My response to Kate Kendall's National Center for Lesbian Rights on Facebook for not putting Lesbians First and Foremost on their agenda

,January 11 Tara, and Gallus Mag, you give me hope. I have seen over and over again where NCLR only gives it's attentions to the most high profile cases, lesbians with children ignoring those of us who choose not to have children or procreate or adopt.... While I do appreciate all the marriage equality work NCLR has done, and was in the courtroom for Shannon Minter's arguement for us, and many more Lesbians married than gay men or anybody else in the queer community, and also handsome Butch Lesbian Therese Stuart also argued for us both times(SF assistant DA), we won in 2008, and again in this current case....the arguements were compelling against the rightwing, I DO appreciate NCLR for that, so I could continue to be married to my Lesbian spouse.....

However, as ordinary OUT Butch Lesbians, we've both been terribly discriminated against in our jobs and BOTH of us throughout the years have desparately called NCLR to advocate for us and they simply could not be bothered. They also have a Transgender Law Center directly under their purview, and it seems that transgender cases have become frankly more important than Lesbian cases. I do not recognize born males as Lesbians. They are socialized as men, and take privileges for themselves and treat Lesbians once they come into our communities in the same manner they treated their former wives and girlfriends. It also saddens me how many Butch Lesbians are
transitioning right and left as the culture becomes more conservative and more 'queerified' that the bite has gone out of Lesbian culture and into Trans and gay male culture.....thus disappearing our most obvious handsome Butch Lesbians for the passing that happens through transition. A very small handful might be FTM, but for most it's a dangerous, dangerous trend, and there are those who regret what they've done, but it is highly hidden by the trans movement. Many Butches are being pressured to transition, and I hear of them talk of it frequently. Our Lesbian and women only spaces are being erased at an alarming rate to cater to those who consider themselves 'male'. But how 'male' can you be if you INSIST on staying in Lesbian/women's spaces and thus coopting them? Or is part of NCLR's agenda to erase our sacred women only and Lesbian only spaces too through trans lawsuits against us, and against women's colleges?(When those who become FTM INSIST on staying in a women only college, or a 51 year old male who just got out of the Navy decides he's now 'a woman' wants to stay in a female only dorm with those who are in their teens or early 20's).

I'd like to see NCLR concentrate and focus first and foremost on ALL Lesbians rights and especially for us Butches as well, and on the job rights particularly. Whether it be the myriads of Lesbian tradeswomen who face discrimination everyday, Butches, ect.....or other fields..
BEFORE giving other communities the preferred attention.

Like I mentioned elsewhere, a butch dyke won a case in San Francisco against Harley Davidson because she considered herself 'transgender', and got the support of your and other groups...but an ordinary Lesbian won't get your attention if she does NOT consider herself transgender or transsexual.

There are those of us who are Female Identified Butch Lesbians wanting to counter this self hatred so many young butch/masculine females have against their bodies and selves because of sexism, and we are creating OUR OWN Lesbian positive organizations and groups to counter these negative trends and messages...we are RISING!



-FeistyAmazon
Our own Female Identified Butch Dyke groups and events and organizations to counter the messages coming out of the trans community, so Butches of all ages can feel proud in their Female bodies AS BUTCHES, and AS DYKES. Will NCLR stand with us, or against us???