Strict Scrutiny Will SCOTUS Allow Conversion Therapy for Minors?
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Oct 13, 2025 John Fabian Witt, a Yale historian and law professor, joins to explore his book, The Radical Fund. He uncovers how philanthropist Charles Garland's vision transformed early 20th-century labor and civil rights organizing. Witt discusses the fund's cross-racial democracy efforts and strategies that facilitated industrial unionism. He reveals the importance of financing pivotal NAACP cases, such as Steele v. Louisville, and draws parallels to current changes and challenges in organizing. The conversation offers fresh insights into how philanthropy can drive social progress today.
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Court Rulings Empower Political Prosecutions
- The administration's prosecutions of political opponents (e.g., Letitia James) reflect weaponization of DOJ power and follow the Court's Trump v. United States immunity framing.
- Supreme Court decisions narrowing accountability embolden politically motivated prosecutions.
Abortion Precedents Warping Speech Law
- The Court’s NIFLA precedent constrains states' ability to regulate professional speech and empowers challengers to argue disclosure rules violate the First Amendment.
- Conservative opinions from abortion cases are now informing anti-LGBTQ speech claims.
Viewpoint Discrimination Versus Professional Regulation
- Defendants argue conversion therapy bans amount to viewpoint discrimination because they permit affirming counseling but bar efforts to change orientation.
- Justices split on whether professional standards and harms justify differential regulation.
