CV NEWS FEED // Scottish lawmakers launched a public consultation of a bill banning “conversion therapy” on Tuesday, which also has the potential to send parents to prison if they refuse to “transition” their gender-confused children.
Alliance Defending Freedom UK reported that the proposed legislation would ban any attempt from parents to convince their child not to “transition” from their biological sex. So-called “conversion therapy” is one such practice, where gender-confused children meet with therapists to better understand their biological sex.
According to the proposal, parental attempts to dissuade a child from “transitioning” can be termed “controlling,” “pressuring,” or “suppressing” the child. Potential criminal actions also include “preventing someone from dressing in a way that reflects their sexual orientation or gender identity.”
“Common-sense parenting is not a crime,” ADF UK spokesperson for Scotland Lois McLatchie Miller said in a press release. “Under these draconian proposals, the Scottish government would place parents under a terrifying and well-founded fear of losing their children or being locked up in prison for saying something contrary to the favoured ideology of the day.”
She continued:
The proposed law would violate fundamental human rights, starting with the right and duty of parents to protect their children, in addition to religious freedom and free speech rights, including for those in a position to give pastoral support.
ADF reported that LGBTQ individuals already have several laws protecting their rights, but that this law criminalizes “what may be intended as a thoughtful challenge or loving advice.”
According to the bill, the proposed penalty would be up to seven years in prison, an unlimited fine, or both.
The Guardian, a left-leaning British newspaper, reported on Wednesday that the Catholic Church in Scotland immediately condemned the proposal, saying that it could create “a chilling effect.” The United Kingdom’s Christian Institute currently plans to take legal action against the proposal.
