Dr. Russell is a member of the APA's task force charged with revisiting guidelines for treating gay and lesbian clients, which makes her an expert in her field and highly qualified to speak on the subject of reparative therapy. Dr. Russell points out that every mental health and medical organization has rejected ex-gay / reparative therapy because being gay or lesbian is not a mental illness thus not something that can or should be "cured." Furthermore she states the body of professional literature and research on sexual orientation indicates ex-gay therapy is ineffective and harmful. (less info)