[News] Psychologists and Abusive Interrogations

[Anti-Imperialist News]

http://www.counterpunch.org/

November 2, 2007


Psychologists and Abusive Interrogations


Acting on Conscience

By Dr. MARY PIPHER

Iam a psychologist and writer in Lincoln, Nebraska. All of my adult 
life, I have worked for human rights organizations. In 1965, when I 
was 17-years-old, I marched for de-segregation in Kansas City. As a 
therapist, I have spent my career repairing the psychic damage of 
traumatized people, whether they be rape or assault victims, family 
members of murder victims, or refugees and asylum seekers. I have 
worked with torture victims since the 1980's and I know that many of 
them are innocent of any crime whatsoever and all of them suffer 
irreparable damage to their lives.

In August of 2007 I made the difficult decision to return my 2006 
Presidential Citation, awarded to me by then President of the 
American Psychological Association, Dr. Gerald Koocher. I was deeply 
appreciative of this honor and proud to be a member of the APA. Over 
the years I have enjoyed an excellent relationship with this 
organization. I received my first Presidential Citation in 1998 from 
Dr. Martin Seligman and have been the keynote speaker at the APA's 
national convention. With this action, I feel as if I am betraying a 
good friend.

For the past few years, I have been troubled by various media and 
Department of Defense reports that psychologists have designed 
protocols and trained and supervised interrogators in the use of 
sophisticated methods for breaking the human spirit and destroying 
mental functioning. When this August, at the APA's annual convention, 
members passed Substitute Motion Three instead of a ban on 
psychologists' involvement in military interrogations, I felt I needed to act.

Substitute Motion Three looks fine on the surface, but the devil is 
in the details, and the devil always dresses in the tuxedo of lofty 
rhetoric. While it has been argued that this resolution bars 
psychologists' participation in the CIA's enhanced interrogation 
program, the motion did not place a moratorium on psychologists' 
involvement in all national security facilities that operate outside 
the law. This lack of firmness puts our profession at odds with the 
Geneva Conventions, Red Cross standards, Department of Defense 
guidelines, The U. N. Declaration of Human Rights, and the ethical 
codes of the American Psychiatric Association and the American 
Medical Association. In ratifying this document, the APA has made a 
terrible mistake.

With sorrow, I have concluded that the United States government is 
committing war crimes with the help of individual psychologists and 
our professional organization. Without psychologists' presence to 
lend legitimacy to these interrogations, our government would find 
its position utterly indefensible. The behavior of psychologists on 
interrogation teams violates our own Code of Ethics, in which we 
pledge to respect the humanity of all people. As psychologists, we 
vow to do no harm.

I learned this lesson from my mother, Dr. Avis, who was a small town 
doctor in rural Nebraska in the 1950's. She often quoted Hippocrates 
remark, "Make a habit of two things, to help, or at least, to do no 
harm." She took her Hippocratic vows seriously. Two of them I 
remember specifically, "Never do anyone harm for someone else's 
interest." And, "Keep the welfare of your patient as your highest 
priority." My mother gave free medical care to any one who showed up 
at our house or her office. Sometimes she was paid in smoked hams and 
sweet corn. She also taught me this, "Morality isn't pretty words; 
morality is action." I hope I am honoring my mother's values with my decision.

When any of us are degraded, all of human life is degraded. This is 
not just about the prisoners; it is about who we are as people. Once 
we decide certain people are beyond the pale and give them less 
respect than we would want for ourselves if our situations were 
reversed, we make we ourselves vulnerable to also being treated as 
less than human.

I know that the return of my Presidential Citation is of small 
import, but it is what I can do to disassociate myself from what I 
consider to be a heinous policy. My belief is that psychology should 
be solely a helping profession. When we become anything else, we 
destroy ourselves.

I acted as a matter of conscience and in the hopes that the APA will 
reconsider its current position. We have long been an organization 
that respects human rights and promotes tolerance, kindness, and 
peace. It is my deepest hope that the APA will reclaim its reputation 
as a beacon of integrity and compassion.

Dr. Mary Pipher is the author of 
<http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1594481881/counterpunchmaga>Reviving 
Ophelia.




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