The American Psychological Association (APA) — one of the world’s largest organizations of healthcare clinicians, researchers, and educators — contends that it “prioritizes human rights advocacy” and “encourages psychologists to support and advocate for populations at risk of human rights violations, including marginalized populations both domestically and globally.” But if APA leaders want to truly honor that commitment, …
Tag Archives: psychology
Jean Maria Arrigo: A Remembrance
Dear Friends and Colleagues, With great sadness, I am writing to let you know that Jean Maria Arrigo has passed away, peacefully and painlessly while in hospice care at her home, with her husband John at her side. Many of you undoubtedly knew Jean Maria personally and were familiar with and benefited from her work …
How Can Peace Psychologists Not Call for a Humanitarian Ceasefire?
NOTE: This is an update on events I’ve previously described, first HERE and then HERE. On October 7, 2023, over 1,000 Israelis died at the hands of Hamas militants and 200 more were taken hostage. Immediately thereafter, Israel began an unrelenting bombardment and siege of Gaza in a military campaign that’s been condemned—almost universally—as disproportionate and indiscriminate. At …
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APA Peace Psychologists Are Rebuffed in Their Call for a Humanitarian Ceasefire
As a longtime member of the American Psychological Association’s Society for Study of Peace, Conflict, and Violence (Division 48: Peace Psychology), I was heartened when the division’s leadership— following a special meeting and vote on November 1st—issued this brief statement in support of a humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza (emphasis in original): We, as peace psychologists, join …
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Professional Psychology, 22 Years After 9/11
For many Americans, the weeks and months following the attacks of September 11, 2001 were a volatile mixture of unbridled fear, staggering grief, patriotic fervor, and worldwide solidarity. We were distraught over possible future attacks, we sought ways to help those in greatest need, our country’s flag suddenly appeared everywhere, and we heard expressions of …
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The American Psychological Association Takes Another Step—Backward
Having witnessed first-hand a crucial vote by the American Psychological Association’s governing Council of Representatives earlier this month in Washington, DC, I couldn’t decide whether to begin this commentary with a quote from Lewis Carroll or George Orwell. So here are both: Carroll’s Through the Looking Glass includes this memorable exchange between Humpty Dumpty and Alice: Humpty …
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Censorship at the American Psychological Association
The publishing process in academic psychology journals isn’t typically known for its drama or intrigue. It’s true that there can be frustrations and challenges for aspiring authors. These include obtaining timely feedback from peer reviewers; adequately addressing often-disparate concerns and revision recommendations; and waiting the many months that frequently elapse between submitting a manuscript and …
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Ron DeSantis: Yet Another Cog in Guantanamo’s Torture Machine
Recently, there have been troubling revelations about Florida Governor Ron DeSantis — a leading 2024 GOP presidential aspirant — concerning his conduct as a Navy JAG officer at Guantanamo Bay. His responsibilities at the detention facility apparently included responding to claims of mistreatment from the war-on-terror prisoners there. Relatively few of these detainees had any connection with …
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New Timeline: Torture, Psychology, and the War on Terror
January 11, 2023 marks Guantanamo’s 21st anniversary as a “war on terror” prison where hundreds of men and boys have been subjected to degrading treatment, indefinite detention, and, in some cases, physical and psychological torture. In my view and that of my colleagues at the Coalition for an Ethical Psychology, one of the defining tragedies …
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Rumsfeld Then, DeSantis Now: The Lies That Bind
Given the horrific toll of the Iraq War, that disastrous misadventure hardly seems like a good template for combating COVID-19. Yet in key ways, recent pronouncements from Florida Governor Ron DeSantis—whose state is experiencing an overwhelming surge in cases and hospitalizations amid his prohibition on mask requirements—should remind us of the propaganda we once heard …
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