SPLC Files Complaint Against Illinois Social Worker Who Practices “Ex-Gay” Therapy

The Southern Poverty Law Center along with The Illinois Caucus for Adolescent Health (ICAH) filed a complaint in Illinois today against Paul McNulty a state licensed clinical social worker who also practices reparative therapy.

The complaint filed with the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation, questions whether McNulty of Bloomingdale, Ill., is in violation of the state’s licensing standards because of his “ex-gay” private practice.

McNulty is a 1989 graduate of the University of Illinois at Chicago and is associated with People Can Change and Exodus International, two organizations that advocate for “curing” homosexuality.

According to the complaint, the state has the right to suspend, revoke or refuse to renew a license if the board discovers unethical conduct. Moreover, Illinois law prohibits counselors from discriminating based on sexual orientation.

SPLC’s complaint comes after California Gov. Jerry Brown (D) last month signed into law the nation’s first ban on “ex-gay” therapy practiced by licensed therapists. Brown said such practices that have “driven young people to depression and suicide” have now been “relegated to the dustbin of quackery.”

Source – MetroWeekly