Pastor Henrique Vieira will listen to victims of the ‘gay cure’ – 03/07/2024 – Mônica Bergamo

Federal deputy Pastor Henrique Vieira (PSOL-RJ) will collect, starting this Thursday (7), testimonies from people who consider themselves victims of so-called sexual conversion therapies. The reports will support the work of a study group on the topic led by him in the Chamber of Deputies.

The stories will be received through a platform created by the parliamentarian’s office, entitled “Love Is Not a Disease”, the motto of his campaign against the practice. According to Vieira, the idea is to listen to these people “in a welcoming and anonymous way”, preserving their identities.

Also known by the jargon of “gay cure”, the therapy is usually offered by religious institutions and aims to convert LGBTQIA+ people to heterosexuality. Offering the service is prohibited by the Federal Psychology Council, which states that it is not possible to cure a disease that does not exist.

This week, the study group established by the Chamber’s Human Rights Commission held its second meeting. In addition to people who have gone through the process, researchers, religious leaders and representatives of entities and movements opposed to therapies will be interviewed in the coming weeks.

The objective of the collegiate, which is made up of left-wing parliamentarians such as Erika Hilton (PSOL-SP), Talíria Petrone (PSOL-RJ) and Duda Salabert (PDT-MG), is to analyze the current situation of conversion therapy offers and propose measures to eradicate it in the country, according to Henrique Vieira.

Asked whether the study group would be open to listening to deputies, entities and religious leaders who defend the practice, Vieira replied: “Not at all.”

“This group, in a very integral way, aims to show society how violent this practice is. Quite honestly, it is not a debate with those who think it is right. It is an accumulation to help society and bodies understand that we have to change this key in history and stop normalizing this as something legitimate”, explains the federal deputy.

“I’m going to call Nikolas Ferreira [deputado bolsonarista do PL de Minas Gerais]? If you want to debate with me in the plenary, in the committee, on television, we will debate. Not in the group. It’s like creating a study group to investigate racist violence with people who will say that racism doesn’t exist”, she adds.

Founder of the Igreja Batista do Caminho, Vieira says he has already witnessed people in a panic situation after being exposed to “reversal treatments”. For him, the practice should be considered a form of psychological torture — and, therefore, banned in the country.

“I, as a pastor, can tell you that people go through a lot of suffering. Sometimes, deprivation of freedom, self-mutilation, suicidal ideation, psychological disorders, depression and even suicide. This involves a lot of pain”, says the deputy to the column.

“We want to hear these stories not to create sensationalism, but to put on record that we cannot accept this type of therapy as a legitimate thing from the point of view of science, psychoanalysis, psychology. A lot of suffering is promoted without scientific support some”, he continues.

At the end of the study group’s work, scheduled to take place on March 20, a report must be delivered to the STF (Supreme Federal Court), the Ministry of Human Rights and the Ministry of Health.

_{with BIANKA VIEIRA, KARINA MATIAS It is MANOELLA SMITH; collaborated LUANA LISBON}

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