Abstract
Beginning with a rumination on the AIDS-inspired poetry of Thom Gunn, this article by the guest editors introduces the special issue of the Journal of Medical Humanities titled “Queer in the Clinic.” After providing an overview of the historical legacy and contemporary dilemmas of LGBTQ persons in biomedical practice, the authors describe the rationale of the issue and the contributions included.
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Notes
For a rich biographical sketch of Thom Gunn, see Thom Gunn in Conversation with James Campbell (2000).
See Lance Wahlert‘s “The Painful Reunion” (2012) for how the supposed liberation of LGBTQ persons from the discourses of pathology has also been a failed exercise historically.
To read more on how we see these questions have been exceptionally addressed by queer theorists, well addressed by medical historians, and under-addressed by bioethicists, see Wahlert and Fiester’s “Queer Bioethics: Why Its Time Has Come” (2012). See also The Project on Bioethics, Sexuality, and Gender Identity at: www.queerbioethics.org.
References
Campbell, J. 2000. Thom Gunn in Conversation with James Campbell. Oxfordshire, UK: Waywiser.
Crimp, D. 2004. “Mourning and Militancy.” In Melancholia and Moralism: Essays on AIDS and Queer Politics, 129–150. Cambridge: MIT P.
Ellis, H., and J.A. Symonds. 2009. Sexual Inversion: A Critical Edition. Edited by I. Crozier. London: Oxford UP.
Gunn, T. 1992. The Man with Night Sweats. New York: Noonday.
Foucault, M. 1990. The History of Sexuality, Volume I: An Introduction. Translated by R. Hurley. London: Penguin.
Love, H. 2007. Feeling Backward: Loss and the Politics of Queer History. Cambridge: Harvard UP.
Wahlert, L. 2012. “The Painful Reunion: The Remedicalization of Homosexuality and the Rise of the Queer,” Journal of Bioethical Inquiry 9(3): 261–75.
Wahlert, L, and A. Fiester. 2012. “Queer Bioethics: Why Its Time Has Come,” Bioethics 26(1): 1–2.
Warner, M. 1999. The Trouble with Normal: Sex, Politics, and the Ethics of Queer Life. Cambridge: Harvard UP.
Acknowledgments
Our greatest thanks goes to the contributors of this special issue on “Queer in the Clinic,” all of whom provided exceptional pieces on LGBTQ health and demonstrated great patience as we finalized the issue. Special thanks goes to Sarah Dowling and Sharrona Pearl who organized our poetry and graphic arts sections, respectively. Lastly, endless thanks to the Journal of Medical Humanities editorial team, especially Kathleen Pachucki, Belle Mojado, and Editor-in-Chief Therese Jones, all of whom shepherded and championed this special issue from inception to completion.
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Wahlert, L., Fiester, A. Queer in the Clinic. J Med Humanit 34, 85–91 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10912-013-9222-z
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10912-013-9222-z