Pray Away profiles the rise of conversion (or reparative) therapy and confronts the audience with the lived experience of its survivors. The documentary interviews a handful of individuals who occupied leadership roles within infamous “pray the gay away” groups, and explores the sociopolitical, interpersonal, psychological, and spiritual dynamics driving the movement. Spiritual and religious groups, social advocacy organizations, and mental health professionals are featured as perpetrators of the now-censured effort to change a person’s sexual or gender identity. Pray Away illustrates the coercive effects of the movement, accentuating the roles of community, belonging, and hope in the experiences of those who participated. In their condemnation of the movement, former participants lament the damage it inflicted on the LGBTQ+ community as well as on their own senses of humanity. Viewers may find some content distressing, especially for anyone living with challenges related to heterosexism and/or cissexism.

Counselors can enrich LGBTQ+ related knowledge and clinical abilities by engaging with psychosocial experiences of the commentators. The documentary vividly depicts shame, grief, courage, meaning-making, and identity development through poignant experiences. Personal accounts of pain caused by institutions shine light on the discrimination and biases often criticized of mental health and religious communities. Authentic human stories provide excellent reminders of why most professional organizations (including the American Counseling Association) eschew social injustice in ethical codes. Viewers can expand capacities for empathy; increase appreciation for related ethics; and enhance abilities to support clients who are navigating intersections of self-discovery/ self-acceptance, spiritual or religious matters, and the need for belonging. Counselor educators can cultivate this growth for students by incorporating the documentary as an adjunct or primary classroom activity. As a pedagogical tool, it will foster discussion about ethics, human development, and social and cultural diversity, essential to CACREP standards, growth of emerging counselors, and lives of LGBTQ+ people.