Dr. Stephen E. Goldstone, M.D., F.A.C.S., biophobic expletive deleted
Posted to BIACT-L, babn-chat and SOBOA Yahoo Group.
In case you missed it (BABN/SOBOA folks):
July 21st, 2005, in the “Ask the Docs” column, Dr. Goldstone
writes the following unsolicited advice to a bisexual man:
http://www.gayhealth.com/templates/1122189969735188747755/network/ask/index.html?record=843
“Now I want to address your bisexuality. I know some people believe
that it exists while others believe that bisexuals are gay men not
comfortable with their sexuality so they merely say they are
bisexual. I do not have an answer for this debate but do know that
your letter raises important issues. You might find that therapy will
help you understand your sexuality better. Just a thought.”
Here’s the author:
http://www.gayhealth.com/templates/1122189969735188747755/aboutus/authors?record=1
Contributors
Dr. Stephen E. Goldstone, M.D., F.A.C.S.
Biography
Dr. Stephen E. Goldstone, M.D., author of the best-selling Random House
book The Ins and Outs of Gay Sex — A Medical Handbook for Men, is a
Fellow of the American College of Surgeons. He is on the teaching faculty
of The Mount Sinai School of Medicine and has a surgical practice in New
York City. At the forefront of gay health and wellness issues, Dr.
Goldstone has spoken at conferences around the world. His health and
wellness advice column appears regularly on TheAdvocate.com, and his chats
on Gay.com attract record attendance. His research on human papillomavirus
has appeared in many prestigious medical journals. He resides in New York
City with his partner and two sons.
***
Holy fucking shit this is depressing!!! Fuck, what the hell does this have
to say about the movement as a whole, when someone this fucking prominent
can be so goddamn blithely fucking criminally stupid and bigoted. Goddamn,
it is impossible to be rational in response to this. Fuck fuck fuck fuck.
Look, I don’t have time to chase down every one of these references and
write them intemperate notes - but someone should. And someone else should
get on goddamn I don’t know who or what, but an organization with some
heft, sit on them and DEMAND a response.
Fuck, I don’t want to be vindictive, I don’t want to ruin this guy’s
career, but the fact that anyone this prominent can carry around these
attitudes and have this much success demands MASSIVE self-examination by
the entire fucking goddamn “gay” rights movement/establishment with
respect to what they honestly think of bisexuals. Every bleeping ED (with
perhaps an exception or two) should be doing some serious navel gazing
this weekend, and then be examining their friggin internal staff
orienation/education/diversity training processes for exactly how well
these address this issue. (barely restrained fury here)
Holy shit, I just can’t believe it… therapy?!? The “gay” movement (full
of bisexuals) spend decades trying to convince the general public that
they don’t need therapy, but this guy has the gall to suggest that bi men
need it?
Fuck. O.K. Damn. This is the last I’m going to say on this. I am now going
to pretend I never saw this, and go back to doing more important things, I
trust that everyone else will shred on this as well as they did the NYT
article.
Fuck, this is it. This is a pivotal moment here, the second greivous
insult to our community in a short period - but this comes from “our
side”. That Bailey dude, screw him, he’s nothing, hes’s already an outcast
with no credibility. This guy is something else altogether. We gotta stand
up and demand accountability from the rest of the community. This shit
just cannot stand.
Thoroughly disgusted and infuriated,
-Thomas]
Intemperate letter written to gayhealth.com:
In your July 21st, 2005, in the “Ask the Docs” column, Dr. Goldstone
writeS the following unsolicited advice to a bisexual man:
http://www.gayhealth.com/templates/1122189969735188747755/network/ask/index.html?record=843
“Now I want to address your bisexuality. I know some people believe
that it exists while others believe that bisexuals are gay men not
comfortable with their sexuality so they merely say they are
bisexual. I do not have an answer for this debate but do know that
your letter raises important issues. You might find that therapy will
help you understand your sexuality better. Just a thought.”
There is really no polite response to bullshit like this - where the FUCK
does he get off suggesting that someone undergo therapy to “understand
your sexuality better”? What year is it? Last I looked it wasn’t 1965?
Hasn’t the “gay” movement spent fucking DECADES trying to convince people
that gay men don’t need therapy, that gayness is not a mental disease…
and then a health worker in a gay organization - someone “at the forefront
of gay health and wellness issues” according to his biography (damn, how
seriously depressing is that) has the GALL to suggest that bi men need
“therapy”?!? FUCK THAT.
If I ever thought that the bi movement spent too much time and energy
trying to convince gay and lesbian organizations to treat us with dignity
and respect, that maybe we don’t need to carry around a flyer to all our
events entitled, “Why would Gay and Lesbian organizations include
bisexuals?” … well, reading a jaw dropper like this fucking settles that
issue.
This is beyond infuriating, it is insulting, and a slap in the face. This
is the shit I expect to read from some idiotic uptight right-wing
Christian straight person, not in a GLBT publication. I read this, and all
I want to do is go pound my head in frustration against the nearest wall.
WHAT THE FUCK?!?
And really, I’m being far more temperate here than this deserves.
You wanna “fix” this? Start out with an abject apology on the home page of
your web site - have it signed by your the top executive in your
organization, your publication’s managing editor, the editor of that
section, and the authors in question.
Then pledge that your organization will do everything in its power to
never ever ever ever ever ever let anything this so collossally
monumentally STUPID ever make it into print again. Describe in detail what
you’re going to do… and consult some real live bisexuals when figuring
it out.
Then hire a bisexual who specializes in “sensitivity” training to come out
and friggin’ educate your staff on the concept.
Yeesh.
Thomas Leavitt
Member, Executive Board, South Bay Bisexual Organizers and Activists
