President Bernard Pacella and Board Chairman Marvin Margolis have appointed a Joint Ad Hoc Committee on Issues of Homosexuality, to be chaired by Ralph Roughton and including John Boswell, Judy Kantrowitz, Houston Macintosh, Judith Schacter, and Edwin Wood as members.
The American has adopted a policy that states that candidates, faculty members, and training and supervising analysts are to be selected on the basis of their qualifications to function in those roles and not on the basis of their sexual orientation. The policy further states the expectation that component institutes will employ these standards.
In the absence heretofore of a stated policy by The American concerning homosexuality and nondiscrimination in psychoanalytic education, the issue has been handled differently by individual institutes. Some include openly gay and lesbian candidates and faculty members, while others do not. For some institutes, it is a new experience this year; there has been no place for open discussion of the educational and administrative issues involved, no guidance from the national body, and no forum for sharing problems and solutions among the institutes.
This is essentially the reason for this new committee. Its purpose is to become aware of the results of bias and discrimination that may persist and to facilitate appropriate changes in attitude and policy. The committee will reach out to the institutes, to candidates, and to graduate members, both to learn from their experiences and to offer assistance in a spirit of consultation and mutual education.
The committee will not be a forum to debate theoretical questions about the etiology or pathology of sexual orientation, or clinical questions about analytic treatment for homosexual individuals. The committee's aim will be to put an end to bias and discrimination, not to resolve theoretical differences.
Opposition to adopting the nondiscrimination policy seems to have come from members who did not clearly distinguish between discrimination and unresolved questions relating to the nature of sexual orientation, psychopathology, and treatment. It was just this separation of these issues, however, that allowed a broad-based majority to unite in support of nondiscriminatory selection practices, leaving the further elucidation of theory and clinical practice to ongoing nonpolitical discourse.
With this majority support, efforts to ensure nondiscriminatory practices can now come from The American. Then, perhaps, the organization may regain the trust of those who have felt alienated.
The committees first task will be self-education and increasing its collective awareness of the issues involved. This includes not only larger policy questions but also the insidious effects of stereotyping in clinical language. The committee will want to hear from members who have experiences or points of view that can inform its discussions.
A workshop will be offered at the December meeting, and each institute will be invited to send a representative. The purpose is twofold: first, to listen and learn from them what the institute's concerns are and what their experiences have been with gay and lesbian candidates or faculty members; and, second, to begin to share ideas and attitudes from the committee and among the institutes. If this seems useful, it could be repeated as a continuing workshop over a period of time.
In addition, committee members will make themselves available for consultations that might be requested by institutes or by individual members and candidates who have problems to discuss. It should be understood, however, that the committee will function here as a facilitator and not as an authoritative appeals board.
Other activities are being planned. A list of readings from the rapidly expanding literature on sexual orientation will be compiled and made available. Working with other committees will be fostered where joint interests can be served. A discussion group for gay and lesbian candidates is being considered, and the committee would welcome any expression of interest in such a group.
The committee has serious concerns about the public perception of psychoanalysts in general, and The American in particular, as being homophobic and discriminatory. Although the committee's focus will be primarily on working within to identify the ways in which analysts may have contributed to that negative image, it will also monitor the mass media, as well as the professional literature, and respond in appropriate ways to correct any misperceptions of The American's current position, or of the attitudes of its members.
Perhaps the most important function the committee can serve, however, is simply to be a center for communication about a topic that analysts have not always discussed openly. After the committee's formation was announced, and even before its first meeting, people were already seeking out members to talk or to suggest someone who might be helpful. Open communication will be the hallmark of this committee, which extends an invitation to any member, candidate, or applicant who would like to discuss any aspect of these issues. The chair, or any member of the committee, may be contacted directly, and confidentiality will be honored if requested.