Transcripts For CSPAN Round Peg Square Hole 20170417

All month, we are featuring our studentcam winners in cspans video documentary competition for middle and high school students. This year, students told us the most urgent issue with a new president and congress. Our second prize High School Winners are 10thgraders from silver spring, maryland. Alain mara, anna brookes, and claire in cspans video documentary competition for middle and high school students. This year, hibbeln are students at Montgomery Blair high school. Their documentary on undue to you and conversion therapy is entitled, round peg, square hole. This is an issue close to all of our hearts. And it is something i feel a lot of people do not feel is much of an issue anymore. As we discovered doing our research, this is a huge problem for a lot of ldb tears lgbters. And it is only illegal in five states which is incredible in 2017. Also, we have a Vice President right now who has advocated National Funds to be spent on conversion there are be therapy. That is what inclined us to do this. When i came out to my parents , there was physical abuse. They thought they could scare it out of me. I have had friends that have experienced electrocution. In my late 20s, i went through an exorcism. I spent countless occasions in prayer, begging the lord to make me straight. And he never did. When you try to slam a round peg into a square hole, something is going to give. Conversion there up the tereaherapy. The practice can involve anything from teambuilding exercises to painful theerapy or shock treatment. And yet, this is still legal in five states. Conversion therapy practitioners say they are responding to their clients. Rather, we are available to help men and women decrease their samesex attraction and develop their opposite sex potential. The client should determine what they want. It is not my job as a clinician. Survivors of this there be therapy say otherwise. I was told that the reason they did this, that every day a child had aids. It was month after month of horrible tatements. My hands were put in ice while pictures of men touching men were after hat, wires were wrapped around my hands and heat was applied. And even, at the end, electric shock. It was absolutely orrifying. They most often target kids under 18. These people give them what they claim is a solution. But it supports an industry that is profiting off of the harm and sometimes the death of kids. Lgbt organization say the therapy is harmful. I am a clinical psychologist. There is harm to people that go through reparative there up the therapy. The American Psychological Association States psychologist do not consider Sexual Orientation something that can be changed. Omosexuality is not an illness and it does not require treatment and it is not changeable. When my boyfriend kisses me, i still feel a prig of a shock. It is depression. Suicide. Alienation from families. Increased self abuse. Nothing good has come from it. Many, many, many of the fellow survivors that i know have challenges with alcohol, smoking, drugs because that is a coping mechanism. Despite the facts, socalled exgay grou p maintain that hanging as possible. I connected to a support group. Exodus international shut down in 2013. We have told them that they should feel ashamed or that they should try to change these hings that we have realized we cannot change. I believe that causes all sorts of from up. I know there are people that have cannot change. I believe that taken their life because they felt so ashamed of who they are. They felt god could not love them the way they work. That is something that will harm me until the day that i die. And it is legal, that is the worst part. It reminds you that just because something is legal, does not make it right. As of november, 2016, only five states have passed laws regarding trans version transition therapy for minors. Seven different pieces of legislation handing conversion therapy has been have been introduced to congress. Leela committed suicide. Her law gathered signatures in support from president obama but never passed. Our message to washington. Lgbters need protection. Conversion there be therapy needs to be banned. We are going to ban the harmful practice of socalled onversion therapy. Lgbt kids do not need to be cured of anything, they just need to be accepted and embraced. We want you to know that as a lgbt child, you are not alone, being your perfect self as you are born is the ultimate win. Watch all of the prizewinning documentaries in this years studentcam competition, visit studentcam. Org. Good morning. Welcome. Im jeff president and ceo