Dbq Effects On Lgbtq

Over the last decade, new legislation that would affect the LGBTQ community, however, it was not until recently that legislation was passed that directly affects the field of counseling. On April 27, 2016, Tennessee’s Governor Bill Haslam passed a law that gives mental health counselors and therapist to refuse treatment to LGBTQ patients if the patient’s lifestyle contradicts their principles or beliefs unless it is an emergency situation. This is just the latest law that has been passed by southern states that uses religious grounds to target the LGBTQ community for discrimination. A law similar to this is currently not being considered for implementation in South Carolina but as more states decide to implement this type of law it could be.
Before considering implementing this type of legislation several things need to be looked at. This law basically gives counselors the right to refuse treatment to anyone as long as it is not an emergency and they can refer the patient to another counselor. There are several downsides to this with the main one being that it hinders the patient from getting the treatment that they need. In most cases, it takes time for patients to open up to a counselor and being rejected by the counselor due to their lifestyles could make it to where they will not open up about certain aspects of their life or even quit counseling. There is already a stigmatism attached to counseling that prevents people from reaching out for the help they need, do we really want to give more reasons not to seek help? Another is that it is impossible in some cases to determine if a case is an emergency and if the rejection could result in homicidal or suicidal tendencies.
Although the LGBTQ community is growing, many people dealing with their sexuality or gender identity already feel rejected by family and need the objectivity of a counselor to help them sort their own feelings and figure out how to address the situation with their loved ones. One more rejection could be all it takes to send them over the edge. Mental health care providers are suppose to prevent this and should be able to separate the profession that they chose from their own personal beliefs. Given this, why does a law need to be implemented that gives counselors a legal way to discriminate and refuse treatment to a community that needs it the most according to surveys conducted by the Center for Disease Control (CDC) and other agencies?
The residents of South Carolina have endured enough discrimination and a law similar to the one passed in Tennessee would only make it worse. Religious beliefs are not an excuse for discrimination and it should not be legal for it to be used in such a way. The members of the LGBTQ community deserve the same rights to counseling was anyone else in the world. They may actually need it more because of the rejection and hate that they experience. Do not take away the one place that they may be able to get the help that they need. More people do not need to die in the name of
religion.