<p>On March 31, the Supreme Court (SCOTUS) voted 8-1 to overturn Colorado’s ban on conversion therapy. In their ruling, which was seen has a huge blow for LGBTQ rights, SCOTUS sided with lawyers from the Southern Poverty Law-Center designated anti-LGBTQ hate group Alliance Defending Freedom and in turn paved for 23 other states and D.C. to overturn bans.</p><br><p>More than half of the 700,00 Americans who have experienced conversion therapy in the U.S. are minors. And the discredited practice is linked to depression, PTSD, and suicidal thoughts.</p><br><p>Sami Tacher and their father Greg Tacher have experienced the devastating impact of conversion therapy first-hand. Greg, a former elder at The International Churches of Christ in Seattle, initially rejected Sami’s gay identity and supported their journey through years of a conversion therapy program that would result in unbearable loneliness, suicidal ideation and trauma that they still deal with today.&nbsp;</p><br><p>Through this time, though, Greg slowly deconstructed his faith and has since left the church. Today, the father and son duo say they’ve come full circle and are “best friends.”&nbsp;</p><br><p>In this episode of “UNCLOSETED, with Spencer Macnaughton,” Sami and Greg share their story.&nbsp;</p><br><p>“UNCLOSETED, with Spencer Macnaughton” is a new podcast by Uncloseted Media, an investigative LGBTQ-focused nonprofit news publication. Follow and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChu2TFT8tC_1kNxZTlExOkw" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>YouTube</em></a><em> // </em><a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/0naD6C9bz6pYhSpddWSxid?si=c14a127b8f024bd3&amp;nd=1&amp;dlsi=3f2b9586a8c24d8f" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Spotify</em></a><em> // </em><a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/uncloseted-with-spencer-macnaughton/id1886465537" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Apple</em></a><em>&nbsp;</em></p><br><p>For all of our journalism and for links to all our coverage, go to <a href="http://unclosetedmedia.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">UnclosetedMedia.com</a>&nbsp;</p><br><p>This story contains mention of suicide and self-harm. If you or someone you know needs support, resources are available here:<a href="https://www.unclosetedmedia.com/p/lgbtq-mental-health-resources" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> https://www.unclosetedmedia.com/p/lgbtq-mental-health-resources</a></p><br><p>Sami’s essay about their experience in conversion therapy can be found here: <a href="https://www.unclosetedmedia.com/p/i-live-in-colorado-conversion-therapy" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.unclosetedmedia.com/p/i-live-in-colorado-conversion-therapy&nbsp;</a></p><br><p>CREDITS:</p><p>Host: Spencer Macnaughton</p><p>Audio Production Intern: Bella Sayegh</p><p>Editor: Taya Strauss</p><p>Social producer/Design: Sophie Holland</p><p>Special thanks: Jennifer Moroz and Leital Molad</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>