The New Hampshire House on Thursday
approved a bill that seeks to prohibit therapies that attempt to
alter the sexual orientation or gender identity of lesbian, gay,
bisexual and transgender youth.
Such therapies go by names such as
“conversion therapy,” “reparative therapy” or “ex-gay
therapy.”
According to the AP, the bill narrowly
cleared the chamber with a 179-171 vote.
Passage of the bill comes roughly a
month after the House voted it down by a single vote. The bill now
heads to the Senate, which, like the House, is controlled by
Republicans.
In a statement released after the vote,
Rep. Ed Butler, a Democrat from Hart's Location, called such
therapies “harmful.”
“Conversation therapy is a harmful
and damaging practice which attempts to shame young people into
changing their sexual orientation or identity,” he said. “This
legislation simply forbids licensed practitioners from practicing
conversion therapy on minor children.”
The New Hampshire Log Cabin
Republicans, which represents LGBT conservatives, cheered the vote.
“Homosexuality is not a condition to
be cured or a choice to be ostracized,” the group said. “Young
people who are struggling with their sexual orientation need our
love, encouragement and support.”
States which have enacted such bans
include Connecticut, California, Nevada, New Jersey, Oregon,
Illinois, Vermont, New York, Rhode Island and New Mexico. An
increasing number of local municipalities have also enacted similar
protections, particularly in Florida.
(Related: Florida:
Broward County bans “ex-gay” therapy to youth.)