September 11, 2001

This issue, the last of our forty-ninth year of publication, was still in production at the time of the events of September 11. Reflecting on those events, Martin Bergmann writes, “It is conceivable, although it may be too early to know, that September 11, 2001, will go down in history as one of those dates that change the flow of history, that it will rank with July 14, 1789 (the storming of the Bastille), or with August 2, 1914, when Germany declared war on Russia to ignite World War I, a date historians regard as the true beginning of the twentieth century.”

Although the theme of this issue is “examining gender and sexuality”—subjects on their face far removed from terrorism (though see Donald Moss's article on racism, homophobia, and misogyny, as well as Ethel Spector Person's reflections on group psychology)—we are mindful that the shadow of September 11 has fallen on us all, readers and contributors alike. Future issues of JAPA will undoubtedly address September 11 in ways we might expect—papers on the psychological consequences of terror, loss, and bereavement, or on the psychology of international and cultural conflicts—as well as in ways we cannot predict. However, since the lag time between submission and publication is often more than a year, many of us may feel the need for a more immediate forum in which to express our thoughts and feelings.

We have therefore decided to publish the paper by Martin Bergmann quoted above—“Psychoanalytic Reflections on September 11, 2001,” a work in progress—on the JAPA Psa-NETCAST. We hope that it will stimulate wide-ranging discussion of issues relevant for psychoanalysis, both as a profession and as an intellectual and scientific endeavor. The editorial board of JAPA and other distinguished colleagues will serve as faculty, with Robert White moderating the discussion. Martin Bergmann's responses will be posted on the NETCAST as part of the ongoing exchange. We hope that readers and colleagues here and abroad will take thi