The Union of Students in Ireland (USI) will lobby for a full legislative ban on conversion therapy following the passing of a motion at the union’s annual congress today.
The union is now mandated to “lobby and raise awareness” of the harm caused by conversion therapy and campaign for it to be forbidden by law.
One speaker told Congress that conversion therapy “isn’t something that just happens on TV or in the [United] States … these are things that happen in Ireland”.
Another said that “conversion therapy isn’t overt, it’s covert”, explaining that harmful practices are hidden “in our healthcare settings” and “in our homes”.
“It’s torture, it’s abuse”, the speaker said.
Jenny Maguire of Trinity College Dublin Students’ Union (TCDSU) called for a procedural motion to have the conversion therapy motion put to a vote to prevent further upset arising from testimonies of the harm that such practices cause. However, Fionn Collins of TU Dublin Students’ Union argued that there were more students with stories to share, and “we shouldn’t silence them”.
Maguire’s proposal to move to a vote was defeated and several more speakers argued in favour of the motion to ban conversion therapy.
The motion was ultimately passed near-unanimously.
The text of the motion defined conversion therapy as “the harmful practice of attempting to erase, suppress or change someone’s sexual orientation and/or gender identity”, which can be “medical, psychiatric, psychological, religious [or] cultural” in nature. It is currently legal “in both jurisdictions on this island”, but the Programme for Government includes a commitment to banning conversion therapy in law. Northern Ireland’s local assembly also recently voted to bring forward similar legislation.
“Congress further notes the immense suffering experienced by, and lives lost within, the LGBT+ community due to this harmful practice. Conversion therapy has lifelong impacts on those who survive and for someone who does not survive [it].”
USI’s annual congress is taking place this week in Trim, Co. Meath. Delegates from all of the union’s member organisations will debate and vote on proposed new policies and mandates, as well as elect the USI executive for next year. All positions for the executive except for the role of Vice President for Campaigns are uncontested.
