How can we protect our communities from conversion therapy?

In our No Silly Questions series, we’ve spent three episodes talking about conversion therapy: what it is, how it has evolved into softer, more coded “conversion practices,” and the severe harm it causes to LGBTQ+ people, especially young people. We’ve looked at survivor stories, clinical research, and the many ways these efforts can hide behind friendly language and licensed titles.

That naturally leads to a bigger question: What can we do to prevent conversion therapy from showing up in our communities and causing harm in the first place?

This is not just an abstract policy question. It’s a question about what we, as neighbors, parents, educators, faith leaders, clinicians, and everyday community members, can actually do right now.

It might seem like the obvious solution is simple: pass a law banning conversion therapy and move on. In Michigan, we actually tried that. In 2023, our state passed a ban on conversion therapy for minors, one of the strongest laws in the country. But in December 2025, a federal appeals court blocked that law, arguing that telling a therapist what they can or cannot say in session violates the First Amendment.

Now, a major case called Chiles v. Salazar sits before the U.S. Supreme Court. Whatever the Court decides will set a national precedent about whether states can regulate conversion therapy for minors under their licensing power. In other words, the future of legal bans is largely out of Michigan’s hands for the moment. Calling your state legislator or trying to push a new city ordinance may not meaningfully change that trajectory.

That can feel discouraging. But the law is only one tool in our toolbox. Even if legislative bans are stalled or rolled back, we still have a great deal of power to reduce demand for conversion therapy, interrupt its referral pipelines, and build local cultures in which these practices find it harder and harder to operate.

You don’t have to be a policy expert. You do have to be willing to do something.

The first and simplest step is to make sure people actually know what conversion therapy is and why it’s harmful. Many still imagine it as something extreme and outdated—shock treatments from the 1950s, not “nice” talk therapy happening right now in 2026. When people don’t recognize the current forms, they may send a child or congregant into danger without realizing it.

Second, watch out for “renamed” conversion therapy practices. You might see phrases like “carrying the cross of same-sex attraction,” or “gender discordance” instead of gender dysphoria. You might see services advertised as “reparative therapy,” “change-allowing therapy,” or “gender exploratory therapy.” On the surface, some of those phrases can sound neutral, even thoughtful. But if the underlying premise is that being LGBTQ+ is broken or disordered and needs to be changed, we are still talking about conversion efforts.

Third, help make affirming providers more visible. If you have had a positive experience with an LGBTQ-affirming therapist, doctor, clinic, or congregation—and it’s safe to share—consider leaving a review that clearly names them as affirming. You don’t have to share your whole story. You can simply say that this provider supports LGBTQ+ people without trying to change them. That small act can help another parent or young person find safe care before they end up in harmful care. OutCenter’s Medical Resource Center and provider directory are designed for exactly this purpose, helping people in Southwest Michigan connect with vetted, affirming professionals.​

Fourth, build the kinds of communities that make it unnecessary and unthinkable. Research shows that LGBTQ+ youth who have access to affirming peer groups and trusted adults are less likely to consider or attempt self-harm. Gender and Sexualities Alliances (GSAs) are one of the most effective tools we have. These student-led groups create space for LGBTQ+ and questioning youth to be themselves, share experiences, and support one another. They also send a clear message to the wider school: queer and trans students belong here.

Fifth, become visibly affirming. Put a small rainbow flag or Safe Space sticker in your office. Add your pronouns to your email signature. Show up at PrideFest. Share affirming posts and resources occasionally in your social media feed. If you are a faith leader, consider adding clear welcoming language to your website and bulletin that explicitly names LGBTQ+ people as fully included.

Sixth, if you work in a school, clinic, church, HR department, recovery group, or any setting that refers people to outside providers, you can ask to see the referral list and do a simple audit. Look up each provider. Watch for the code words we’ve talked about. Where you find them, raise the concern and advocate for those names to be removed and replaced with affirming providers instead.

Seventh, in stronger cases, when a provider or program explicitly promises to “cure” or change someone’s sexual orientation or gender identity, consumer protection tools come into play. Even if courts treat conversion therapy as “speech,” the First Amendment does not protect deceptive health claims. In Michigan, you can report misleading advertising to the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division and file complaints about licensed professionals through Board of Psychology or Board of Counseling complaint process. We can’t always block the practice outright, but we can challenge fraud and hold practitioners to the ethical standards of the professions they chose.

Eighth, the most sustainable way to prevent conversion therapy is to build communities where it has nowhere to grow. At OutCenter, that includes education through No Silly Questions, Teen Pride and safe schools work, healthcare equity projects, and our Pathways of Belonging training for organizations that want to move beyond bare-minimum compliance into genuine inclusion.

You don’t have to do everything on this list. But you can do something. And that something might be more powerful than you think.