Maryland Legislators Stand Against LGBT Activists to Protect Children

Annapolis, Maryland - Late last week, Liberty Counsel’s defense of minors and their counselors won another victory when the Maryland House Health and Government Operations Committee cancelled a hearing on a change therapy ban. Earlier this year, a legislative committee in Virginia struck down a similar bill, and the Ninth Circuit ruled that California’s ban on change therapy will not go into effect until the High Court acts on Liberty Counsel’s petition to overturn such bans.

---

In what has been called a top priority for LGBT activists during the 2014 legislative session, legislators in Massachusetts, Maryland, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin have introduced legislation that bans youth from receiving counsel to overcome unwanted same-sex attractions, behavior, and identity. Liberty Counsel filed suit after similar bans were passed in California and New Jersey. Liberty Counsel is communicating with these state legislatures, but “if legislation passes in other states and minors and counselors ask for our help, we will file lawsuits similar to our suits in California and New Jersey,” says Mat Staver, Founder and Chairman of Liberty Counsel. “Change therapy bans are a flagrant violation of a client’s right to self-determination,” says Mat Staver, Founder and Chairman of Liberty Counsel. “The teens we represent do not want to act on same-sex attractions, nor do they want to engage in such behavior. They have asked for our help because they are greatly benefiting from change therapy. Their self-esteem and their relationships have improved,” Staver says. “Liberty Counsel commends legislators in Maryland and Virginia for their courage in standing up against political pressure and popular ideology, and instead protecting children’s rights to determine what kind of counseling they desire,” Staver says. “Because of your courage, young people--like the ones we represent in California and New Jersey--will continue to get the help they desire and need.”