Fall 2009
President Bonnie R. Strickland reflected on the celebratory year in terms of more states adopting “right to marry” legislation and other affirmative support. “In spite of our gains, however, as we know, we must be continually vigilant. Nowhere is this more evident than in California where voters passed Proposition 8, denying gay and lesbian people the right to marry.”
Charles Silverstein, president-elect of Div. 44, has announced his resignation because of health problems typical for persons of his cohort — the pioneers of LGBT psychology. A similar situation occured when Alan Malyon had to resign as president shortly before he was to take office because of his lung cancer. Then the current president, Laura Brown, continued in office for an additional six months and the newly elected president-elect, Adrienne Smith, took office six months early.
The APA Council of Representatives voted overwhelmingly to adopt the “Resolution on Appropriate Affirmative Responses to Sexual Orientation.” This resolution reaffirms APA’s long-standing position that “homosexuality per se is not a mental disorder and opposes the portrayals of sexual minority youths and adults as mentally ill due to their sexual orientation.” It also “concludes that there is insufficient evidence to support the use of psychological interventions to change sexual orientation.” Moreover, it “encourages mental health professionals to avoid misrepresenting the efficacy of sexual orientation change efforts by promoting or promising change in sexual orientation when providing assistance to individuals distressed by their own or others’ sexual orientation.”
Fall 1999
President Esther Rothblum noted that in 1984 the APA adopted its resolution that “Homosexuality per se implies no impairment in judgment, stability, reliability, or general social or vocational capabilities.” Twenty-five years later, the 1999 convention program included sessions of current research on bisexuality, lesbian health, cross-cultural examinations of sexual orientation, integrating transgender and gender identity issues in LGB psychology, lesbian Latina graduate students, and LGBT youth.
The Presidential Address by Steven E. James, “Keeping a Seat for Elijah: Addressing the Unfinished Business of Div. 44,” ended with his discussion of the role of Div. 44 with regard to transgender communities: “If our table has no empty seat for our transgender sisters and brothers, then what are we doing sitting there? Elijah is watching and waiting.”
A report on the Tongzhi Conference in Hong Kong on August 22, 1999, was written by Roddy Shaw, Lucy Friedland, Amie Perry and Reggie Ho. It included 140 Chinese tongzhi (lesbian, gay and bisexual persons) and supporters from more than ten countries and regions. Julie Konik wrote an article about the need for Div. 44 to forge alliances with other APA divisions.
Doug Deville, membership co-chair, announced the Div. 44 Listserv.
December 1989
Convention programming in New Orleans reflected parity in the coverage of lesbian and gay issues, presented current updates on AIDS and explored the unique needs and contributions of gay men and women living in diverse regions of the country. April Martin and Karen Thompson gave invited addresses.
The hour devoted to the Presidential Address was set aside as a memorial for Alan Malyon who was remembered for his vital work that led to the removal of homosexuality as a classification of pathology in DSM III-R; his tireless efforts to see SPSLGI established as an APA division; his laudatory work as a researcher, clinician, and a seminal thinker on gay and lesbian issues; and his invaluable presence as a warm, caring person.
Jan Schippers, a Dutch psychologist, reported on his impressions of Div. 44 programs at the convention and invited exchange of information and international cooperation between lesbian and gay psychologists.