About the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Concerns Office
The mission of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Concerns Office (LGBTCO) is to advance the creation, communication, and application of psychological knowledge to improve the health and well-being of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people, increase scientific understanding of gender identity and sexual orientation, and reduce stigma, prejudice, discrimination and violence toward LGBT people. The office provides (1) support and guidance to all aspects of APA governance on issues related to its mission and (2) products and services to the APA members and others seeking psychological resources to promote beneficial change in society for LGBT people.
The LGBTCO staff includes Clinton W. Anderson, PhD, Associate Executive Director, Public Interest Directorate & LGBTCO Director; and Ronald L. Schlittler, MIPP, Program Coordinator. For more information about the activities of the LGBTCO, please see the office website, contact the office via email, or telephone at (202) 336-6041.
Governance Support: Committee on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Concerns; APA Divisions and Affiliates
The office provides support to the Committee on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Concerns (CLGBTC) and its subcommittees and task forces. The office also maintains liaison relationships with APA divisions and affiliated state, provincial, territorial and international psychological associations that have an interest in lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender issues. Highlights of activities supported by the office in the past year include:
The CLGBTC Dissemination and Implementation Subcommittee; Timothy R. Moragne, PsyD, member of the National Council of Schools of Professional Psychology (NCSPP) Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Committee; and Kathleen M. Ritter, PhD; developed and piloted a workshop addressing affirmative practice with individuals experiencing conflict between their sexuality and their religion based on chapter 6 of the Report of APA Task Force on Appropriate Therapeutic Responses to Sexual Orientation. The workshop was accepted as Continuing Education programming for the 2012 APA Convention and a short version was accepted for presentation at the 30th International Congress of Psychology 2012 in Cape Town, South Africa.
Outreach
Policy and Advocacy
Highlights of LGBTCO policy and advocacy related activities in the past year include:
Worked with the APA Office of General Council on the development of two Amicus briefs: Gill v. Office of Personnel Management, which challenges the Federal Defense of Marriage Act, and Donaldson and Guggenheim v. Montana, which seeks to find that denial to same-sex couples of the rights and benefits that accrue to married different-sex couples is unconstitutional, even while marriage for same-sex couples in the state has been recently barred in the constitution. The briefs summarized research relevant to the legal issues in the cases, reflecting APA's recently adopted Resolution on Marriage Equality for Same-Sex Couples (PDF, 72KB).
Healthy Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Students Project
APA's Healthy LGB Students Project was a project funded by the Division of Adolescent and School Health of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to prevent HIV infection among youth, particularly young African-American and Latino men who are attracted to men. The centerpiece of the project is a day-long professional development workshop for school counselors, nurses, social workers and psychologists to improve school climates and provide effective HIV prevention services for lesbian, gay, bisexual and questioning (LGBQ) students.
Though active work on the project ended in July, 2011, the workshop curriculum was newly updated and revised to reflect current data, research, and professional development theories and practices; and features skills-building on motivational interviewing strategies and methods. Although the Project per se ended, APA's interest and involvement in issues related to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender youths in schools will continue. August, 2011, the LGBTCO worked with the APA Office on AIDS to leverage a grant opportunity it had to implement the training in six U.S. cities.
International
The International Network for Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Concerns and Transgender Issues in Psychology
The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Concerns Office serves as the secretariat for the International Network for Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Concerns and Transgender Issues in Psychology. The major foci of the International Network are to increase LGBT- related programming in international psychological congresses and to advocate for LGBT health and human rights policy development within organized psychology and in international policy making institutions. Highlights of activities with the International Network in the past year include:
Securing a two-year, $150,000 grant from the Arcus Foundation to support the work of the secretariat and to build the capacity of the Psychological Society of South Africa (PsySSA) and the Psychological Association of the Philippines (PAP) to support the human rights of LGBT people in Africa and Southeast Asia.
Soliciting LGBT- related programming for the 30th International Congress of Psychology 2012 (ICP) in Cape Town, South Africa, July 22-27, which included developing and distributing promotional brochures in English (PDF, 47.6KB) and French (PDF, 166.7KB).
Submitting and having accepted one symposium and four individual papers for presentation at the ICP.
Provided technical assistance to the Psychological Association of the Philippines on non-discrimination policy development.
Communications
Media Relations
Highlights of media relations activities in the past year include:
In January, 2011, the office assisted a reporter on a story in development for the New York Times magazine on the struggle to resolve personal conflicts between sexuality and religion, which ran in June.
In July, 2011, Dr. Anderson responded to several media inquiries, including ABC News, about "reparative therapy" in response to media attention to the counseling clinics owned by then- presidential candidate, Michelle Bachmann, and her husband.
In August, 2011, after the APA Council of Representatives adopted the Resolution on Marriage Equality for Same-Sex Couples, Dr. Anderson was interviewed for an article that appeared in USA Today and for CNN coverage on television and online.
