[Rape and transgression. Forensic medicine and sexual morality in Spain in the 19th century]. / Violación y transgresión. Medicina forense y moral sexual en la España del siglo XIX.

The purpose of this paper is to analyse the importance of the contribution of the Spanish forensic medical discourse in the 19th century, and its application in cases of sexual harassment, to legitimize the sexual moral value of the time. For that reason we will analyse the main forensic medicine treaties edited in Spain during this century.

The pornographic anatomy book? The curious tale of the Anatomical Basis of Medical Practice.

Studying the history of medical education helps teach us that medicine is a social activity that occurs in the context of social mores and customs. In 1971, a major new anatomy textbook aimed at first-year medical students was published. The Anatomical Basis of Medical Practice, written by Professors R. Frederick Becker, James S. W. Wilson, and John A. Gehweiler, emphasized surface anatomy, embryology, and radiographic anatomy. At multiple places in the text, the authors used sexually suggestive and "cheeky" comments about women. A small fraction of the illustrations were stylized, posed female nude photographs purchased from California photographer Peter Gowland. These photographs, of a type typically seen in Playboy centerfolds or "pin-up girl" calendars, produced a firestorm of controversy. The book was criticized in the press and in reviews in scholarly journals, and a boycott was organized by the Association of Women in Science. The publisher received negative feedback from consumers, and the book was withdrawn from the market. The book is now a minor collector's item. Professors Becker and Wilson vigorously responded. They laid blame for the debacle on the publisher and also claimed they were the victims of a witch hunt by feminists. The Anatomical Basis of Medical Practice appeared as the women's movement became part of the American popular consciousness. It was also an era in which the public began to grapple with how to define pornography. Professor Becker and his coauthors thought that they were writing a witty, engaging, and funny book. Their detractors thought the book denigrated women.

A review and critique of the Sexual Experiences Questionnaire (SEQ).

This paper reviews and critiques the Sexual Experiences Questionnaire (SEQ), "... a self-report inventory representing the first attempt to assess the prevalence of sexual harassment in a manner that met traditional psychometric standards" (Fitzgerald, Gelfand, & Drasgow, 1995, p. 427). Widely used by its developers and others as a measure of sexual harassment, the SEQ is not a finished product, has a number of problems, and has weak psychometric properties. Because of inconsistencies (e.g., in time frame, number of items, wording of items), the SEQ lacks the advantages of standardized measures, such as the ability to assess changes over time. It defines sexual harassment very broadly, having the effect of distorting findings about sexual harassment. Most importantly, it is not clear what or whose definition of sexual harassment the SEQ assesses.

Political opportunism and the harassment of homosexuals in Florida, 1952-1965.

This paper examines activities by the state against homosexuals in Florida between 1952 and 1965. At the beginning of this period most of this activity took the form of police raids on gay bars, beaches and other gathering places. By the mid-1950s, however, the state government had established an investigations committee which concentrated on what the legislature saw as the "homosexual problem." The committee was particularly concerned with homosexual school teachers and faculty members in land grant universities in Florida, and attempted to purge state institutions of homosexual employees. This activity followed a similar campaign against homosexuals by the federal government and the article examines this in order to provide background for the Florida campaign. The ideology about homosexuals which was propagated by these campaigns is examined, as are the effects of the campaigns on homosexuals, and their response. Concern about the "homosexual menace" gradually abated and these discriminatory campaigns subsided. The article examines the social and political context of these campaigns and speculates on causes for the rise and demise of these campaigns. Principal among these appear to be political expediency by leaders of campaigns to extend political power by attacking a weak and defenseless target group, and a desire by conservatives to re-establish traditional values.

A woman in medicine. From the 1940s to the 1990s. A personal saga.

The past 50 years through which I have lived as a woman in medicine have been an exciting time. Women in medicine have increased from a small minority to sizeable numbers. It remains for women in medicine to become more active in organizations and to assume more leadership roles. The current leadership of the Medical Society of Virginia is a step in that direction.