problem lies in the catechism itself. In section 2357, homosexuality is described in a horrible way, which does not make you want to be. As I remind you, homosexuality is not a crime. It was removed from the list of diseases. Imagine these young people completely confused, because there are also sermons repeated throughout the week. With sessions during the summer vacation. Based on our figures, it is many boys in the Catholic religion who participate in these moments of reunification where there is still a question of a return of virility. Another aspect that seems to come from a distant time: exorcism sessions.", specifies the member.

These courses are mostly found in Evangelical Churches and in associations such as Courage. Coming from the United States, this movement is established on the national territory.

"The representative of the Shams association, which deals with young gay Muslims, told us that young people who should normally be sent on summer vacation with parents living 'in the bled' actually ended up in rape sessions. to disgust them of their sexual orientation and all practiced by religious representatives. And young women undergo excisions to remove all desire.", she admits to us.

In the course of our conversation with Laurence Vanceunebrock, we discover the extent of these "therapies" in the country.

"Véronique Lesage, who is in charge of the Refuge * helpline (06 31 59 69 50), explained to us that initially the calls went up to three or four per month related to ‘conversion therapy’ and now it’s much more. In ten or twenty years, things have changed. Are the words freed and young people no longer feel embarrassed to talk about it? By bringing together the hearings of victims, and our requests to associations, we arrive over a period of three months at a hundred recent cases in France.. ", she explains.

For the deputy, there is "a real fear, because the number of "internships" increases every year. Since the 1990s and 2000s, these 'therapies' have spread very quickly. It is therefore important to legislate."

Is it legal?

This question is at the heart of the problem because there is a real legal vacuum. "There are offenses that revolve around these "therapies": willful violence, abuse of weakness, harassment … But the problem is that they are not prohibited. Another concern, there are no figures that represent these "conversions", indeed, because the offense does not exist. And we know that everything works by statistics in France and therefore how to write them without offenses in the Penal Code.", shares Laurence Vanceunebrock.

Traumatized victims

To better understand the unique and devastating universe of these 'therapies', we interviewed Benoît Berthe, in his thirties who has experienced this kind of reconditioning.

"I found out that I was attracted to boys around ten or twelve. At that age and coming from a very Catholic family, I made a promise not to tell them about it. Homosexuality was frowned upon by my family, like an illness. Over the years I saw that my attraction was still there. Around the age of 14, my parents often went to ecumenical gatherings, a date, or an American priest preaching. And it was more precisely within the Community of the Beatitudes, known for cases of pedophilia and sectarian aberrations, which had the Vatican blamed. Disagreeing with the priest about the Harry Potter book being seen as evil, I announced my homosexuality. It was a shock."

Benedict's mother then asked him two questions that were symptomatic and representative of his parents' vision at the time: "Did the priest touch you?" for Benoît was an altar boy. This first question shows the fact that for your parents you are not born homosexual but that it stems from a trauma. Then he was asked if he had made love with other people. While for him it was just his feelings and at fourteen he hadn't done anything.

So his parents came to the conclusion: we must help him. A few months later, they send her to multiple sessions, weeks, weekends, and holidays. One of the sessions was called "Healing a Deep Wound". There is always this idea of ​​"curing". Here the teenager is with other young people who have, for example, been raped. Everything is mixed up. Homosexuality and rape. Benoit eats little, prays a lot and is followed by a spiritual father. The latter plays the role of a sort of "low-level" psychologist with their interpretations of the Bible, plus intrusive private questions about intimate life like "what do you think about when you masturbate?" The Vatican has since demanded that this stop. The young man saw these moments as a brain reversal.

Towards a ban on these "conversion therapies"

On July 10, the giant Facebook announced that it was banning from its platform content that promotes “conversion therapy”. Just like Instagram, which is part of the same group. "We do not allow attacks on people based on their sexual orientation or gender identity", A spokesperson told the France-Presse agency.

Bill 3030 banning practices aimed at altering a person's sexual orientation or gender identity will be debated in the National Assembly in January next year. "I want to do something transpartisan that affects all of society. Some articles will be changed, concerning the breach of trust on minors. We ask that the aggravation be known until coming of age", affirms Laurence Vanceunebrock."Also, in the proposal in article 8, I am proposing information for young people in college or high school, in relation to sexual orientation. Something more in-depth and more detailed than the sentimental educations currently being carried out in schools. ", she concludes.

Recall that France officially removed homosexuality, which was considered a gender identity disorder, from the list of psychiatric conditions, in 1981.

* The Refuge aims to prevent the isolation and suicide of LGBT + young people, aged 14 to 25, victims of homophobia or transphobia and in a situation of family breakdown.

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Video by Anais bertrand