Following the tragic suicide of Leelah Alcorn, a transgendered teen who took her life after several rounds of “conversion therapy,” a Change.org petition to ban such therapy is closing in on 300,000 signatures. “Conversion therapy,” as it is commonly known, is a practice that attempts to reverse perceived gender identity and sexual orientation (In 2013, RELEVANT spoke with Alan Chambers, former head of Exodus International, after he closed his “ex-gay” ministry and publicly apologized for his conversion therapy model. You can read that interview here.) As Alcorn wrote in her suicide note posted to Tumblr:
My death needs to be counted in the number of transgender people who commit suicide this year. I want someone to look at that number and say “that’s f***** up” and fix it. Fix society. Please.
In her note, Alcorn said Christian therapy worsened her depression, leading her to the decision to take her life. However, her parents have stood by their beliefs. Her mother, Carla Alcorn, told CNN that “We don’t support that, religiously. But we told him [Joshua/Leelah] that we loved him unconditionally. We loved him no matter what. I loved my son. People need to know that I loved him. He was a good kid, a good boy” …
