Until 1973, doctors tomatilly classified every gay man and lbian as mentally ill. CURED tells the David-vers-Goliath story of the activists who challenged this diagnosis — and won.
Contents:
- HOW STONEWALL CURED GAY PEOPLE — OF PSYCHIATRISTS
- UPG PBS DOC “CURED” ABOUT GAY LIBERATN OM PSYCHIATRY…AND MUCH MORE
- GAY CONVERSN THERAPY’S DISTURBG 19TH-CENTURY ORIGS
- A HALF-CENTURY OF CONFLICT OVER ATTEMPTS TO 'CURE' GAY PEOPLE
HOW STONEWALL CURED GAY PEOPLE — OF PSYCHIATRISTS
A new film rells the fight to overturn the US labellg of gay people as havg a mental illns. * cured gay *
Current treatment only works on cells that are actively producg new viral pi, NBC News the IAS nference, scientists will hear about post-treatment ntrol of HIV fant boys, the impact of circumcisn on HIV risk gay men and the relatnship between HIV and mpox, NBC News rmatnThe U.
The Diagnostic and Statistil Manual of Mental Disorrs, or DSM, which the Amerin Psychiatric Associatn pil as a gui to diagnosis and treatment of illns, listed homosexualy as a "socpathic personaly disturbance” the DSM-I, published 1952, and as a “sexual viatn” the DSM-II, published 1968 (see Further Readg). Heath scribed his homosexualy experiment two papers published 1972: “Septal Stimulatn for the Iniatn of Heterosexual Behavr a Homosexual Male, ” -wrten wh Charl Moan, Journal of Behavr Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry; and "Pleasure and Bra Activy Man, " Journal of Nervo and Mental Disease. For the prev three years, Heath wrote, B-19 had “led the life of a vagrant, experimentg wh dgs, engagg numero homosexual relatnships and beg supported fancially by his homosexual partners.
UPG PBS DOC “CURED” ABOUT GAY LIBERATN OM PSYCHIATRY…AND MUCH MORE
Patrick Sammon and Bent Sger's rivetg feature documentary Cured, which opens the fall season of PBS' Inpennt Lens on Monday October 11th, exam the fascatg chapter queer history that saw gay liberatn activists succsfully overturn the US psychiatric profsn's classifitn of homosexualy as a mental illns. Usg archive photographs and vio footage, recently disvered… * cured gay *
The latter quot Edmund Bergler, a proment psychoanalyst, sayg his 1956 book Homosexualy: Disease or Way of Life: “I have no bias agast homosexuals; for me they are sick people requirg medil help... Image source, BFI FLAREImage ptn, Demonstrators gathered Albany, New York, 1971 to mand gay rightsUntil 1973 the Amerin Psychiatric Associatn fed beg gay as havg a mental illns. The film archive you see the documentary Cured isn't a total surprise: beg gay was illegal the US when most of the programm and public service announcements featured were ma.
GAY CONVERSN THERAPY’S DISTURBG 19TH-CENTURY ORIGS
Image source, BFI FLAREImage ptn, Kay Lahen (centre) helped wh the foundg of the origal Gay Activists Alliance (GAA) 1970"The average homosexual, if there be such, is promiscuo. But the first half of the film terviews and archive film and TV to illtrate more generally the prsur of growg up gay 1950s and 60s 1952 the APA's manual had fed beg gay as a "socpathic personaly disturbance". )Sger says the post-World War Two perd appears retrospect pecially homophobic the US and source, BFI FLAREImage ptn, Disguised as "Dr H Anonymo", Dr John Fryer shocked the Amerin Psychiatric Associatn's 1972 nventn by hidg his inty to talk about beg a gay psychiatrist"My sense is that there was a new ph toward nformy after the war - a return to normal polil life and social life.
"Image source, BFI FLAREImage ptn, Magora Kennedy (right) on the David Sskd show 1971 argug agast his assertn that beg gay was a "mental aberratn"Sger says 's also a matter of how the lg damaged profoundly the picture LGBT people had of themselv and of whether they were valued society. Magora Kennedy, now 82 and scribed as the "gayt great grandmother the gay, lbian, bisexual and transgenr muny", scrib beg forced to marry a man at 14 for fear of beg stutnalised agast her will. She remembers the practice as mon source, BFI FLAREImage ptn, L-R: Activists Ronald Gold (left), Charl Silverste, Frank Kameny and Barbara Gtgs celebrate 1973 the APA cisn to remove homosexualy om s manual of mental illnsThe late Barbara Gtgs, shown as extremely effective phg the e of listg beg gay as an illns, is relled wh affectn by her partner of 46 years Kay of the most engagg ttimony - livered wh wry humour - om Richard Soris.
A HALF-CENTURY OF CONFLICT OVER ATTEMPTS TO 'CURE' GAY PEOPLE
The gay bsman and former adviser to Print Bill Clton rells g out when young to his psychiatrist father Dr Charl Soris - a leadg proponent the 50s and 60s of the ia that beg gay was treatable as a nrotic disorr.
Archive shows Dr John Fryer addrsg an APA nventn a full face-mask and g a voice-distortg microphone to disguise his inty as he talks about beg a gay psychiatrist. Image source, BFI FLAREImage ptn, A Liberatn Day Para 1970 wh key LGBT rights activist Frank Kameny (centre), who ed the "Gay Is Good" sloganIt's no great surprise that elements of the film are now velopment by 20th Televisn as a possible multi-part scripted says the pot the mpaigners returned to aga and aga was the absolute lack of scientific data to support the assertn that beg gay was a mental illns.