(C) Minnesota Reformer This story was originally published by Minnesota Reformer and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . SCOTUS could nullify Minnesota's ban on conversion therapy • Minnesota Reformer [1] ['Michelle Griffith', 'Madison Mcvan', 'More From Author', 'October', '.Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus-Coauthors.Is-Layout-Flow', 'Class', 'Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus', 'Display Inline', '.Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus-Avatar', 'Where Img'] Date: 2025-10-15 The U.S. Supreme Court last week held oral arguments on Colorado’s prohibition of mental health practitioners trying to change the sexual orientation or gender identity of their minor patients, or what’s become known as “conversion therapy.” The high court’s conservative majority appeared sympathetic to the plaintiff challenging the law’s constitutionality on 1st Amendment grounds. A decision overturning the ban, expected next summer, could have ramifications for Minnesota, which enacted a similar law in 2023 with bipartisan majorities. Over 20 states have banned licensed mental health professionals from practicing conversion therapy for minor patients because it doesn’t work and contributes to increased rates of depression, suicidality and overall psychological distress, according to a a review of scientific evidence conducted by the Minnesota Department of Health, among many other researchers and major medical associations. The court heard arguments from an evangelical counselor who says Colorado is infringing on her free speech rights because of the views she expresses during her sessions. The counselor was represented by the conservative Christian legal group Alliance Defending Freedom. During oral arguments, Associate Justice Samuel Alito called Colorado’s conversion therapy ban “blatant viewpoint discrimination.” Proponents of the ban cite the harmful effects on patients and argue that states are regulating the therapeutic profession, not limiting speech. Associate Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson made this point explicitly, questioning why the government could stop a doctor from prescribing medications but not stop a mental health provider from giving a discredited therapy that also promises conversion. Minnesota lawmakers passed a conversion therapy ban in 2023. The Democratic-controlled Legislature passed a slew of protections for LGBTQ people, including making Minnesota a trans refuge state, over the objections of Republicans. The conversion therapy ban stood out, however, for its modicum of GOP support. Ten Republicans — eight in the House and two in the Senate — voted alongside Minnesota Democrats. Rep. Elliott Engen, R-White Bear Township, voted for the conversion therapy ban. He said he only learned after the fact — despite two hours of debate on the bill — that it included a ban on mental health practitioners trying to change a minor’s gender identity, a provision he doesn’t support. Still, Engen said, it’s destructive to tell a gay child that something is wrong with them. “You’re not born broken, and if you’re gay, you’re gay,” said Engen, who is considered a rising star among Gen Z Republicans. Rep. Roger Skraba, R-Ely, also voted for the bill in 2023. He said he didn’t feel it was right for people to tell children that who they are is wrong. “We’re created who we are, and that’s the way it is. Just live with it. That’s who you are. To think that we can convert someone to be something else is nuts to me,” Skraba said. Like Colorado’s law, Minnesota’s conversion therapy ban only applies to licensed mental health professionals, exempting religious groups. Sen. Scott Dibble, who had been working to pass Minnesota’s conversion therapy ban for over 10 years prior to its 2023 passage, said the Supreme Court nullifying Minnesota’s ban would cause “extreme harm to … young people who cannot defend themselves.” “It means we’re going to have a bunch of quacks and snake oil salesmen running around telling children that they are inherently disordered and who they are is undesirable and they should try to change themselves,” said Dibble, a Minneapolis Democrat. “When that happens, we’ll have a bunch of children living in isolation and despair and being abused by adults around them with no legal standing of their own. It’s truly horrible and very frightening.” Dibble said he hasn’t considered a legislative response to a loss at the Supreme Court, but he said he’ll work to ensure people who practice conversion therapy aren’t taxpayer funded. “We’re going to strenuously resist any taxpayer dollars that flow through public health plans being used to pay for it and continue to resist the ability for insurance companies to pay for this kind of torture and abuse of children,” Dibble said. [END] --- [1] Url: https://minnesotareformer.com/2025/10/15/scotus-could-nullify-minnesotas-ban-on-conversion-therapy/ Published and (C) by Minnesota Reformer Content appears here under this condition or license: Creative Commons License CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/MnReformer/