Report to Section IX on Presentation of Full Apology
Letter to Society of Indian Psychologists
By Catherine Adler
We, the Members of Section IX, have offered the Full Apology Letter to
Native American, Native Hawaiian, and Alaska Native People last Friday
at the National Multicultural Conference and Summit in Portland,
Oregon.
This report gives you some of the story behind the letter and the actions
needed in going forward. The integrity of Letters of Apology ultimately
depends on whether words are followed by deeds.
Background
This letter came to Section IX through Stephen Soldz, a psychoanalyst
who for many years has been a light for social justice. Stephen’s tireless
work in confronting APA’s complicity around torture policies has made
him a beacon of hope in our Section and has transmitted to each of us
the bad-ass audacity needed for a good fight!
Joseph Tremble, Professor Emeritus at Washington State University and
long-time friend to Native people, caught the beam of Stephen’s
tenacious sprit and wrote for help.
In September, the Australian Psychological Society offered to the
Aboriginal people, as well as to the Torres Strait Islanders, a full letter of
apology along with a reckoning—a way of going forward. And so it
seemed like a good time for The Society of Indian Psychologists to try
again with the American Psychological Association. But the APA, quite
rudely and acting outside governing principles, declined to put the
matter on the table.
Stephen put the word out to our listserv and that is where the energy
first began to build. Jessica Benjamin, Donna Bassin, and others lent
their support for a response. Lara Sheehi organized Section IX members
to take our banner and march from the Bureau of Indian Affairs to the
EPA in Washington, standing in solidarity with Standing Rock. Leilani
Crane added her graceful force at council, and all those who have
encouraged these efforts from a distance have added to this growing
campaign.
But it wasn’t until Lynne Layton, Section IX President, brought her
energy to the mix that things began to take off. Lynne has this way of
connecting people so that 1 plus 1 leads to a multitude. Lynne knows
and transmits that work is love made visible.
After a dedicated month of diligent work writing the Full Letter of
Apology and building a grassroots coalition across five other Divisions,
the letter was brought on Friday, January 6th, to the Multicultural
Conference and Summit meeting (NMCS) in Portland. The organizers
had, at the very last minute, graciously given us multiple possibilities for
presenting our apology. Jan made the letter into a poster that was
displayed throughout the meetings, and we were told that the
conference would kick off its Town Hall final session with the apology.
Letter of Apology Ceremony: A Culminating Moment
Section IX members Jan Haaken, Leilani Crane, Sanjay Nath and I
presented the Full Letter of Apology to Native American, Native
Hawaiian, and Alaska Native Peoples to The Society of Indian
Psychologists.
The difference between presentation and ceremony became clearer to
us as we worked together with the NMCS organizers and the Elders
from the Society of Indian Psychologists.
Meanings and expectations around time often emerge as a site of
conflict and painful encounters in such events. There were concerns
that the time allowed would not be sufficient for the gravity of the
ceremony. The NMCS Program Committee had many demands to
accommodate, however, in their final Town Hall session. We were able
to work within the time they allowed us to make this a truly meaningful
event.
At this very large Town Hall meeting, filled with conference attendees,
we from Section IX and SIP, all found one another. Jan Haaken was
masterful in her quick choreography. When our time came, we all went
to the front, the four of us from Section IX on the left of the mic at the
front of the room, and on the right, 10 people from The Society of Indian
Psychologists.
Jan led us in the opening statement regarding our intentions. As is
traditional, before our request for forgiveness and guidance was made,
we presented loose-leaf tobacco wrapped in red cloth to Art Blume,
president of SIP, and the apology letter wrapped around bundles of sage
to the SIP drummers, Melinda Garcia and Karlee Fellner.
Karlee drummed, sang and keened. The Ceremony had begun, the sense
of the burden of suffering being Theirs shifted, becoming all of Ours.
How does this happen? Why does this happen? When this phenomenon
transpires in the world, in our consulting rooms and on the street, when
we stop to help or allow ourselves to be helped, what sort of field do we
join?
Wendell Berry says it just fine with from this passage spoken by Burly
Coulter in the short story, Wild Birds:
“The way we are, we are members of each other. All of us. Everything.
The difference ain’t in who is a member and who is not, but in who knows
it and who don’t”
It seemed to me last Friday, standing together, that “knowing it” has
something to do with shared suffering that goes along with empathy,
solidarity and mutual support.
We left the majority of the ceremony time for the response...which was
powerful, beautiful, and profound.
Art Blume, President of SIP, was clear and eloquent stating that he never
expected to live to see the day when a group from APA would offer such
an apology. Receiving the letter graciously, he added that the tobacco
and sage offerings did, he hoped, indicate a true intention on our part to
back our words with action.
As the ending came, we began, awkwardly, to return to our seats. But
Karlee leaned in gently saying, “wait, this is the part where you greet
each of us, look into each of our eyes, give the apology person-to-person
and receive our thanks for your commitment.” As members of SIP
embraced each of us presenting the letter, their spirit of graciousness
was palpable. It was one of those moments when the personal and the
political meet on what feels like sacred ground.
Going Forward
The new President of the APA, Antonio Puente sat with us for the
ceremony. He let us know that the Full Apology letter had been
uploaded during the ceremony to the Board’s web page and is on the
agenda for the first board meeting of the year.
Steps we each can take:
1. Write to Dr. Puente, thanking him for this and let him know that
you personally look forward to the meetings outcome on this
matter: antonioenriquepuente@gmail.com
2. If you are connected or know anybody who is connected to other
Divisions, send the letter to them and ask that they get their
Divisions to sign on to this Apology Letter or write one of their
own. The Divisions that have signed on so far are:
o Section IX, Psychoanalysis for Social Responsibility, a section of Division
39 (Psychoanalysis)
o Division 24, Executive Committee, Division of Theoretical and
Philosophical Psychology
o Division 27, Society for Community Research and Action
o Division 45, Society for the Psychological Study of Culture, Race and
Ethnicity
o Division 26, Executive Committee, Society for the History of Psychology
o Division 35, Society for the Psychology of Women
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