The Ninth Street Center What People Say About Us

The Best in Human Nature
by Jay Bolcik

About three years ago, I decided to explore my homosexuality. I didn't find it too hard to accept the fact that I was gay; however, I didn't know how to put my being gay to constructive use. I felt good about my coming out, and I wanted to find others who felt good about themselves. I spent a year looking for a place that seemed right for me. I wasn't sure what I was looking for, but I soon realized I could quickly recognize what I didn't want.

I enjoy having a drink occasionally, but I don't want to spend my weekends in bars. I also enjoy dancing, but I'm not dedicated to discos. I saw a conventional therapist and realized that you can play mind games with each other and not make any significant progress. My dissatisfaction led to a depression, which ultimately resulted in a crisis. The decision I made during that crisis started me on a process I now realize will never end.

Although life seemed bleak, I decided to continue my search for a satisfying life. I scoured the press and kept noticing an ad that simply said "Don't Stop Coming Out." I wanted to find out what this ad meant. After a few failed attempts, I finally entered the Ninth Street Center.

It wasn't at all what I expected. The people were polite, but not really friendly; they spoke among themselves and left me alone. At eight o'clock the group leader started that evening's talk.

The discussion left me confused. People used the terms masculine and feminine outside the context of gender. A concept called polarity was discussed as the basis of mating. "Conventionality" was attacked. I didn't agree with a lot of what I heard that evening, but I had a sense that something important was happening. I decided to return to Ninth Street the next week, to see if I could understand their definitions of formerly familiar terms.

I started to attend groups regularly; over time, I began to understand the concepts being discussed. As things became clearer to me, I was glad I hadn't dismissed this place on the basis of my first impressions. I learned that what I had been taught wasn't necessarily right, and that experimentation could be used to test out ideas. The realization of my flexibility provided me with a level of energy I hadn't experienced since adolescence. I started to reexamine my beliefs about life and test them out for myself.

I gradually learned more about the Center. It was started by Paul Rosenfels, in a basement on Ninth Street, in 1973; the first members were students of Rosenfels. In 1971, Rosenfels published the first edition of Homosexuality: The Psychology of the Creative Process, the direct result of his work with his students. In 1986, the third edition was published by the Center, with a new introduction.

The concepts Rosenfels presented in 1971 are still applicable today. As stated in the introduction, "This book is the most serious examination ever undertaken of homosexual psychology." Rosenfels describes the concepts discussed at the Center, but in greater detail.

The book is in three parts: "The Nature of Polarity," "The Psychological Defenses," and "The Creative Process." Rosenfels's most radical insight concerns the dynamic interaction between submission and dominance. According to Rosenfels, although all individuals possess both these characteristics, a person's inner identity is tied to one or the other. Through a polarized mating, the submissive and dominant personalities bring to each other what each lacks. This results in a union filled with possibilities for creative development.

The submissive, or feminine, individual is a person whose identity is focused on finding wisdom and using it constructively. The person's sense of individuality comes from an expanding awareness of life, a life dedicated to the search for truth and developing new insights. These insights arise from dealing with problems in human interactions.

The dominant, or masculine, individual is someone whose identity is focused on discovering mastery and demonstrating responsibility. The dominant personality's sense of individuality comes from an expanding control of life. The masculine individual is constantly reaching for the correct, and developing new levels of mastery from dealing with obstacles in human affairs.

Rosenfels goes on to explain the role defenses play in preventing a person from leading a fulfilling life, and the actions one must take to overcome one's defenses. One isn't condemned for having defenses, but asked to recognize that defenses develop as the result of living in a world which places the stability of society over individuality.

The defenses most often encountered in a submissive individual are compulsiveness and sadism. The submissive individual also suffers from brittle pride. In the dominant individual, obsessiveness and masochism are the most common defenses. Masculine individuals also suffer from an inability to express warmth. When a feminine individual recognizes that a masculine individual is in an obsessive or masochistic state, the feminine technique of partial withdrawal is used to protect the individual from becoming compulsive or sadistic. The other person is dealt with as a problem situation. When a masculine individual recognizes that a feminine individual is in a defensive state, the masculine technique of selective indifference is used to protect the self from becoming defensive. The other person is dealt with as an obstacle to be overcome.

The last portion of the book deals with the creative process. We are asked to recognize the honesty and courage we have demonstrated by embracing our homosexuality in a coercively heterosexual world. Our failure to conform to societal demands is seen as a clear indication of our striving for creativity and individuality. Psychological growth is presented as the key to going beyond mere tolerance of the human world. The goal of psychological growth is to find a human world where we can play a "mutually psychotherapeutic" role in one another's lives.

For the masculine individual, the creative process involves being guided by integrity and simple warmth. It also involves the use of healthy anger as a motivator. The feminine individual is guided by truth and simple pride, as well as simple hate as a signal mechanism. One form of human intervention both masculine and feminine individuals use is the parental position. Other people may or may not welcome this, depending on their openness to growth at the time.

In Homosexuality: The Psychology of the Creative Process, Rosenfels takes human nature and places it in a structured framework, yet he leaves the decision on whether to put this framework to use in one's life with the individual. He presents homosexuality as an aspect of the best in human nature, and challenges the reader to embark on a journey towards truth and right, so that "people may find a way to be important to each other out of their genuine human resources and without help from conventional social roles."

This journey can last a lifetime. People are always evolving and therefore will always have more to learn from one another. According to Rosenfels, this constant evolution offers a person a lifetime of challenges and problems which will result in new insights about human nature and new levels of human mastery. For those who start on this journey, life takes on new dimensions of excitement.

-- reprinted from New York Native, June 1, 1987