50 years after the Stonewall protests, Senator
Murray shined a spotlight on the struggle toward LGBTQIA+ equality and
called for additional action to advance critical civil rights in a
speech on the Senate floor
Senator Murray also re-introduced legislation that
would create the first federal ban on the disturbing practice of
conversion therapy, which harms and discriminates against LGBTQIA+
children and other members of the community
18 states, including Washington State, and the
District of Columbia have already banned conversion therapy; legislation
would have federal government follow suit
Senator Murray: “This year—as we
commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall protests that sparked
the modern movement for LGBTQ equality—I am proud to stand here on the
floor of the United States Senate as an unapologetic ally of this
vibrant community”
Senator Murray: “In 2019, we know
that being a member of the LGBTQIA+ community isn’t an affliction, a
disease, or some chronic condition requiring medical treatment but,
rather—the
politicians who say it is are on the wrong side of history”
***VIDEO OF SENATOR MURRAY’S FULL SPEECH AVAILABLE HERE***
(Washington, D.C.) – As Pride month comes to a close, today
U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) stood up for children and the LGBTQIA+
community in Washington state and across the country by advocating for
an end to the harmful practice of conversion therapy. In a speech on the
Senate floor, Senator Murray introduced the
Therapeutic Fraud Prevention Act
(TFPA), which would ban conversion therapy across the country. During
her remarks Senator Murray also laid out her additional efforts in
support of the LGBTQIA+ community, and called for more to be done to
ensure full equality for all, regardless of their sexual orientation or
gender identity.
The top Democrat on the Senate education committee—which help sets
policies for our nation’s K-12 schools, colleges, and
universities—Senator Murray has been an ardent supporter of LGBTQIA+
rights, and has recently railed against
discriminatory judges and worked to push legislation that would strengthen protections for LGBTQIA+ people, such as the
Be HEARD Act and the
Tyler Clementi Higher Education Anti-Harassment Act. While conversion therapy has been banned in Washington state
since 2018,
Senator Murray’s legislation stems from evidence that conversion
therapy in other states across the country has been shown to lead to
depression, decreased self-esteem, substance abuse, homelessness, and
even suicidal behavior for children. In the U.S. nearly
700,000 LGBTQIA+ adults have experienced conversion therapy in their lifetime, more than half of whom were children at the time.
Key excerpts:
“As we close out this month’s annual celebration of Pride, I come
to the floor today to reintroduce legislation to further protect gay,
lesbian, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual, and gender
non-conforming individuals from the dogma of our nation’s homophobic and
transphobic past because even as we reflect on the progress we’ve
made—we still have more work to do to achieve full equality.”
“In 2019, we know that being a member of the LGBTQIA+ community
isn’t an affliction, a disease, or some chronic condition requiring
medical treatment but, rather—the politicians who say it is are on the
wrong side of history.”
“I’m proud that my home state of Washington banned conversion
therapy but that’s not enough so long as any child—or any person—in our
country can be harmed by this sham of a practice. I’m very proud today
to be here to reintroduce the Therapeutic Fraud Prevention Act and to
remind all of our friends that we stand with them throughout history and
throughout the future to make sure they are protected with their
rights.”
Watch Senator Murray’s speech HERE.
Read a one-pager on the TFPA HERE.
Read the full text of the Senator Murray’s speech, below:
“Thank you, M. Chair.
“Half a century ago, members of the LGBTQIA+ community—tired of being
accosted, abused, and assaulted—just because of who they were, or who
they loved…
“…took a stand to say ‘enough is enough’— and pushed back against the forces of history that said they were anything less than…
“Today, thanks to the sacrifice of freedom fighters like Marsha P.
Johnson, Sylvia Rivera, and so many others—both named and unnamed—who
dared that day to live their entire truth…
“…countless others have been set free…
“And now fifty years later—through dogged persistence and
sacrifice—we’ve been able to pass laws and create policies that respect
and protect members of the LGBTQIA+ community…
“…from challenging hateful bans against lesbian and gay relationships…
“…to securing landmark civil rights protections against hate crimes…
“…to finally making marriage equality the law of our land.
“This year—as we commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall
protests that sparked the modern movement for LGBTQ equality—I am proud
to stand here on the floor of the United States Senate as an
unapologetic ally of this vibrant community.
“And as we close out this month’s annual celebration of Pride, I come
to the floor today to reintroduce legislation to further protect gay,
lesbian, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual, and gender
non-conforming individuals from the dogma of our nation’s homophobic and
transphobic past…
“…because even as we reflect on the progress we’ve made—we still have more work to do to achieve full equality.
“In the Senate, I’ve been proud to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with
the community in Washington state and around the country to continue our
progress, And with unanimous consent I will put my entire statement in
the record.
“I’m grateful to my colleague Senator Booker—and our friend
Representative Lieu—for joining me today in reintroducing the
Therapeutic Fraud Prevention Act—the first federal ban on so-called
“conversion therapy”…
“Because in 2019, we know that being a member of the LGBTQIA+
community isn’t an affliction, a disease, or some chronic condition
requiring medical treatment…
“…but, rather—the politicians who say it is are on the wrong side of history.
“In fact, we know now that conversion therapy is a painful and
discriminatory practice that the American Psychological Association has
said “is unlikely to be successful” in changing someone’s sexual
orientation…
“…and would ‘involve some risk of harm—contrary to the claims of practitioners and advocates’ of conversion therapy…
“And it’s a practice that’s especially harmful to LGBTQIA+
children—who we already know are vulnerable to increased harassment and
discrimination because of who they are….
“Now, I’m proud that my home state of Washington banned conversion therapy…
“….but that’s not enough so long as any child—or any person—in our country can be harmed by this sham of a practice…
“I’m very proud today to be here to reintroduce the Therapeutic Fraud
Prevention Act and to remind all of our friends that we stand with them
throughout history and throughout the future to make sure they are
protected with their rights.”
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