Guy Baldwin, M.S. (b. 1946) is a Los Angeles-based

psychotherapist Psychotherapy (also psychological therapy, talk therapy, or talking therapy) is the use of psychological methods, particularly when based on regular personal interaction, to help a person change behavior, increase happiness, and overcome pro ...

, author, activist, and educator specializing in issues of particular relevance to the

BDSM BDSM is a variety of often erotic practices or roleplaying involving bondage, discipline, dominance and submission, sadomasochism, and other related interpersonal dynamics. Given the wide range of practices, some of which may be engaged ...

and

leather Leather is a strong, flexible and durable material obtained from the tanning, or chemical treatment, of animal skins and hides to prevent decay. The most common leathers come from cattle, sheep, goats, equine animals, buffalo, pigs and hogs, ...

communities. He maintains that inclusion of non-injurious elements of

sadomasochism Sadomasochism ( ) is the giving and receiving of pleasure from acts involving the receipt or infliction of pain or humiliation. Practitioners of sadomasochism may seek sexual pleasure from their acts. While the terms sadist and masochist refer ...

(bondage, flagellation, domination, submission and others) in a consenting sexuality does not itself indicate or confirm mental illness or psycho-sexual dysfunction. In 1982 Baldwin created a

database In computing, a database is an organized collection of data stored and accessed electronically. Small databases can be stored on a file system, while large databases are hosted on computer clusters or cloud storage. The design of databases sp ...

of professionals who knew about and were not prejudiced against kink and BDSM, called the Kink Aware Professionals list (KAP list). It has been expanded and is now managed by the

National Coalition for Sexual Freedom The National Coalition for Sexual Freedom (NCSF) is an American sex-positive advocacy and educational organization founded in 1998. NCSF has over one hundred coalition partners (consisting of businesses including law firms, mental health professi ...

as the Kink And

Poly Poly, from the Greek πολύς meaning "many" or "much", may refer to: Businesses * China Poly Group Corporation, a Chinese business group, and its subsidiaries: ** Poly Property, a Hong Kong incorporated Chinese property developer ** Poly Real ...

Aware Professionals Directory. Baldwin has written three books, as well as numerous articles for such magazines as ''

Drummer A drummer is a percussionist who creates music using drum The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel-Sachs classification system, it is a membranophone. Drums consist of at least one mem ...

'', ''

Frontiers Frontiers may refer to: * Frontier, areas near or beyond a boundary Arts and entertainment Music * ''Frontiers'' (Journey album), 1983 * ''Frontiers'' (Jermaine Jackson album), 1978 * ''Frontiers'' (Jesse Cook album), 2007 * ''Frontiers'' ( ...

'', ''Checkmate'', ''International Leatherman'', and ''The Leather Journal''.Leather History Timeline
at the

Leather Archives and Museum The Leather Archives & Museum (LA&M) is a community archives, library, and museum located in the Rogers Park neighborhood of Chicago. Founded by Chuck Renslow and Tony DeBlase in 1991, its mission is "making leather, kink, BDSM, and fetish acce ...

He is on the Board of Governors for the

Leather Hall of Fame Leather is a strong, flexible and durable material obtained from the tanning, or chemical treatment, of animal skins and hides to prevent decay. The most common leathers come from cattle, sheep, goats, equine animals, buffalo, pigs and hogs, ...

. He is openly gay.

Leather titles

In 1989, Baldwin held two leather titles: Mr. National Leather Association and

International Mr. Leather International Mr. Leather (IML) is an international, though largely American, conference and contest of leathermen held annually in May since 1979 in Chicago, Illinois. Every year, the event corresponds to the weekend of the United States' Mem ...

. He is the only person to have held these two titles in the same year.

Awards

*1994: Received a Pantheon of Leather Southern California Regional Award * 2000: Named a Centurion by the

* 2001: Received a Pantheon of Leather Lifetime Achievement Award * 2004: Inducted into the

Society of Janus The Society of Janus is the second BDSM organization founded in the United States (after The Eulenspiegel Society) and is a San Francisco, California based BDSM education and support group. The Society of Janus is nonprofit, volunteer run and is ...

Hall of Fame * 2007: Received a Pantheon of Leather Forbear Award * 2008: Awarded the Leather Leadership Award by the

National Gay and Lesbian Task Force The National LGBTQ Task Force is an American social justice advocacy non-profit organizing the grassroots power of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) community. Also known as The Task Force, the organization supports ac ...

* 2009: Received the first ever Guy Baldwin Heritage Award, from the Master/slave Conference * 2010: Received the Berman/Schaffer Award from Christopher Street West * 2010: Received a citation from the

West Hollywood West Hollywood is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Incorporated in 1984, it is home to the Sunset Strip. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 U.S. Census, its population was 35,757. It is considered one of the most ...

City Council * 2012: Inducted into the Leather Hall of Fame * 2016: Received a

Tom of Finland Touko Valio Laaksonen (8 May 1920 – 7 November 1991), pseudonym Tom of Finland, was a Finnish artist who made stylized highly masculinized homoerotic art, and influenced late 20th-century gay culture. He has been called the "most influential ...

Foundation Lifetime Achievement Award

Conferences

*2009, 2010, 2012, 2013, and 2019: Special guest at the Master/slave Conference

Bibliography

Baldwin is a prolific author of both fiction and non-fiction related to BDSM. Baldwin authored a monthly column in ''Drummer'' magazine from 1986 to 1993. The column was later compiled in his book ''Ties that Bind'' (1993).

Books

* * *

Essays

* "A Second Coming Out." ''Frontiers Magazine'' (1990). Reprinted in * "Old Guard": Its Origins, Traditions, Mystique & Rules, * . * "Radical Rite" in * . * * *

Short fiction

*. Reprinted in . *"Lord of the Snow" in . * Reprinted in .

Introductions and Forewords

*Foreword by Guy Baldwin, M.S., *Foreword by Guy Baldwin

Interviews (in print)

*"The Exiled Self" in

References

External links

Leather History Timeline
at the

*
''The Leather Journal''
website
Guy Baldwin
in th
Leatherpedia
{{DEFAULTSORT:Baldwin, Guy 1946 births American male non-fiction writers American psychotherapists American relationships and sexuality writers BDSM writers American gay writers Leather subculture Living people