Smith ScholarWorks Theses, Dissertations, and Projects 2012 Pathology, bias and queer diagnosis : a crip queer consciousness Tones Smith Smith College Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.smith.edu/theses Part of the Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons Recommended Citation Smith, Tones, "Pathology, bias and queer diagnosis : a crip queer consciousness" (2012). Masters Thesis, Smith College, Northampton, MA. https://scholarworks.smith.edu/theses/1074 This Masters Thesis has been accepted for inclusion in Theses, Dissertations, and Projects by an authorized administrator of Smith ScholarWorks. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Tones Smith Pathology, Bias and Queer Diagnoses: A Crip Queer Consciousness ABSTRACT The medical industrial complex has historically contributed to the oppression and pathology of queer and disabled people in a myriad of ways; through forced medication and institutionalization, as well as denial of self-determination and identity. Queer theory and disability theory both challenge modes of normalcy directly related to both queer and disabled identities by using a lens that encompasses sexuality, gender, embodiment, health and impairment. This paper will use queer theory and disability theory to analyze the ways in which queer and disabled identities are connected and co-constructed, as well as, the ways in which these intersections may expand our thinking in social work. The current diagnosis and controversy around Gender Identity Disorder as a diagnosis in the DSM will be examined through the lenses of queer theory and disability theory, to aid in the continued movement to depathologize queer and disabled identities. It is the perspective of this paper that the liberation of queer people is directly linked to the liberation of disabled people and that trans/queer justice is disability justice. PATHOLOGY, BIAS AND QUEER DIAGNOSES: A CRIP QUEER CONSCIOUSNESS A project based on independent investigation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Social Work Tones Smith Smith College School for Social Work Northampton Massachusetts 01063 2011 ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank Laura Rauscher for her incredible class which inspired this paper, as well as my thesis advisor Fred Newdom who suggested I “queer the thesis”. I would also like to acknowledge the collective members, past and present, of Translate Gender, for their dedication and work in the gender justice movement. They have taught me the skills of accountability and facilitation, and without them, I would not be where or who I am today. To everyone at the Civil Liberties and Public Policy Program, thank you so much for supporting me as an individual and as an activist, and for continuing to push my thinking and awareness on an intersectional approach to social justice. The CLPP conference truly has been a place to propel me forward, as a presenter, activist, organizer, and as a thinker. Thank you to the Dirty Truth for employing me despite my ridiculous schedule these past two and a half years and for creating a second home for my family. Most importantly, I would like to offer my deep appreciation and gratitude to my family for their unconditional love and support throughout this process; Shannon Sennott, whose work, love, and patience is a constant inspiration for me, and Skinny Wiggins, for his sweetness, antics and unquestioning companionship. My love I give to you my heart. iii Table of Contents ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .......................................................................................... ii TABLE OF CONTENTS .............................................................................................. iii CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................ 4 II METHODOLOGY AND CONCEPTULAZITION: IDENTITY POLITICS, OPPRESSION AND COGNITIVE AUTHORITY .............................................. 16 III PHENOMENA: THE DSM, PATHOLOGY, BIAS, AND QUEER DIAGNOSES ........................................................................................................ 43 IV DISABILITY THEORY AND QUEER THEORY ............................................. 77 V DISCUSSION ....................................................................................................... 113 REFERENCES ............................................................................................................. 129 4 CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION In recent years, the importance of an intersectional approach to identity politics and social justice issues has become paramount in critical discussions and discourse. Intersecting identity categories such as race, class, gender, sexuality and ability work on multiple and simultaneous levels, acting together to create lived experiences of oppression and/or privilege and social inequalities and/or advantages. The politics of intersecting and co-constructed identities began with the writings of the Combahee River Collective, a black feminist lesbian organization. They released a statement coining the term “identity politics” and stated that sexism, racism and classism are inextricably bound together and that these interlocking systems of oppression cannot be separated or ranked. The most general statement of our politics at the present time would be that we are actively committed to struggling against racial, sexual, heterosexual, and class oppression, and see as our particular task the development of integrated analysis and practice based upon the fact that the major systems of oppression are interlocking. (Combahee River Collective, 1977) The Combachee River Collective’s statement was released in response to the white feminist movement and their inability to speak to or for black women. The Combachee River Collective wished to name and hold accountable the overt and underlying racism present in the white feminist movement (Norman, 2007, p.105). The Combahee River Collective notably stated that the liberation of black women would lead to the liberation of all people since, “our freedom would necessitate the destruction of all systems of oppression” (Combahee River Collective, 5 1977), spawning new discourse around identity, privilege and oppression, and radical ideas about the interconnections of the struggle and oppression of all people. Kimberle Crenshaw (1989), a prominent scholar in critical race theory, expanded upon these earlier black feminist writings and recognized the importance of these connections and overlaps, coining the term intersectionality. Intersectionality, as a concept, recognizes that perceived group membership can make people vulnerable to various forms of bias, yet because individuals are simultaneously members of many groups, complex identities can shape the specific way each person may experience that bias. Not all prisoners are men, not all feminists are white, not all immigrants are Latino, and not all lesbians and gays are white. An intersectional approach provides a reminder that systems of oppression based on class, race, gender and sexuality are bound together often working systemically, and that privileged identities can have as much impact on lived experience as can marginalized ones. As the Combahee River Collective understood, intersectionality can be used as an approach to the liberation of all people, regardless of the issue or topic at hand. Many social justice organizations have moved away from siloing issues into a single-issue approach to topics that often only represent the experience of dominant groups. This intersectional approach to social justice has expanded the dialogue to include voices and identities that are often silenced and marginalized in movements. This has been most notable in the reproductive rights arena, which has made a move towards reproductive justice, redirecting the focus of activism and organizing to “recognize that the control, regulation, and stigmatization of female fertility, bodies, and sexuality are connected to the regulation of communities that are themselves based on race, class, gender, sexuality and nationality” (Silliman et al., 2004, p.4). Organizations such as The Pro Choice Public Education Project (www.protectchoice.org), The Civil Liberties and 6 Public Policy Program (www.clpp.hampshire.edu), National Women’s Health Network (www.nwhn.org), SPARK! Reproductive Justice NOW (www.sparkrj.org), SisterSong (www.sistersong.net), National Network of Abortion Funds (www.fundabortionnow.org), National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health (www.latinainstitute.org), and others have done collaborative work that highlights these intersections and the importance of intersectional thinking in policy, advocacy and organizing. This ideology is reflected in written papers and articles highlighting the ways in which coalition building across movements can have direct effect on research, institutional change and the reproductive health care needs of marginalized people (Gilliam, Neustadt, & Gordon, 2009; Shapiro, 2005; Sevelius, 2009; Townsend, 2010). Of huge importance to social workers and social justice work, intersectionality allows us to consider a range of social problems from a perspective of inclusion and understanding making transformative change for diverse populations in many different settings, including health care and mental health services (Murphy et al, 2009). An intersectional approach may function as a mechanism of social justice by changing social institutions and policies