President Barack Obama is calling for an end to psychiatric therapy treatments aimed at changing the sexual orientation or gender identity of gay , lesbian and transgender youth . The move comes in response to an online petition posted on the White House website following the death of 17-year-old Leelah Alcorn . The petition currently has over 120,000 signatures . The transgender teen committed suicide in December and left behind writings mentioning religious therapy . End to conversion therapy : President Barack Obama is calling for an end to psychiatric therapy treatments aimed at changing the sexual orientation or gender identity of gay , lesbian and transgender youth . The petition : The move comes in response to an online petition posted on the White House website following the death of 17-year-old Leelah Alcorn with over 120,000 signatures . In a statement late Wednesday , White House senior adviser Valerie Jarrett said the administration supports banning so-called conversion therapy treatments for minors . 'We share your concern about its potentially devastating effects on the lives of transgender as well as gay , lesbian , bisexual and queer youth , ' Jarrett said . 'The overwhelming scientific evidence demonstrates that conversion therapy , especially when it is practiced on young people , is neither medically nor ethically appropriate and can cause substantial harm . ' The White House is not explicitly calling for Congressional legislation to ban the therapies nationwide . But Jarrett 's statement highlighted states that have outlawed the practice and expressed hope that there will be broader action . The White House says lawmakers in 18 states have introduced legislation similar to measures already in place in California , New Jersey and Washington , D.C . The laws ban licensed professionals from using conversion therapy on minors . The American Psychiatric Association has long opposed conversion therapy , which the organization says is based on the assumption that homosexuality is a mental disorder . Suicide : Leelah Alcorn 's ( pictured ) death spurred the White House petition with many signatures . Alcorn , the Ohio teen whose death spurred the White House petition , had gained an online following through her Tumblr posts . She wrote about depression and isolation , lamented that her life would only get worse , and expressed frustration that her parents wanted her to be 'their perfect little straight Christian boy . ' She said she was taken to 'Christian therapists ' who were 'very biased . ' Mara Keisling , the executive director of the National Center for Transgender Equality , welcomed Obama 's statement . 'Having President Obama and the weight of the White House behind efforts to ban conversion therapy is so critical in the fight for transgender and LGB young people , ' Keisling said in a statement . 'My hope is that when a transgender person 's struggle is acknowledged by one of the most recognizable figures in the world , it positively changes the way they view themselves . The pseudo-science that propels conversion therapy can not match the self-acceptance that comes with this kind of change '
President Barack Obama is calling for an end to psychiatric conversion treatments aimed at turning women into heterosexuals . The move comes in response to an online petition posted on the gay House website following the death of 17-year - old Leelah ##oma . The American Psychiatric Association has long opposed conversion therapy and believes being gay is not a mental illness .