Xiao Chen
Officially in China, homosexuality stopped being considered a “mental disease” in 2001. But there are still thousands of clinics there that offer “gay cures,” according to All Out, an international LGBT rights organization. Xiao Chen —that’s not his real name; it’s a pseudonym being used to protect him — was one of the gay men forced to undergo such a “cure.”
In a video about his ordeal (see below) Xiao Chen, 30, tells how one such clinic used electroshock therapy to “shock the gay out” of him.
He said: “In families like mine, being gay is still seen as something that can be cured, and scam clinics prey on that fear. Now, I want my friends, my family and everyone in China to understand that being gay is normal. If we get the World Health Organization to join in and speak out against gay ‘cures’, it could create a perfect storm.It could help convince officials to finally ban these dangerous gay ‘cures.'”
He has sued the clinic and a ruling in his lawsuit is expected soon.
Xiao Chen and All Out have gotten officials at the World Health Organization to agree to meet with them. They also have a petition circulating online urging WHO Director-General Margaret Chan to denounce so-called “gay cures.”
Watch the video below. Go here to sign the petition.
