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Lesbian Activism
from 1970s to the Present |
Scroll down for information about each item in the exhibit.
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Exhibit curated by Chanel Ward '08 and Anna Steffens '10
Published Spring 2009
In the early 1970s, lesbian activism became a powerful social force
as women drew strength from both the gay rights and feminist movements.
Throughout the next four decades, lesbian and queer activists tackled a
broad range of issues: sexual identity and sex itself, pop culture,
race, class, violence, and many others. From early activists who
advocated complete lesbian separatism to modern queer organizers who
work in partnership with multiple identity groups, the "lesbian
activist" movement has generated a huge variety of social formations and
political ideologies. This exhibit, drawing from BCRW's extensive
collection of LGBT-related materials, showcases just a few documents
from this long history of struggle and social change. The following
articles, photographs, zines, and pamphlets shed light on the many
transformations and incarnations of lesbian activism over the past 40
years.
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Motive "Lesbian/Feminist Issue"
Vol. 32, No. 1 (1972)
Published by MOTIVE, Inc.
Originally started by the United Methodist Church in 1941, monthly
magazine Motive began its transformation with the publication of
a special women's issue in 1969. Church leaders became increasingly more
critical of Motive as its content became progressively more
radical. This "Lesbian-Feminist" edition represents the magazine's final
break with the church, when a collective of lesbians called "The Furies"
took over publication for one last controversial issue. The editors,
including Rita Mae Brown and Charlotte Bunch, "were determined that from
start to finish lesbians would do it all" to complete the remarkable
essays, art, and poetry that make up the magazine. As defined in this
issue, lesbian feminism was a movement "out of passivity, out of the
closets . . . toward control of our own [lesbian] lives and the overthrow of
male supremacy." Given the radical nature of its origins, this document
serves as a fascinating example of lesbian separatist publishing in the
early 1970s.
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Margins: A Review of Little Mags and Small Press Books
"Special Focus: Lesbian Feminist Writing and Publishing"
No. 23 (August 1975)
Published by Tom Montag
This issue of Margins—a publication designed to make "small
and unknown publications easily accessible to the larger audience"—is
devoted to "lesbian feminist writing and publishing." As editor Beth
Hodges notes, this issue broke ground in literary criticism, as it was
one of the first publications to print a full issue of criticism of
lesbian literature. Hodges fiercely asserted her belief that lesbianism,
as claimed by "woman-identified women," is a political identity, and she
used this issue to rebel against the invisibility forced upon lesbian
writers by the male literary establishment. The reviewed literature
ranges from magazines to photographic essays to novels, and authors
reviewed include Alice Walker, Monique Wittig, and Susan Griffin. The
issue also features several contributors, including Julia P. Stanley,
Gene Damon, and Karla Jay (Barnard '68), whose writing was instrumental
in organizing and recording early lesbian activism.
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Growing Up Gay: A Youth Liberation Pamphlet
(1976)
Published by Youth Liberation Press, Inc.
Growing Up Gay: A Youth Liberation Pamphlet combines deeply
personal coming-out stories with empowering calls to action directed at
young readers. Bringing together the personal and the political, the
Youth Liberation activists tell their own stories and demand that their
parents, peers, and schools give them the respect they deserve. One
story, "Struggling With Myself in a Repressive Society," expresses a
journey to "strength and openness" and explains that being out is a
challenge not only to oneself, but also to one's repressive society. The
second section, "Start a Gay Group," stresses the social and political
importance of gay organizations, and the third section discusses the
difficulties of coming out to one's family. Concluding with an extensive
list of resources, the pamphlet urges young gay and lesbian activists to
fight multiple forms of oppression, including those based on age and
sexuality.
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Coming Out: Being Gay in the Haverford-Bryn Mawr College Community
(Spring 1976)
Published by the Haverford College and Bryn Mawr College Gay People's Alliance
Continuing the focus on youth activism, this pamphlet was written and
published by Haverford College and Bryn Mawr College's Gay People's
Alliance. Even as early as the late 1960s, groups like this one were
beginning to form at colleges and universities around the nation,
fighting for greater visibility and acceptance of gay and lesbian
identity. This Alliance, which had about 30 members at the time of this
publication, hoped to educate the campus community about homosexuality
with this collection of coming out stories. The students encouraged a
model of coming out that has become increasingly mainstream today; the
Gay People's Alliance aimed to demonstrate that "gay people live
ordinary human lives, good and bad, just like anyone else." The pamphlet
also includes advice on coming out to friends, parents, and even
complete strangers.
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Power of Women: Magazine of the International Wages for Housework Campaign
"International Lesbian Conference"
No. 5 (1976)
Published by London Wages for Housework Committee
Power of Women: Magazine of the International Wages for Housework
Campaign was a publication devoted to demanding economic rights for
women, especially within the domestic sphere. This article describes a
conference called "Toward a Strategy for the Lesbian Movement" organized
by Wages Due Lesbians in Toronto in July of 1976. The conference brought
together an international group of women to organize for lesbian
autonomy and address how economic pressures affected lesbian sexual
expression and motherhood. Many activists, particularly those of color,
argued that economic liberation was needed in order to escape dependence
on men and heterosexual relationships. Connecting systems of class,
race, gender, and sexuality, this conference and other such radical
coalitions paved the way for gay and lesbian activism organized around
multiple, intersecting identities, not just gay identity alone.
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Out! The Gay Newspaper
Issue 1 (July 29, 1977)
Published by Out!
This issue of Out! The Gay Newspaper features "Gay Pride '77:
America hears the 'mouse' roar," a composite of articles on Gay Pride
Day 1977. Addressing the high level of gay pride activity in the nation
and around the world, the articles attribute the increase in marches and
celebrations to recent hate crimes and the hate campaign of Anita
Bryant, an American singer notorious for her strong views against
homosexuality and her campaign against gay equality in the 1970s.
Featuring color photographs and opinions from diverse participants, the
articles highlight the surge in gay activism prompted by threats from
politicians and other powerful conservatives. Additionally, ads for
bathhouses and an article about gay and transsexual prostitutes hint at
the ubiquitous presence of gay male sexuality in discourses of gay life
and activism prior to the beginning of the AIDS crisis in the 1980s.
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The Lesbian Tide
(July/August 1979)
Published by Tide Publications
This issue of The Lesbian Tide, a radical feminist news
magazine, presents a complex picture of the politics at stake in radical
lesbian and more mainstream gay activism. The cover story, provocatively
entitled "Are Roles Really Dead?", explores lesbian feminist backlash
against traditional butch/femme gender roles. For some women, coming out
as a lesbian allowed one the freedom to escape strict ideas about
femininity, but for others, claiming a radical feminist identity meant
that one should avoid the sort of masculine privilege that "butchness"
might signify. The article delves into the power dynamics of lesbian
relationships and intergenerational conflicts—the discussion of the
words "butch," "femme," and "dyke" on page 6 offers fascinating insight
into the shifting ideals of lesbian feminist activists. Other articles
in this issue focus on Gay Pride Day (described as "an annual headache")
and on Lucia Valeska, the new Co-Executive Director of the National Gay
Task Force, who "validates the separatist experience," but also believed
that coalitions with gay men and others were necessary in the gay rights
movement. Published on the cusp of a new decade, this magazine reveals
intricate ideological struggles at the core of lesbian feminist
movements.
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Our Lives: Lesbian Mothers Talk to Lesbian Mothers
(c. 1983)
Published by Amazon Press and the Gay Centre
Our Lives was produced by a small group of lesbian mothers in
England concerned about prejudice against lesbian mothers in child
custody cases. The publication did not strictly provide legal advice for
lesbian mothers; rather, it amplified the voices of lesbian mothers who
spoke out against the social and legal hostility they face. The
publication also addresses other problems affecting these women,
including domestic violence, bad housing, poverty, lack of reproductive
freedom, and personal isolation. For these mothers, sexual identity was
wrapped up with class and gender in the difficult court battles they
fought to keep their children. This publication demonstrates not only
the need for legal reform in these cases, but also the necessity for
women to find community among others who shared the joys and
difficulties of divorce and lesbian motherhood.
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Gay Community News: The Weekly for Lesbians and Gay Males
"Lesbian Battering":
"A Personal Account" and "The Search for Shelter"
(January 14, 1984)
Gay Community News was published weekly from 1973 to 1992. The
periodical shared the voices of significant LGBT activists and writers,
gaining a national and international readership and reputation for being
one of the most influential LGBT newspapers.
The July 14, 1984 issue of Gay Community News focuses on
"Lesbian Battering." With a personal essay and a news feature, this
issue reveals the dynamics of lesbian battering and challenges the
misperception that battering only occurs within heterosexual
relationships. The articles address homophobia within the domestic
violence movement (especially among shelter networks) as a main obstacle
for lesbian women seeking help and support. Additionally, this issue
features a front-page article describing the defeat of an
anti-pornography law developed in Minneapolis by feminist activists
Catharine MacKinnon and Andrea Dworkin. The early 1980s saw repeated
battles among feminists over pornography and anti-porn laws, with some
arguing against porn's often misogynistic content and others fighting
for greater freedom of sexual expression and subversive identities. From
features on fighting lesbian battering to a piece on pornography and
censorship, this issue of Gay Community News provides an
intriguing juxtaposition of material on violence and lesbian activism
during this time period.
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Women's Network: National Newsletter for Women
Issue #15 (Summer/Fall 1983)
and Issue #16 (1983/4)
Published by Dorothy Feola
These two issues of Women's Network: National Newsletter for
Women include poetry, book reviews, and contemporary news of
importance to the lesbian community. Each issue also includes letters to
the editor, which seem to be of particular importance as they display a
diverse readership writing in from various parts of the United States.
The diversity of the readership speaks to the mission of the newsletter
which, as indicated in the title, was to facilitate connections among
women—particularly lesbian women. Several satirical pieces, including a
mock interview between two famous closeted lesbian tennis players and a
fake news article about a world without men, function to entertain as
well as enlighten a lesbian public scattered across the nation. Though
this publication was overseen by just one woman working largely alone in
the Bronx, it still managed to serve as a powerful source of connection
and information for isolated lesbians seeking radical feminist
literature and news.
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Black/Out: The Magazine of the National Coalition of Black Lesbians and Gays
Volume 1, Number 1 (Summer 1986)
Published by the National Coalition of Black Lesbians and Gays
Black/Out, a quarterly magazine of the National Coalition of
Black Lesbians and Gays, helped lay the foundation for the black gay
rights movement, and this first issue demonstrates the necessity for
such a source of communication and empowerment. Editor Joseph Beam
explains that the purpose of this particular movement was to bring to
the forefront the "lives, visions, and contributions" of black lesbians
and gays who were ignored or "blacked out" by the gay rights movement.
Black/Out sought to end this "blackout" by sharing the voices of
black lesbians and gay men and creating a "place for dialogue, a place
to connect, and a place to be all of what we are." In keeping with
current events of that time, this first issue includes the latest
statistics on the AIDS epidemic (especially as it disproportionately
affected the black community), safer sex tips, and reviews of the
recently released film The Color Purple. For black lesbian
readers, activist Barbara Smith offers her perspective on being "always
conscious of how significant race was in shaping my experience as a
Black Lesbian." Smith's words, along with other moving poems and
articles in the magazine, demonstrate the urgent need for this magazine
(and additional activism as well) at that particular juncture in the
feminist and gay rights movements.
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Tales of the Closet
Volume 1, Number 1 (Summer/Fall 1987)
Published by the Institute for the Protection of Lesbian and Gay Youth
Tales of the Closet is a comic book that explores the dynamics
of several fictional teenagers struggling with their homosexuality.
These characters deal with fear, harassment, isolation, and the
pressures from friends and family that so often prevent youth from
willingly revealing their sexual desires or identities. This story
suggests that young people can more freely experience sexuality once
people become supportive of difference and once all gay men and lesbians
can become truthful to themselves, their peers, and their loved ones.
One important step toward greater freedom for lesbian and gay youth is
accessible information about gay identity, and the Institute for the
Protection of Lesbian and Gay Youth accomplished this goal by
disseminating information in a more youth-friendly comic book format.
Founded by Emery Hetrick and A. Damien Martin in 1980, the Institute
strove to keep gay and lesbian youth safe at home, at school, in foster
care, and in other youth service settings. IPLGY was later renamed the
Hetrick-Martin Institute after its founders, and HMI continues to
provide services and information for gay and lesbian youth in New York
City. Especially for youth of color, transgender and gender
non-conforming youth, and homeless young people, coming out remains
frightening and often dangerous in the context of oppressive home,
school, and street environments.
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The Lesbian Outlook
#7 (Feb/March 1993)
Published by the Lesbians for Lesbians Collective
This issue of The Lesbian Outlook, a zine written by lesbians
on lesbian separatism, is devoted to ". . . life-loving revolutionary dykes
who are Looking Out from the putrid patriarchal planetary necropolis to
See/experience/create a Wild, Earthy, Lesbian-identified Present and
Future." The aim of the issue is to inspire lesbian separatists to make
connections between "loving lesbians" and "loving all
truly-Wild-be-ings." Editor Melissa Hall proposes that the erasure of
lesbian identity is a part of the same patriarchal plot to erase the
identities of animals, and that women and animals alike are victimized
and "dismembered" by white, male patriarchy. This issue recalls early
lesbian separatist movements in that its contributors fought to remain
separate from any mainstream gay or women's movement. One piece, "8
Reasons Why I Hate Sadomasochism," takes a very personal stance
supportive of the anti-porn movement of the early 1980s. Though many of
The Lesbian Outlook's contributions seem to be harking back to an
earlier time that shared perhaps overly idealistic views regarding
lesbian separatism, they do demonstrate the increasing importance of the
environmental justice and animal rights movements to lesbian activists
of the early 1990s.
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The Lesbian Avengers Dyke Manifesto
"Calling All Lesbians! Wake Up!"
(c. 1993)
Published by the Lesbian Avengers
Dyke Manifesto, a flyer distributed by The Lesbian Avengers,
was intended to recruit lesbians for direct, radical action. As
described on the reverse side of the flyer, the Avengers were founded in
New York City in June 1992 to empower lesbians to become fearless
organizers ready to claim their rights to live freely and safe from
harm. The Avengers' bold aesthetic and political approach was
characteristic of many activist movements of the 1990s, especially in
the face of the AIDS crisis and the increasing dominance of neoliberal
power structures. Unlike the lesbian separatists of The Lesbian
Outlook, the Lesbian Avengers gladly took support from queer male
and straight allies and supported sex positive politics, often in
opposition to the anti-pornography movement. Claiming that "lesbians
have been in the forefront of every movement for social change," the
Avengers proudly took on causes related to class, race, gender,
politics, visibility, and hate crimes, and they did it with distinctive
style that is still recognizable today.
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Alyson: Women's Book Catalogue
(January-March 1994)
Published by Alyson Publications
As a successful publisher of gay and lesbian-themed books, Alyson
Publications used its semiannual catalog to entertain its faithful
customers as well as to advertise its publications. From "word gaymes"
to photos from the 1993 March on Washington to a dictionary of lesbian
slang, the catalog provides a snapshot of gay and lesbian culture and
politics in the mid-1990s. In an excerpt from Testimonies, an
Alyson anthology of lesbian coming out stories, Lynn Kanter describes
her initial revelation of being gay: "Thank God I'm not normal. . . . Thank
God I finally know where I belong, and it's in a woman's arms." This
celebration of non-normativity echoes throughout the history of lesbian
activism, and many queer activists today proudly carry on this tradition
of challenging norms of gender and sexuality.
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Over the past few decades, lesbian life in America has grown and
transformed into a rich subculture complete with its own literature,
language, and celebrities. Fortunately, as the wide variety of documents
in this exhibit demonstrates, lesbian (and queer) activism and culture
includes a huge range of diverse opinions, ideologies, and
identifications. As the Alyson Publications catalog shows, political
activism played as much of a part as sexual expression, art, and pop
culture did in shaping what we know as "lesbian culture" today.
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