When Irish-Iraqi activist and Masterchef UK winner Riyadh Khalaf told his father he was gay, his father sought advice from relatives who told him to send Riyadh to Syria for conversion therapy.
Luckily for Riyadh, his mother intervened to defend him and helped his father find better advice, which enabled him to rebuild a connection with his son. Today, Riyadh is close with both of his parents, who co-authored a chapter on being parents of LGBTQ+ children in Riyadh’s book, “Yay! You’re Gay! Now What?: A Boy’s Guide to Life.”
Born Perfect is a survivor-led program created by the National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR) in 2014 to end conversion therapy by passing laws across the country that protect LGBTQ children and young people, fighting in courtrooms to ensure their safety, and raising awareness about the serious harms caused by these dangerous practices. https://bornperfect.org