At the recent annual meetings of the American Psychiatric Association and AGLP: The Association of LGBTQ + Psychiatrists, a hot topic was the spate of anti-trans legislation that has been introduced or passed in numerous state legislatures (AGLP, Citation2023). Once again, the LGBTQ + community is confronted with an escalation of anti-LGBTQ + bias because politicians view our most vulnerable members as convenient scapegoats. We have seen this kind of culture war before (Drescher, Citation2009) and it is very discouraging to see it rear its ugly head again. Whether their purpose is to obstruct medical care that should rightfully remain a matter between a doctor and patient, or to deny outright the existence of social disparities experienced by minorities, these bills and laws ignore or distort science to serve the ends of their political masters. Rather than twist science to feed social polarization, legislators should engage with the evidence, such as that published in this journal, in good faith to produce sound public policy that uplifts us all.
In this issue, JGLMH is proud to present multiple manuscripts on the topic of trans and non-binary mental health, including a letter to the editor on the issue of gender-inclusive language, a review of biological studies of transgender identity, and quantitative and qualitative original research. JGLMH encourages submissions related to trans and non-binary topics, please see our website for further information on how to submit.
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References
- AGLP, The Association of LGBTQ + Psychiatrists. (2023). AGLP Position Statement on “Woke” Legislation. May 21, 2023. Downloaded 2 Jun 2023 from https://www.aglp.org/Pages/education-advocacy.htm
- Drescher, J. (2009). When politics distort science: What mental health professionals can do. Journal of Gay & Lesbian Mental Health, 13(3), 213–226. https://doi.org/10.1080/19359700902964222