Histories of psychology after Stonewall: Introduction to the special issue.

Abstract

This article introduces the special issue Fifty Years Since Stonewall: The Science and Politics of Sexual Orientation and Gender Diversity. Here, the commemoration of the 1969 Stonewall uprising frames our discussion of issues of representation that arise in commemorating events in general, and events in the history of psychology in particular. We describe how the articles in the special issue expand the existing narratives about the history of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender psychology that are centered in the United States, focused primarily on sexual orientation and often end, rather than begin, in the time of Stonewall. The international scope of the special issue can suggest new ways to particularize histories of psychology since Stonewall that are centered on the United States. We describe the ideological context that shapes the doing of psychology since Stonewall, the telling of the histories of that psychology, and how "the problem of speaking for others" arises in contexts of power, including the curation of the special issue itself. Public Significance StatementPsychology has engaged with movements for equality and justice for sexual and gender minorities over the last 50 years, resulting in increasingly affirmative perspectives in many parts of the world. This introduction to the special issue frames the histories of such shifts at local, national, and global levels with particular attention to the politics of commemoration and the problem of speaking for others.

A history of lesbian politics and the psy professions

“…Indeed, our wider research suggests that many psy practitioners did not endorse pathologising attitudes towards homosexuality and may even have challenged such ideas, thus bucking wider heterosexist trends (Carr & Spandler, 2019). Whilst the psy disciplines continue to be a powerful institutional and discursive force in the lives of LGBTQIAþ people, our research suggests that the interaction between the psy disciplines and lesbians was more dialogical than might be assumed (see also Hegarty & Rutherford, 2019;Hubbard & Griffiths, 2019). Therefore, whilst undoubtedly the psychopathologisation of female-to-female relationships did stigmatise and oppress some women, it is quite possible that large numbers of lesbians and gay men lived their lives "more or less untroubled" by medical or psy-centred theories, dictates and practices (Carlston, 1997, p. 192).…”

“…This section uses our research to complicate a linear or binary history of the relationship between activism, the psy professionals and sexual liberation. For example, we try to avoid the tendency to endorse either a “triumphant” story of homosexuality’s emancipation from psycho-pathologisation, or an alternative “tragedy” story of the incorporation of LGBTQIA+ liberation through continued pathologisation ( Hegarty & Rutherford, 2019 ). Instead of merely reproducing one of these narratives, we try to chart a more complex history of activism and the psy disciplines.…”

“…Despite this, these spaces may have allowed some women’s experiences of psychiatric oppression to be articulated, perhaps for the first time. More generally, we need to bear in mind that hindsight bias can underestimate the risks that activists took in bringing about important, if limited and less-than-ideal, social changes ( Hegarty & Rutherford, 2019 ).…”

“…Moreover, a focus on the UK context is important since there is less written on this subject, especially regarding women’s activism. Historiography in this field has typically focused on white, cisgender, gay male actors in US context ( Hegarty & Rutherford, 2019 ). Notable exceptions include: Rebecca Jennings’ (2008) detailed account of lesbians and psychiatry in the Journal of British Studies ; Alison Oram’s (2007) chapter in The Permissive Society and Its Enemies ; Oram and Turnbull’s (2001) commentaries in their Lesbian History Sourcebook ; and Katherine Hubbard’s (2019) history of how psychologists used the Rorschach ink blot test to contest the pathologisation of lesbians.…”

The challenges and promises of transnational LGBTQ psychology: Somewhere over and under the rainbow.

“…The progression of international LGBTQ rights (and psychology's extensive role in de-pathologization and the development of LGBTQ affirmative practices) often is assumed to be on a forward linear march toward justice, represented by the accumulation of a set of rights (e.g., nondiscrimination, marriage, adoption, or birth certificate change) achieved through the ideal combination of ingredients (e.g., out and visible LGBTQ people, vibrant and organized LGBTQ activism and organizations, and influential allies in positions of power; Hegarty & Rutherford, 2019;Puar, 2007;Weber, 2016). This narrative can occlude the jagged and lengthy journey of LGBTQ rights in WEIRD countries overall (Faderman, 2015;Snorton, 2017;Stryker, 2017), and advances within LGBTQ psychology in particular (e.g., Hegarty, 2018;Hubbard & Griffiths, 2019;Wilkinson, 1999).…”