Lee Ellis is an American criminologist, sociobiologist, and anti-transgender activist. Ellis was a member of the Human Biodiversity Institute eugenics group run by Steve Sailer. Ellis organized The Puzzle of Sexual Orientation, a conference attended by many leading lights in the academic pathologization of sex and gender minorities.
Background
Altis Lee Ellis was born on March 1, 1942 and grew up on a farm near Iola, Kansas. Ellis earned a bachelor’s degree from Pittsburg State University in Pittsburg, Kansas in 1966 and a master’s degree in 1970. Ellis then earned a doctorate in criminology from Florida State University in 1983.
Ellis married Heather Anne Ellis (born 1942).
Anti-transgender activism
Much of Ellis’ work focused on reifying sex differences, with a sociobiological take on things like rape and sexual orientation.
Beginning in 1995, Ellis hosted a conference on the biological basis of sex and gender minorities every five years. The first one was called the International Behavioral Development Symposium on the Biological Basis of Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity, and Sex-Typical Behavior. Recent conferences are called The Puzzle of Sexual Orientation. The invite-only conference is a who’s who in the academic pathologization of trans people. The conference has continued after Ellis retired.
References
Zucker KJ (2008). Special Issue: Biological Research on Sex Dimorphic-Behavior and Sexual Orientation. Arch Sex Behav 37, 1 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-007-9275-z
Vasey PL, Lalumiere ML (2012). Introduction to the Special Section “The Puzzle of Sexual Orientation: What Is It and How Does It Work?” Archives of Sexual Behavior volume 41, pages 11–12 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-012-9932-8
Zucker, K. J., Ellis, L., Bailey, J. M., & Blanchard, R. (2002). Guest Editors’ Introduction: Biological research on sex-dimorphic behavior and sexual orientation. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 31, 7.
Zucker, K. J. (2008). Special issue: Biological research on sex-dimorphic behavior and sexual orientation. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 37, 1.
-https://people.uleth.ca/~paul.vasey/PLV/Puzzle_2010.html (2010)
-https://people.uleth.ca/~paul.vasey/PLV/Puzzles_Abstracts.html (2015)
-https://www.ulethbridge.ca/unews/article/puzzle-sexual-orientation-conference-brings-world-class-researchers-university-lethbridge (2023)
Books
Ellis, Lee; Ebertz, Linda [Eds.] (1998). Males, Females, and Behavior: Toward Biological Understanding ISBN 978-0275959418
Social Stratification and Socioeconomic Inequality: Volume 1: A Comparative Biosocial Analysis
Theories Of Rape: Inquiries Into The Cause Of Sexual Aggression
Biosocial Criminology: Challenging Environmentalism’s Supremacy
Criminology: An Interdisciplinary Approach
Crime in Biological, Social, and Moral Contexts
Criminology: A Global Perspective
Sex Differences: Summarizing More Than a Century of Scientific Research
Resources
http://www.scienceinfosearch.com (defunct)
http://mail.misu.nodak.edu/~lee.ellis/LeeWeb/vitae.html