Dykes And Lesbians To Watch Out For

[AtLast]

The admin recently added lesbian-phobia/phobic to the TOS in the list of isms/language, etc. to be moderated on the Planet!! KEWL!! Way kewl!! Way aware!!

5. No Intolerant Behavior! - Racially offensive, Sizist, Sexist, Transphobic, Classist, Elitist, Misogynist, Homophobic, Lesbian-phobic or otherwise hateful speech is NOT acceptable here. If you make an asshattish or hateful comment, you can expect your fellow community members to want to engage with you about it. Also, making a comment that is racist, ageist, sexist, sizist, Lesbian-phobic or generally offensive and then adding "It's just my opinion" or "It's my First Amendment Right!" does NOT negate your personal accountability for what you just said.

[BarbaraRyan]

Adding my two cents as a newbie:

When I think of the word Dyke, I think "earthy" or "practical". Both awesome things.

But I have a particular love for the word Lesbian. To me there is something poetic about it. It evokes romantic images of chocolate and wine. (A little cheesy, I know).

[imperfect_cupcake]

Lesbian took me a little while to come to. I vociferously refused to ID as lesbian (though dyke was ever so slightly less offensive) when I came out. Mainly because the vast majority of lesbians I knew were very much anti... me. The *dykes* I knew were more butch-butch leather in seattle; the *lesbians* I knew were... fairly narrow minded, not very well travelled, not exposed to much, didn't like the way I looked (politically and publicialy. they didn't mind trapping me in a dark corner at a party though) and didn't understand my particular tastes, sexually.

So I refused to identify with them if they refused to accept me.

Then I met all of the kick-ass lesbians when I started to travel as a queer - ones who had done all this serious work to be recognised as a lesbian. I met lesbians from all kinds of political/sexual "wars" between groups of feminists.

And I was asked "do you recognise that they are lesbian?" Yes. "do you recognise the work they did for that?" yes. "but you are willing to sit on your ass and sulk about not being accepted by people? do you do that with the rest of your life as well?"

No. I don't. So I reclaimed lesbian, for me. I didn't start at lesbian first. I was queer for a few years while I refused to be associated with "those" lesbians.

I learned I didn't have to be. I don't have to be associated with *ANYONE* just because they have the same sexuality (even if it's expressed differently), or back ground or whatever. People are not the same wherever you go. Lesbian is *NOT* the same where ever you go. Niether is butch or femme.

I learned that the short sighted with little wordly experienced lesbians I come out to were not what all lesbians everywhere were like. And to say they were would be bigoted and short sighted of me to not recognise that humans differ vastly.

When I got to Toronto, I met tons of lesbians who didn't give a shit that a presented very feminine. I found I could be friends with many non-butch, non-femme lesbians - unlike the idiots I had previously known. when I came to London... my world exploded. I walked into my first lesbian bar (Mineries. LMAO. far from classy but I love that place every once in a rare while) and no one asked me if I was straight or bi or a poodle. No one fuckin *cared*.

I walked into the bathroom and it was thronging with girls in feminine little hip dresses, toussled hair, re-applying masses of make up and clicking about in heels.

I remember thinking "oh thank fuck."

I have met the biggest diversity of lesbians ever imaginable in london. Some unimaginable. There are fewer rules and no one gives a shit. It's allowed me to pick exactly what I want to be, how I want to be.

Now I mainly hang in gender-queer clubs with a dyke backbone to it. That's really my favourite comfort zone.

I'm a queer dyke lesbian femme. Or just barb, most of the time.

[free-to-be]

I, too, prefer lesbian over dyke. Dyke is such a harsh-sounding word and is often used harshly. Sapphic, now that's another word I like!

Happy Saturday everyone!

[BullDog]

Free-to-be, welcome to BFP and this thread. Yes, there are some lesbians who don't like the word dyke. I personally like both. It has been used as a slur against me, but I have reclaimed it. I kinda like that it sounds harsh, heh heh.

[morningstar55]

interesting thread.............
i find that no matter how we all identify ...... to the general public be it str8 or gay .... we are al consider'd lesbians...
only thing is ........ in cringe when someone refer's to my dates as ..... a girl.
like as in ...... how are you ladies doing tonight??
or.... how was your date with your gf ???
i really cant seem to think of my stone butch/ or tg dates as ahhhh girl..
i tend to correct the statment when said. heh........

[LipstickLola]

Hey y'all

Imma lesbian, and the princess (old fogey too) LOL

[OS Butch]

I will cross post this to a couple other threads.

Lesbian Connection, aka LC, is a magazine I have superscribed to for years.
It arrives quarterly in my mailbox in an indiscreet manila envelope!
It is a quick read with only 50 pages. They are reprinting the series "Dykes to Watch out For"
The subscription fee is sliding scale free to anyone world wide and $42 for those that can afford it. Donations and gift subscriptions are appreciated!
I am not on the staff, I am just worried that without support, this little rag will vanish as has the woman's bookstores that use to be.

Elsie Publishing
EPI
PO Box 811
East
Lansing, Mi 48826
(517)371-5257 (M-F) noon- 6pm ET
elsiepub@aol.com

www.LConline.org

[The_Lady_Snow]

Western press largely overlooks heroism of lesbian couple in Norway massacre
By Laura Rozen | The Envoy - 22 hrs ago

As Norway continues to grapple with the attacks by a home-grown extremist that killed 77 people last month, one couple, who moved to help young people fleeing from gunman Anders Breivik, is getting a bit of belated recognition.

Hege Dalen and her wife, Toril Hansen, were eating dinner on July 22nd on the other shore from Utoya island when they heard screaming, the Finnish newspaper Helsingin Sannomat reported.<<disallowed word>> After bombing government buildings in Oslo, Breivik had come to the island dressed as a policeman and went on to shoot more than 100 young people attending a Labour party camp there.

"We were eating," Dalen told the newspaper. "Then shooting and then the awful screaming. We saw how the young people ran in panic into the lake."

The couple took off in their boat for the island, picking up shocked victims from the water and transporting them to the mainland. They made four runs in all, helping rescue some 40 of Breivik's victims, the paper reported.

"Between runs they saw that the bullets had hit the right side of the boat," the paper wrote.

Some lesbian-gay news sites and blogs have picked up the account in recent days, noting the same-sex married heroes of the story haven't gotten much attention in the Western press.

[BullDog]

Good morning Dykes, Lesbians and Friends!

Thank you OS Butch and Snow for keeping us informed.

I am happy the Lesbian Zone is more active these days and we are all sharing our thoughts, frustrations, culture and news.

I hope everyone's summer day is splendid.

[Toughy]

Originally Posted by OS Butch

I will cross post this to a couple other threads.

Lesbian Connection, aka LC, is a magazine I have superscribed to for years.
It arrives quarterly in my mailbox in an indiscreet manila envelope!
It is a quick read with only 50 pages. They are reprinting the series "Dykes to Watch out For"
The subscription fee is sliding scale free to anyone world wide and $42 for those that can afford it. Donations and gift subscriptions are appreciated!
I am not on the staff, I am just worried that without support, this little rag will vanish as has the woman's bookstores that use to be.

Elsie Publishing
EPI
PO Box 811
East
Lansing, Mi 48826
(517)371-5257 (M-F) noon- 6pm ET
elsiepub@aol.com

www.LConline.org

hey OS..........I need to ask if you would please make your font larger. I have to go find my reading glasses to read any of your posts. I've been meaning to ask this for a long time now

thanks

[OS Butch]

Originally Posted by Toughy

hey OS..........I need to ask if you would please make your font larger. I have to go find my reading glasses to read any of your posts. I've been meaning to ask this for a long time now

thanks

You are not the 1st person to ask me this. My screen is showing the font huge....I must be my computer. This is 3, I have always used 1. What font size do you use?

[OS Butch]

Bringing this back up with a bigger font

Btw, Elsie Publishing Institute is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.

Currently, Ambitious Amazons is updating their Contact Dyke listing. If you want to be added to their list, do it before November 30. I am on their CD List

Lesbian Connection, aka LC, is a magazine I have subscribed to for years.
It arrives quarterly in my mailbox in an indiscreet manila envelope!
It is a quick read with only 50 pages. They are reprinting the series "Dykes to Watch out For"
The subscription fee is sliding scale free to anyone world wide and $42 suggested donation.
Donations and gift subscriptions are appreciated!
I am not on the staff, I am just worried that without support, this little rag will vanish as has the woman's bookstores that use to be.

Elsie Publishing
EPI
PO Box 811
East
Lansing, Mi 48826
(517)371-5257 (M-F) noon- 6pm ET
elsiepub@aol.com

www.LConline.org

[*Anya*]

Originally Posted by OS Butch

Bringing this back up with a bigger font

Btw, Elsie Publishing Institute is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.

Currently, Ambitious Amazons is updating their Contact Dyke listing. If you want to be added to their list, do it before November 30. I am on their CD List

Lesbian Connection, aka LC, is a magazine I have subscribed to for years.
It arrives quarterly in my mailbox in an indiscreet manila envelope!
It is a quick read with only 50 pages. They are reprinting the series "Dykes to Watch out For"
The subscription fee is sliding scale free to anyone world wide and $42 suggested donation.
Donations and gift subscriptions are appreciated!
I am not on the staff, I am just worried that without support, this little rag will vanish as has the woman's bookstores that use to be.

Elsie Publishing
EPI
PO Box 811
East
Lansing, Mi 48826
(517)371-5257 (M-F) noon- 6pm ET
elsiepub@aol.com

www.LConline.org

Thanks OS,

I remember how many publications there were when I first came out that are now defunct. Lesbian Tide, Lesbian News, On Our Backs (one of my personal favorites, ahem...)

I made a contribution to the Connection.

Thanks for the reminder.