The Man Who Attempted to Use Pleasure Condng to Turn a Gay Man Straight

GAY CONVERSN THERAPY’S DISTURBG 19TH-CENTURY ORIGS

Rowlg has nied that her psdonym Robert Galbrah is lked to the anti-LGBTQ+ gay nversn therapist named Robert Galbrah "Harry Potter" thor jt released another book her Cormoran Strike tective novel seri tled "Troubled Blood, " where a plotle volvg a male serial killer who disguis himself women's clothg beg ced as transphobic some quarters. Galbrah Heath was a mid-20th century psychiatrist who pneered a range of uhil practic that would later bee known as nversn experimented wh a variety of methods to "cure" gay men, g electroshock treatments an attempt to change a person's sexual orientatn—such procr are now nmned by the medil muny. A number of people have poted out on social media the likens between Rowlg's pen name and that of the homophobic scientist but reprentativ for the thor sist is merely a cince.

In 1899, a German psychiatrist electrified the dience at a nference on hypnosis wh a bold claim: He had turned a gay man straight.

THE 1970S “GAY-CURE” EXPERIMENTS WRTEN OUT OF SCIENTIFIC HISTORY

Homosexualy, pecially same-sex relatnships between men, was nsired viant, sful and even crimal for centuri. In the late 19th century, psychiatrists and doctors began to addrs homosexualy, too. (Cred: Imagno/Getty Imag)There were plenty of theori as to why people were homosexual.

THE MAN WHO IED GAY PEOPLE’S BRAS

For Eugen Steach, a pneerg Atrian endocrologist, homosexualy was rooted a man’s tticl. This theory led to tticle transplantatn experiments the 1920s durg which gay men were strated, then given “heterosexual” tticl. ” Others theorized that homosexualy was a psychologil disorr stead.