A History of LGBTQ Mental Health
October is LGBTQ History Month!
It started off as a call to action for the LGBTQIA+ rights movement in the US and around the world. Now, it is marked with celebrations, special events, and public recognition. We would like to take today to talk about the history of LGBTQ+ mental health.
As we all know, anti-LGBT groups and governments have criminalized same-sex attraction since the dawn of time. As for mental health, humans didn’t begin to understand mental illness as we do today until the early 1900s.
The shift from the public seeing mental illness as a sign of demonic possession, criminality, or a lack of intelligence occurred around 1945. That was the year that Harry Truman signed the National Mental Health Act calling for research to be conducted into the mind, the brain, and behavior.
Even though we better understood mental illness in the 1940s, society was not so forward-thinking when it came to the LGBTQ community. The gay rights movement wouldn’t come about for another 20 years in 1969 with the Stonewall Riots.
[image source: NY Daily News Archive/Getty Images on “1969 Stonewall Riots - history.com - 5/31/2017]
Transgender individuals were totally invisible and many countries criminalized homosexuality. Conversion therapy was rampant during this time period as well. Being LGBTQ was considered a mental illness and horrible, inhumane “treatments” were forced on sexual and gender minorities.
One “treatment", known as conversion therapy, claimed to be able to change transgender and LGB individuals into cisgender or straight individuals. Oftentimes this “therapy” consisted of disturbing practices, shock therapy, borderline (or total) deprivation, and psychological abuse.
Today, we know that conversion therapy does not work.
Research has found that “being sent to therapists and religious leaders for conversion interventions [was] associated with depression, suicidal thoughts, suicidal attempts, less educational attainment, and less weekly income.”
Basically, it would destroy the victim’s life. The mental health community finally acknowledge the truth in 1973 by removing homosexuality from the list of known mental health disorders (the DSM).
But society failed to get with the program. Conservatives thought of LGBTQ people as deviants undeserving of basic human rights.
Sadly, this still rings true today. However, they can think that all they want. We have (most) of our rights, and we are not letting them be taken away without a fight. And we will win that fight. We can take back the rights that are being taken away from the community, especially transgender youth.
You can help by joining our team of dedicated volunteers who write blogs, edit videos and podcasts, and collaborate with the community.
If you are a transgender student or mental health professional looking to take action, I have a wonderful opportunity!
In partnership with the Tampa International Gay and Lesbian Film Festival and Humanity Rising, I am producing a documentary and need interviews from you. To learn more, click here. To get started, email me at carys.m.mullins@gmail.com with the subject line “Documentary Interview: [First Name]”
Sources:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30403564/
