We are dedicated to supporting the LGBTQ+ community through a multifaceted approach that includes advocacy, financial investment, comprehensive training, process improvement, enhanced representation, and proactive engagement on key issues.

Here are a few important highlights.

Updated Editorial Guidelines

We have completely revised CAMFT’s editorial guidelines, which encompasses submissions for the Letter to the Editor. Our process ensures that our communications align with our mission and DEI values. Here are a few of the criteria for communications:

• Ethical communication with inclusivity and cultural sensitivity;
• Non-oppressive terms and equitable representation;
• Follow evidenced-based research and clinical best practices from reputable sources;
• Must be respectful in tone;
• Communications that potentially impact marginalized groups or touch on current controversial social themes, may go through an approval process before being shared through any CAMFT platforms;
• Employ professional readers with cultural competencies to help address any unconscious bias.

Important LGBTQ+ Advocacy Efforts

We at CAMFT continue to support the LGBTQ+ caucus, attending a fundraising event in October 2023 as a main sponsor and we plan to be a sponsor for the upcoming 2024 event.

We also honored Sen. Caroline Menjivar with our 'State Legislator of the Year Award' for her unwavering dedication to mental health rights. Her groundbreaking bill, SB 372 (Deadnaming), was proudly co-sponsored by CAMFT, and has been in effect since Jan 1, 2024. The legislation requires the BBS to use the licensees or registrant’s name and not reference a deadname in its online license verification system.

We hosted an event on the steps of the State Capitol to promote this legislation and the importance of respecting the names of licensees (and not to use deadnames). Board members and members-at-large joined us in this effort. We were particularly pleased that Senator Menjivar’s wife, also an MFT, attended the event. Our work on this legislation was amplified via several news outlets including CalMatters and The Capitol Morning Report, reaching key decision and policy makers in Sacramento and the news outlets’ readership at-large.

On June 9th, the CAMFT Board approved the motion to support the California Right to Marry proposition and Repeal Prop 8 Amendment proposition. We are just getting started in our work for this effort.

Our Board of Directors

Representation matters. We are pleased to have a member from the LGBTQ+ community serve on CAMFT’s Board who provides valuable lived experience to the Board’s overall direction.

Educational and Supportive Resources for Therapists

We were honored to have member Gretchen Cooper, LMFT present at CAMFT’s Annual Conference on Gender Affirming Care. Gretchen was the author of the article “Gender Affirming Care” published in the Therapist magazine that prompted the letter to the editor that was published last year. We are grateful to Gretchen for theher willingness to continue to share the importance of educating MFTs on this important practice.

We also provided a safe space at our Annual Conference this year for LGBTQ+ members to meet while attending the event. The LGBTQ+ community meet-up event provided an opportunity to find a deeper community within CAMFT and to build networks of support while attending the conference.

In the News

On June 7, 2024, our Executive Director, Joy Alafia, was interviewed by KTVU Fox News in the San Francisco Bay Area. The reporters referenced CDC data showing that LGBTQ+ adults are twice as likely to be diagnosed with depression and nearly a third report poor mental health. Joy highlighted the emotional toll of the current political climate, exacerbated by anti-LGBTQ+ legislation, particularly for LGBTQ+ people of color.

In the interview, Joy emphasized the need to eliminate the stigma around therapy and to reduce barriers to accessing care. She stressed the importance of increasing the number of therapists from the LGBTQ+ community and outlined steps to improve the pipeline. Additionally, she highlighted the significance of culturally competent care and emphasized that CAMFT provides training on gender-affirming care.

DEI Training

We have provided ongoing DEI training for our staff and Board, with the next session scheduled for this month. Continuous DEI training is crucial as it fosters a more inclusive and equitable environment, ensuring that our team remains informed and committed to these values.

CAMFT is also instituting DEI training for our committee volunteers for the 2024-2025 term.

CAMFT Executive Director Joy Alafia joined the California LGBTQ Leadership Caucus at a fundraising event featuring a special performance by the San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus, the world’s first openly gay chorus whose members use music to connect communities while standing up against bigotry and discrimination.

CAMFT supported Health and Safety Code Section 124260's passage, making it easier for LGBT minors to receive mental health services.

CAMFT is proud to officially support the following CA legislation: 

• SB 372: (Menjavar): CAMFT co-sponsored the bill for this new law to protect the privacy and increase safety of transgender and nonbinary individuals by eliminating the use of deadnames at the Department of Consumer Affairs for licensed professionals who have changed their legal names.
• Health and Safety Code, Section 124260: CAMFT supported the passage of this health code which makes it easier for LGBTQ+ minors to receive mental health services.
• ACA 5 (Low): Marriage Equality Act. CAMFT is currently supporting ACA 5. The bill was referred to the committee on Judiciary on June 6, 2023.
• HR 33 (Ward)  & SR 33 (Eggman): Recognition of LGBTQ+ Pride Month. These resolutions wre adopted on June 6, 2023.

Stay tuned to CAMFT’s ENewletters and The Therapist magazine for important updates on this and other legislation

Telehealth can be a necessary lifeline for some patients who do not have LGBTQ+-affirming healthcare available nearby. Use these guidelines to ensure that your practice is inclusive while providing care in a virtual setting.  Read More

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration offer a variety of resources for therapists treating LGBTQI youth, including useful inclusivity FAQs and effective therapeutic practices to incorporate into your practice. Read More

The APA’s Toolbox to Promote Healthy LGBTQ Youth and the Safe and Supportive Schools Project.  Get the Tools

At our 2023 annual conference, Linda Reeves, LMFT led a workshop that provided an overview of the parent transition experience and how clinicians can best support that journey. Read More

At our 2023 annual conference, Johanna Olson-Kennedy, MD and Aydin Olson-Kennedy, LCSW led a workshop on a multidisciplinary care model to review the impact of gender dysphoria on adolescent development and available medical interventions. Read More

In the November/December 2022 issue of The Therapist, Gretchen Cooper, LMFT discussed best practice principles for gender affirming care when working with transgender youth.  Read The Full Article

In the September/October 2021 issue of The Therapist, Bradley J. Muldrow, JD provides an overview of key legal and ethical issues for therapists writing referral letters for patients seeking gender-affirming medical and surgical treatments, including what to include when providing letters.  Read The Full Article

CAMFT’s 2015 Statement on Therapy with Transgender and Gender Nonconforming (TGNC) Clients
CAMFT respects human diversity, including variations in gender identity and gender expression and believes being transgender or gender nonconforming (TGNC) are positive and healthy variations of gender identities and gender expressions. Read Our Statement

CAMFT’s 2016 Statement on Conversion Therapy (SOCE)
CAMFT opposes the use of psychological interventions to change any person’s sexual orientation or gender identity, including efforts to change behaviors or gender expressions, based on a priori assumption that same-sex attraction and/or gender nonconformity is a mental disorder or deficiency or based on a priori treatment goal that clients should alter their sexual orientation or gender identity. Read Our Statement

CAMFT’s 2016 Statement on Conversion Therapy (SOCE)
It is a core value in CAMFT to support, promote, and protect diversity, to value all individuals and groups free from prejudice and oppression, and to foster a climate where equity and mutual respect are intrinsic. Read Our Statement