Dr. Robert Spitzer, retired professor of psychiatry (© Alex di Suvero/The New York Times/Redux)

Doctor who championed gay 'cure' is now very sorry

5/18/2012

It's never too late to apologize. Prominent psychiatrist Dr. Robert L. Spitzer says he's deeply sorry for a 2003 study that supported the notion that homosexuality could be "cured" with therapy in those who were motivated to change. "I believe I owe the gay community an apology," Spitzer, now 80 and suffering from Parkinson's disease, wrote in a letter to be published in the journal in which the original study appeared. On the flip side, Spitzer was instrumental in getting "homosexuality" declassified as a psychiatric disorder, a victory for the gay community. Still, Spitzer calls his controversial study, which he now admits was fatally flawed, his only professional regret. At least his apology is a healing start.

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What do you think of Dr. Spitzer's apology?