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Ain't I A Woman? newspapers, June 1970-July 1971

1970-10-30 "Ain't I a Woman?" Page 3

Sappho was a right on woman

The weekend of Oct. 9-10 five members of the gay cell of women's liberation in Iowa City attended the midwest Gay Liberation conference in Minneapolis sponsored by FREE, Freedom from Repression of Erotic Expression. We knew that some women in the gay women's liberation there were going to try to get the women together separately. We arrived in the hall at which the meetings were to take place to witness a typical interchange. The males had just asked the gay sisters how they wished to relate to the conference and while the sisters were getting ready to speak to this, the men began to discuss women's oppression and how they can relate to it. We could say nothing. The sisters from Iowa City exchanged glances that said this is why we want to meet with the women alone. 
   The women adjourned to a day care center on another floor to decide how we wanted to relate to the conference. Some wanted to meet with the men; others did not. The women that were in mixed gay liberation groups felt a strong bond with their gat brothers stemming from their common oppression. The Iowa City sisters thought that it could benefit only the men to meet in mixed groups -- it would do nothing to bring women together. We felt lesbianism was not a priority of the males that made up a good majority of the conference and that we would not be able to participate fully. Homosexual and lesbian experience are very different, especially when lesbian oppression is seen as an integral part of women's oppression. The women decided to meet separately all weekend at a near by women's collective and that those who wanted to were to meet with the males at 10:30 Sun. to help them deal with their sexism. 
   It was around noon on Sat. when all the women got to the collective. There were about 25 of us all crammed into the livingroom. We went around the room with everyone saying their name, where they were from, and what they wanted to talk about. There were women from Minneapolis, St. Paul, Dekalb Ill, Laurence Kansas, Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Louis, and Iowa City. We broke up into three small groups with each town represented and talked all afternoon until we had sandwiches at 4:00. 
   We talked about how or whether butch/fem relationships are oppressive, working in mixed gay liberation groups, consciousness raising, helping gay people with gay problems, the situation and experience of older lesbians, the revolutionary people's constitutional convention, the position of bisexual women, psychiatry, the oppression of people who are considered ugly by society, sisterhood, the problems in trying to make relationships more collective, and gay women's collectives. In these groups and throughout the weekend we were struck by the strong feeling of warmth and sisterhood. 
   After eating the sandwiches we all met together to discuss the revolutionary people's constitutional convention, how we wanted to relate to it and have the gay liberation movement relate to it. We formulated two demands which we presented to the male homosexuals: 1. That in their delegation to the convention, GLF make there priorities those of third world peoples, women and lesbians. 2. That for every male homosexual on the delegation there be two lesbians and third world women. 
   A group of about ten of us drove to where the men were meeting to present the demands. We were to be there at 5:00, the time arranged that morning. The men were sitting in a large group discussing racism. the third world gay revolutionaries had felt the need to caucus because of the racism in the group and had confronted the white males with their racism. As we walked in a group of males left saying it was time for a coffee break. We stood there in a group waiting to be recognized. They asked if we wanted to join their discussion on racism. We said no and that we had talked about it separately and had come only to present to them our decision on the revolutionary peoples constitutional convention. We still were not recognized by the chair so during a silence we began reading our demands What ensued, whether intentional or not, was a case of racism being used to divide black males and white females who basically understood each other pretty well, but who lacked the tools to control the situation. (We were called racists many times by the white males, but not once by the black males.) Later, the gay liberation organization accepted our demands. 
   When we returned to the women’s collective, we discussed how we could have been more together in our confrontation. The confrontation alienated several women who work within FREE, and some sisters felt that if we had stuck to our original idea of just presenting the demands with no discussion, their anger could have been prevented. Women must be strong when confronting male groups because the males will bring up issues that attempt to divide women against each other by class, race, or threatening us with our abnormality because our non-acceptance of the heterosexual norm.
   Saturday night we all went to Honey’s, a lesbian bar. When we walked in Honey shouted “How many of you are from Women’s Lib?”. We all raised our fists. It was a wonderful welcome. We’d never been to a gay bar that had such a sense of community. The atmosphere wasn’t competitive, not much role playing, not tough or uptight, no one was hassled, quite a few

[photo of young girls]

older people, and the women there felt free enough to dress like men if they wanted to. While they were dancing, the women would sing together the defiant phrases: “let me be myself”, “I am gay”, and “we shall overcome”. About 15 of us danced in a big circle with our arms on each others shoulders to’ What have they done to my song’. We got high from the sisterhood of it.
   Thethe conference was a good experience and we made new friends. A community of mid-western gay women is developing and we may hold a retreat at thanksgiving time. We think this would be a good idea that it would solve the major problem the conference had—male domination. Half the short time we had together was spent talking about men, problems of women in mixed GLF groups and how we should relate to the FREE conference going on around us. Although we realize the need of gay women to do consciousness raising on their relationships to men, we also realize that women are afraid to confront themselves by relating to other women and so tend to talk about men. Women need to get themselves together so we can relate to each other without distraction and get on with the business of defining our own needs and building a strong women’s movement.

REBIRTH

   Last night I was driving alone. I had just spent three days at a Gay Liberation Conference in Minneapolis with part of the gay cell from Iowa City WLF. This was the first conference of any type for me; I’m only 1 month old/new.
   One month ago I entered a Women’s Liberation Collective merely fulfilling a weekly favor to a friend in relation to my job. I entered both apprehensive and curious. I left feeling the same. The next week after thinking things over for 5 days, returned less apprehensive, but just as curious. After fulfilling my weekly duty, I decided to stay another day in order to talk to the women who weren’t there and would be returning the following day. The day was filled with housley duties I normally would appall, but because they were done collectively I wanted to help. During these days, I listened to the various discussions and talked to several individuals. This time I left very reluctantly. My reason for going every week had folded, so two weeks passed before I decided to go back. I really missed the sense of community and sisterhood the women in the collective offered, fulfilled, and instilled in me each and their own and individual way. This particular week-End I found myself ACTUALLY GOING to a Gay Liberation Conference. (Don’t miss the write-up about it.)
   Ever since, I’ve been trying to decide how I could possibly describe the way I was feeling that evening when I left the sisters and Iowa City and returnED to the straight and narrow. Like most things beautiful, it’s next to impossible to express an emotion in words. The closest I can come is contained in the work “rebirth.” Think about the days and years before you were born or the months in your mother’s womb. (Take a minute to really think about them)----------- Do you miss them? This is the way I feel about the years before Women’s Liberation. Actually, I don’t feel anything about them except wonderment at how many days and years passed without any consciousness on my part about ALL the oppressed women in the world.
   Now take two minutes to think about the days and years after your death and the unborn sisters to come. ----------- It will be all over for us then, so these are the moments, days, and years that matter. I feel like standing up and shouting I’M ALIVE AND I LOVE YOU. Do it to the next woman you see, look at her face, and you’ll know how oppressed we’ve been.
   I’m sure the women already in Women’s Liberation have felt this sense of rebirth at one time or another, so I’m writing this to express my deep gratification to them and to YOU who aren’t in the Women’s Liberation Front. Investigate, talk, think, but most important of all, don’t be afraid of it. WE’RE ALIVE AND WE LOVE YOU.

A Woman?  October 30,1970   3

Saving...

Sappho was a right on woman The weekend of Oct. 9-10 five members of the gay cell of women's liberation in Iowa City attended the midwest Gay Liberation conference in Minneapolis sponsored by FREE, Freedom from Repression of Erotic Expression. We knew that some women in the gay women's liberation there were going to try to get the women together separately. We arrived in the hall at which the meetings were to take place to witness a typical interchange. The males had just asked the gay sisters how they wished to relate to the conference and while the sisters were getting ready to speak to this, the men began to discuss women's oppression and how they can relate to it. We could say nothing. The sisters from Iowa City exchanged glances that said this is why we want to meet with the women alone. The women adjourned to a day care center on another floor to decide how we wanted to relate to the conference. Some wanted to meet with the men; others did not. The women that were in mixed gay liberation groups felt a strong bond with their gat brothers stemming from their common oppression. The Iowa City sisters thought that it could benefit only the men to meet in mixed groups -- it would do nothing to bring women together. We felt lesbianism was not a priority of the males that made up a good majority of the conference and that we would not be able to participate fully. Homosexual and lesbian experience are very different, especially when lesbian oppression is seen as an integral part of women's oppression. The women decided to meet separately all weekend at a near by women's collective and that those who wanted to were to meet with the males at 10:30 Sun. to help them deal with their sexism. It was around noon on Sat. when all the women got to the collective. There were about 25 of us all crammed into the livingroom. We went around the room with everyone saying their name, where they were from, and what they wanted to talk about. There were women from Minneapolis, St. Paul, Dekalb Ill, Laurence Kansas, Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Louis, and Iowa City. We broke up into three small groups with each town represented and talked all afternoon until we had sandwiches at 4:00. We talked about how or whether butch/fem relationships are oppressive, working in mixed gay liberation groups, consciousness raising, helping gay people with gay problems, the situation and experience of older lesbians, the revolutionary people's constitutional convention, the position of bisexual women, psychiatry, the oppression of people who are considered ugly by society, sisterhood, the problems in trying to make relationships more collective, and gay women's collectives. In these groups and throughout the weekend we were struck by the strong feeling of warmth and sisterhood. After eating the sandwiches we all met together to discuss the revolutionary people's constitutional convention, how we wanted to relate to it and have the gay liberation movement relate to it. We formulated two demands which we presented to the male homosexuals: 1. That in their delegation to the convention, GLF make there priorities those of third world peoples, women and lesbians. 2. That for every male homosexual on the delegation there be two lesbians and third world women. A group of about ten of us drove to where the men were meeting to present the demands. We were to be there at 5:00, the time arranged that morning. The men were sitting in a large group discussing racism. the third world gay revolutionaries had felt the need to caucus because of the racism in the group and had confronted the white males with their racism. As we walked in a group of males left saying it was time for a coffee break. We stood there in a group waiting to be recognized. They asked if we wanted to join their discussion on racism. We said no and that we had talked about it separately and had come only to present to them our decision on the revolutionary peoples constitutional convention. We still were not recognized by the chair so during a silence we began reading our demands What ensued, whether intentional or not, was a case of racism being used to divide black males and white females who basically understood each other pretty well, but who lacked the tools to control the situation. (We were called racists many times by the white males, but not once by the black males.) Later, the gay liberation organization accepted our demands. When we returned to the women’s collective, we discussed how we could have been more together in our confrontation. The confrontation alienated several women who work within FREE, and some sisters felt that if we had stuck to our original idea of just presenting the demands with no discussion, their anger could have been prevented. Women must be strong when confronting male groups because the males will bring up issues that attempt to divide women against each other by class, race, or threatening us with our abnormality because our non-acceptance of the heterosexual norm. Saturday night we all went to Honey’s, a lesbian bar. When we walked in Honey shouted “How many of you are from Women’s Lib?”. We all raised our fists. It was a wonderful welcome. We’d never been to a gay bar that had such a sense of community. The atmosphere wasn’t competitive, not much role playing, not tough or uptight, no one was hassled, quite a few [photo of young girls] older people, and the women there felt free enough to dress like men if they wanted to. While they were dancing, the women would sing together the defiant phrases: “let me be myself”, “I am gay”, and “we shall overcome”. About 15 of us danced in a big circle with our arms on each others shoulders to’ What have they done to my song’. We got high from the sisterhood of it. Thethe conference was a good experience and we made new friends. A community of mid-western gay women is developing and we may hold a retreat at thanksgiving time. We think this would be a good idea that it would solve the major problem the conference had—male domination. Half the short time we had together was spent talking about men, problems of women in mixed GLF groups and how we should relate to the FREE conference going on around us. Although we realize the need of gay women to do consciousness raising on their relationships to men, we also realize that women are afraid to confront themselves by relating to other women and so tend to talk about men. Women need to get themselves together so we can relate to each other without distraction and get on with the business of defining our own needs and building a strong women’s movement. REBIRTH Last night I was driving alone. I had just spent three days at a Gay Liberation Conference in Minneapolis with part of the gay cell from Iowa City WLF. This was the first conference of any type for me; I’m only 1 month old/new. One month ago I entered a Women’s Liberation Collective merely fulfilling a weekly favor to a friend in relation to my job. I entered both apprehensive and curious. I left feeling the same. The next week after thinking things over for 5 days, returned less apprehensive, but just as curious. After fulfilling my weekly duty, I decided to stay another day in order to talk to the women who weren’t there and would be returning the following day. The day was filled with housley duties I normally would appall, but because they were done collectively I wanted to help. During these days, I listened to the various discussions and talked to several individuals. This time I left very reluctantly. My reason for going every week had folded, so two weeks passed before I decided to go back. I really missed the sense of community and sisterhood the women in the collective offered, fulfilled, and instilled in me each and their own and individual way. This particular week-End I found myself ACTUALLY GOING to a Gay Liberation Conference. (Don’t miss the write-up about it.) Ever since, I’ve been trying to decide how I could possibly describe the way I was feeling that evening when I left the sisters and Iowa City and returnED to the straight and narrow. Like most things beautiful, it’s next to impossible to express an emotion in words. The closest I can come is contained in the work “rebirth.” Think about the days and years before you were born or the months in your mother’s womb. (Take a minute to really think about them)----------- Do you miss them? This is the way I feel about the years before Women’s Liberation. Actually, I don’t feel anything about them except wonderment at how many days and years passed without any consciousness on my part about ALL the oppressed women in the world. Now take two minutes to think about the days and years after your death and the unborn sisters to come. ----------- It will be all over for us then, so these are the moments, days, and years that matter. I feel like standing up and shouting I’M ALIVE AND I LOVE YOU. Do it to the next woman you see, look at her face, and you’ll know how oppressed we’ve been. I’m sure the women already in Women’s Liberation have felt this sense of rebirth at one time or another, so I’m writing this to express my deep gratification to them and to YOU who aren’t in the Women’s Liberation Front. Investigate, talk, think, but most important of all, don’t be afraid of it. WE’RE ALIVE AND WE LOVE YOU. A Woman? October 30,1970 3