Sex is fundamental to being human. It is how we all got here, and it is how the genes of most of us will pass down through the ages. It is a need as basic as eating and drinking but can be as fulfilling as the profoundest art, music, and philosophy.
It is ironic, then, that there should be so few, so very few, institutes in the world devoted principally to research in and the scientific study of sex. It is testimony, then, to the genius of Alfred Kinsey and his coworkers, and to the wisdom and courage of the incomparable Herman Wells that in the Kinsey Institute, Indiana University, here in the conservative Midwest, should be the home to the world's pre-eminent center for the academic and scholarly study of sex.
As Allen Bloom points out in his wonderful book "Love and Friendship," it is in fact remarkable that in the intellectual history of the West, there should have been so little attention paid by philosophers to sex, at least since Plato and Aristotle.
And that the Kinsey Institute's reputation should have been sustained and in fact enhanced and enriched through the past turbulent decade is due to one man—John Bancroft.
John has had a tendency to avoid taking full credit for his accomplishments, graciously and habitually not just saying but thinking of his work as the group's. His tenure in Bloomington has been as the benevolent and gifted leader of a group of very intelligent people. He has opened the previously closed collections to the public, set loose the curatorial genius of his staff in an acclaimed series of publications and exhibitions, steered new research projects that are as strong theoretically as they are rigorous scientifically, and helped redefine the field of sexuality research for a new century.
Dr. Kinsey would be extremely pleased at where the institute is today, and at what John has wrought. As a public advocate for the need for new research and for the defense of the academic study of sex, John is without peer. He has set the stage well for a new era.
And as that new era dawns, we are all delighted to have found Julia Heiman and to feel the excitement at where she and her colleagues will take the Kinsey Institute over the next few years. She comes to us, as you know, with a renowned background as a researcher and advocate and we are delighted to have her with us to pick up the torch from John.
As we all know, the institute and the academic study of sex encompasses biology, medicine, psychology, art, literature, law, sociology, and many other fields. Its importance transcends so many disciplines that it has a unique place not only in the university but also in the world. It is at once one of our more discreet units, yet it is also our best known.
Because of the battles Alfred Kinsey and Herman Wells fought, and the pressure from its critics that never seems to disappear, it is a tangible symbol of both the need for and the fragility of academic freedom. Going back to the publication of the first two books, and continuing through its other phases and ensuing directors, the Kinsey Institute has been both a discoverer of knowledge and a popularizer of that knowledge. There is, quite simply, nothing else like it.
And thanks to the remarkable efforts of John Bancroft, it is as esteemed now worldwide as it ever has been. He has truly made it, not just a fondly remembered legacy of the era of Wells and Kinsey, Pomeroy, Gebhard et al., but a thriving, 21st century enterprise. And we know that the forthcoming movie on Dr. Kinsey will probably generate more attention than the institute has seen since the 1950s, which in turn could be an unparalleled opportunity for the Kinsey Institute and IU to build even more on their legacy.
Let me just say that Julia inherits an organization with needs and challenges, to be sure, but with a base of support around the world and in fine condition internally, that should make it possible for her to get a flying start at IU. That's due in no small measure to John's stewardship, in a hundred different ways, and to the fine staff he has assembled.
Julia, we know that John Bancroft will be a hard act to follow, but we also know that his has been a great tenure and a model for us all to admire. The Kinsey Institute has always been one of IU's crown jewels, but thanks to you, John, it gleams more now than ever before. All best wishes to you, John and Cynthia, in your well-deserved retirement.
Thank you.