On WMST-L (a large Women’s Studies Listserv with over 5,000 members from around the Globe) there has been a thread with quite a few responses about the so-called issue of “lesbian erasure.” Apparently, some radical lesbian feminists feel that their work and legacy has been erased and nobody wants to talk about their 1970s and 1980s tomes any more. What this is REALLY about, of course, is hatred: hatred for trans women, hatred for sex workers, hatred for third wave… Read more.
Be a Trans Advocate
Posts by Joelle
Posts by Joelle
One of the things that has irked me about the renewed “debates” about women-only space is that the defenders of “womyn-born-womyn” (WBW) policies keep utilizing specious counter-examples to try to defend their position. For example, those of us who are criticizing a non-inclusive women’s space are asked: “would you critique a transgender-only space? No??? You’re a hypocrite!” Apparently those who espouse this position need a reminder of Social Justice 101. Women-only space is necessary. Women are oppressed under the patriarchy,… Read more.
Feminism Must Be Led by Love, or Not At All
April 2, 2012 · Joelle
Recently, I have experienced a round of attacks by some radical-identified feminists and lesbian feminists for my writings and transgender advocacy. There is a long history of conflict between transgender/transsexual people, especially trans women, and radical feminists and lesbian feminists that dates back beginning in the 1970s. The pinnacle of this battle was when lesbian feminist Janice Raymond published her notorious book The Transsexual Empire: The Making of the She-Male in 1979. For nearly 15 years, Raymond’s anti-transsexual screed often… Read more.
No, I Still Won’t be Watching “Dancing With The Stars” (With or Without Chaz Bono)
September 5, 2011 · Joelle
It is beyond sad that some people, trans and non-trans alike, think that Chaz Bono’s upcoming appearance on the stupid reality show “Dancing with the Stars” amounts to anything more than a hill of beans. As trans people suffer tremendously from systemic and institutionalized discrimination and oppression (alongside many non-trans people) the trans “issue du jour” (after Lady Gaga’s appearance in male drag on the VMAs…yawn) is the fact that D-list “celebrity” Chaz Bono has been offered a slot on… Read more.
Why I Love Cross-Dressers
September 3, 2011 · Joelle
Photo by: Mariette Pathy Allen Readers of this Blog may remember a while back that I did a post called Why I Love Fat People. In simple 1-10 list form, it catalogued many of the reasons why I love Fat Folks. In this post, I am going to discuss why I love Cross-Dressers, primarily because I am incredibly sick of the Cross-Dresser bashing I have seen all over the Internet in recent months. 1. I love Cross-Dressers because I love… Read more.
ARE YOU A MAN OR A WOMAN?
August 28, 2011 · Joelle
I have awoken multiple times from a nightmare hearing this phrase screamed at me over and over again. Whether awake or asleep, it echoes over and over and over again through my brain. It is like machine-gun fire, ricocheting through my body with unbelievable velocity. It is a question that will probably follow me throughout my entire life. Yesterday, I was walking out of the mall to go and catch the bus. A group of people apparently had quite a… Read more.
I was absolutely horrified, but sadly not surprised, to read about the treatment of Lashai Mclean at her own funeral. The article “Mass Walk-Out at Trans Woman’s Funeral” discusses how the minister presiding over the funeral engaged in victim-blaming and typical religious fundamentalism about “the wages of sin” to effectively dishonor and disrespect the memory of a trans woman who had been viciously murdered in a probable hate crime. At her OWN FUNERAL. What the case shows to me, is… Read more.