A Conversation with
Cincinnati Councilman Chris Seelbach
By Natalie Porter
In an article published in the January issue of The Gay Word, I reported that the
Cincinnati City Council voted to ban conversion therapy tactics for individuals
under the age of 18, in a 7-2 vote on December 9, 2015. City Councilman Chris
Seelbach introduced this bill to the Council. As a new Ohio resident (and
resident of the Midwest), I wanted to learn more about Councilman Seelbach, his
experiences with conversion therapy, and how the passage of this bill came
about.
According to his biography on the Cincinnati City Council
website, Councilman Seelbach was a key player in the effort of repeal Article
XII in Cincinnati. Article XII denied legal protection to gays and lesbians in
the City and led many gay men to leave Cincinnati (http://www.npr.org/2014/04/30/307967244/gays-in-cincinnati-from-second-class-citizens-to-fully-accepted).
This anti-gay law cost the City over $25 million in lost revenue, an estimate
provided by the Visitor’s bureau. Councilman Seelbach grew up in Kentucky and
began advocating for LGBT rights as a college student at Xavier University in
Cincinnati. He became the first openly gay City Council member in Ohio in 2011.
On February 9, 2016, I sat down with the City Councilman in
his office in City Hall to discuss his personal experiences with conversion
therapy, how he became involved in local politics, and the process of getting
this bill passed.
You can link to part one of this conversation here: http://thegayword.com/official-experienced-conversion-attempt/
Porter,
N. (March 2016). Official experienced ‘conversion’ attempt. The Gay Word, 24(8), 35. http://thegayword.com/official-experienced-conversion-attempt/
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