15/12/2015 | Writer: Gökhan C.
‘Medicine is built on heterosexism and fighting with homophobia should include fighting with the mentality which accepts sexuality as a tool of reproduction.’
Prof. Dr. Selçuk Candansayar who talked at the Symposium against Discrimination stated that, “Medicine is built on heterosexism and fighting with homophobia should include fighting with the mentality which accepts sexuality as a tool of reproduction.”
The fourth Symposium against Discrimination which organized by Kaos GL Association, Turkish Medical Association, Psychiatric Association of Turkey and Social Service Worker Union has continued with the session of “Medicine, Morality, Ideology.”
“Lovers have no issue with their love”
Prof.Dr.Melek Göregenli as the member of Consultative Committee of Kaos GL Association opened the session and stated that “There is an effort of identifying something as ‘good’, ‘normal’ and ‘healthy’. Psychology and Medicine becomes partners in this effort.
“The ones who love same sex has no issue with their love actually. We are telling them what is ‘good’ or not. We are saying and imposing them what is ‘good’ and ‘normal’ as though we know the truth.”
“Medicine is built on heterosexism”
First speaker Prof. Dr. Selçuk Candansayar stated that “we cannot deny that medicine is homophobic. Yet we need to think on in which way it’s homophobic and how medical thoughts reproduce homophobia” and added:
“Medicine is built on to find the relationship of a woman and man, normal and healthy. The main purpose of medicine is the reproduction, that’s why medicine is into sexuality. To be into sexuality, medicine puts its norms and heterosexuality becomes the normal one. During the health education, our minds get paralyzed as we start believing in heterosexuality as the normal one. Do we see heterosexuality as natural and healthy one just because it is, or we see heterosexuality as a natural one just because we created the norm?
“Medicine is a political issue!”
Candansayar by reminding the discovery of germs and the factors which creates the disease from inside or outside, stated that “we think it’s enough to look inside or outside and find a factor to cure. We believe in that scientist and medicine finds the factor and eliminates it. In reality, medicine is a political issue. Medicine has started to look at the person as a political object.”
“Doctors have been interested in sexual intercourse at the late of 19th century. The reason hidden behind is the will of young women to have sex before marriage is increased. Doctors are so obsessed with sex that they lock up women to the asylums who have sex before getting married.”
“Why and how homosexuality is identified as a disease?”
Candansavar, to the people who claim that homosexuality is wrong because it doesn’t exist in nature, “However, it exist. If nature was checked, it wouldn’t be identified as a disease. Rather than, a norm is created and people look nature over it. This norm is the thought of sexuality should only be done to reproduce” he stated.
As he emphasized how medicine is based on heterosexist basis just to be able to provide continuance to factory laborer, “Therefore medicine is a homophobic science and the liberation from homophobia can’t not be achieved only with awareness educations against homophobia. We also need to discuss the basis of medicine and sexuality” Candansayar expressed.
“Morality, Psychiatry, LGBTI”
Last speaker Şükrü Keleş made a presentation on “morality”. Keleş who analyzed the concept of ‘value’ said that “even though morality walks with ethic hand to hand, those are really two different concepts. “
Keleş talked about the studies they are onto which is related to the relationships between LGBT individuals and psychiatrists. Keleş shared this information relevant to conclusion:
“While all of the psychiatrists told us that they inform LGBTI people as they treat them, activist LGBTI psychiatrists told that they have inadequacy about sexual orientation and gender identity.
“The second ethic issue is categorizing gender. All activist LGBTI psychiatrists have spoken with one voice as they think different categories of gender might exist and scientific specifications might not be enough to describe their practices.
“LGBT community is a heterogeneous one which constantly thinks on their own values.”
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Tags: human rights, health
