Governments argue that minors are somewhat protected under existing child endangerment laws. Laws which act as a generic catch-all and are typically difficult to enforce, especially when not all cases are brought to the authorities. In reality, the practitioners of the pseudo-therapy and the minor’s legal guardians have signed up for the therapy to take place, leaving the children vulnerable, and cases continue to go unreported.

People have the freedom to share their views and beliefs, but gay conversion therapy is not that; it is a practice which often carried out by untrained and ill-qualified practitioners who mentally and, in some extreme cases, physically assault a person into hiding or suppress who they really are, rather than an actual cure, as they claim. Those who follow and adhere to medical and psychiatric professional body governance not only would face the professional consequences for taking part in the therapies, but they will also know that identifying as LGBTQIA+ is not a choice but it is who a person is and how they were designed and are meant to be.

Although the argument that people over the age of 18 have the choice not to participate may be true in some cases, often the majority of those affected do so out of fear, fearing isolation, being cut off from their friends and family, and being excommunicated and shunned. For minors, the situation is much more complicated, and the argument that child protection laws would protect those most vulnerable is not true and is not based in reality.

In 2025, the practice should be banned worldwide and condemned by all political and medical bodies. There should be clear statements that these types of therapies will not be allowed or tolerated within the law or in wider society.