Reflections on the FREEPSY stream on ‘Mental Health Commons’ at the MCCT 2024

In early April, we were joined by over twenty colleagues from various parts of the world to reflect on the meanings of a ‘mental health commons’, exploring the axes of fantasy, utopia and infrastructure over a series of five panels at the Midlands Conference in Critical Thought (MCCT), in Nottingham, UK. For the first time this year, the organisers of the London Conference in Critical Thought (LCCT) decided to branch out to other parts of the UK. This gave rise to the Midlands Conference. Members of our FREEPSY team had the pleasure to take part in the organisation of the Midlands Conference, to listen to a variety of academic and creative contributions and to get in touch with colleagues from the most diverse fields and backgrounds.

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Inaugural Free Clinics Working Group

On the 15th of January 2024, we had the joy of inaugurating yet another FREEPSY project initiative, the Free Clinics Working Group. Gathered at the Freud Museum, in North London, as an intimate group, we counted with the presence of two important researchers and clinicians at the forefront of the free clinic’s movement in Latin America: Dr Carolina Besoain from Chile and Anderson Santos from Brazil. Over the whole afternoon and into the evening, we heard from their work on the ground, their radical and innovative research and their vibrant web of collaborative practices, alive across Argentina, Brazil and Chile. 

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The ISFN Book Presentation Series. Anna Borgos, ‘Women in the Budapest School of Psychoanalysis. Girls of Tomorrow’. 3 February, 2024

This book shines a light on the social and professional factors on the life and work of the first women psychoanalysts in Budapest, examining documentary evidence of their lives and drawing upon the literature of psychoanalysis, social history, and gender studies. Through their life stories, not only the history of psychoanalysis, but also the processes of 20th-century women’s history and social-political developments in Hungary and the region can be reconstructed. Key psychoanalysts explored include Lilly Hajdu, Edit Gyömrői, Alice Bálint, Vilma Kovács, Lillián Rotter and twelve further women analysts.

Continue readingThe ISFN Book Presentation Series. Anna Borgos, ‘Women in the Budapest School of Psychoanalysis. Girls of Tomorrow’. 3 February, 2024

Assistance for the Mind. Remembering and Rebuilding Radical Praxis in The Clinic by Jaice Sara Titus

The article discusses the intersection of psychoanalysis and socialist politics, exploring the historical relationship between the two and the challenges faced in balancing political commitments with psychoanalytic work. It delves into the early aspirations of psychoanalysis to be accessible to all through free clinics. It discusses how this vision was briefly realized before being overshadowed by conservative strands of psychoanalysis. The article introduces the Red Clinic, a contemporary initiative formed by anti-capitalist clinicians aiming to provide accessible psychotherapy while intertwining personal struggles with political realities. This article offers a glimpse into the clinic’s vision, challenges, and global outreach efforts. 

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Conversation on ‘Spheres of Insurrection: Notes on Decolonizing the Unconscious’. Suely Rolnik, Ramsey McGlazer and Raluca Soreanu. 15th December 2023, online

Join the International Consortium of Critical Theory Programs for a virtual event in a series of interventions organized by the Critical South book series. Spheres of Insurrection: Notes on Decolonizing the Unconscious by Suely Rolnik, a conversation with Suely Rolnik (Pontifical Catholic University of São Paulo), Ramsey McGlazer (UC Berkeley), and Raluca Soreanu (University of Essex).

Continue readingConversation on ‘Spheres of Insurrection: Notes on Decolonizing the Unconscious’. Suely Rolnik, Ramsey McGlazer and Raluca Soreanu. 15th December 2023, online