Sunday, June 19, 2005
The Politics of Diagnosis
Much has been made by the opponents of Citizens for a Responsible Curriculum about the liberal myth that homosexuality is completely normal behavior and should be equated with heterosexuality, given that the APA (American Psychiatric Association) removed homosexuality from its list of disorders in 1973. Let's take a look at why this occured. We've heard the myth (that homosexuality is completely normal and natural behavior) again and again. This drumbeat from our opponents leads them to the further claim that anyone who opposes this view is homophobic and a hate-filled extremist.
Rubbish.
The reality is that the decision to remove homosexuality from the approved list of disorders in the DSM (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual) was made "after APA leaders had endured several years of intense political pressure and disruptive lobbying efforts by militant homosexual activist groups". (Ronald Bayer, "Homosexuality and American Psychiatry: The politics of Diagnosis," Princeton University Press, 1987.) The change to the DSM was NOT made as a result of peer-reviewed and published studies or the sudden discovery of a genetic link to the behavior, no -- it was a blatant political campaign to change the perception of homosexuals in an effort to normalize homosexual behavior.
Further, in spite of the long and well-documented history showing that "therapists have helped homosexual clients reduce and change their homosexual tendancies, professionals who persist in viewing and treating homosexuality as a changeable condition are labeled unenlightened, prejudiced, homophobic and unethical."
That is why opponents feel so free to disparage people like our good friend Dr. Warren Throckmorton as a quack. No matter the thousands of people that professionals like him have helped over the years. If you buck the liberal system (even if what they purport to be true is a lie), you become (in their alternative universe) the person who is outside of the 'mainstream'. Well, the CRC believes there are many people who do exist who are grateful for people like Dr. Throckmorton and Richard Cohen of PFOX who have given people with unwanted same-sex attractions hope that change is possible.