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Women-identified women

Geographic files (aka "Lesbians in...") from the Lesbian Herstory Archives

Also known as "Lesbians in ", the "Geo Files" have been collected since the Lesbian Herstory Archives opened its doors to visitors and researchers in 1976. The collection is ongoing and has been built up over the years with material from the world-wide lesbian community. Visitors from all over the globe have brought or sent in items, either a single article or a handful of materials from their home state or country, or that they picked up while traveling. The collection consists of city guides, maps, directories, event flyers, programs, calendars, handbills, local newsletters, and newspaper clippings. The Geo Files are arranged in two series: the U.S. files and the International files. The U.S. files are arranged alphabetically by state, and then within each state, by city or town. The international files consist of material from countries and regions outside the U.S. and are arranged alphabetically by the name of the country, and within that by cities or towns. The International files begin with Afghanistan and end with Zimbabwe. In addition, both the U.S. and International series contain a handful of regional files in cases where individual documents cover multiple states or countries (e.g., The South in the U.S. series and Asia in the International series). The Lesbian Herstory Archives (LHA) exists to gather and preserve records of Lesbian lives and activities so that future generations will have ready access to materials relevant to their lives. The process of gathering this material uncovers and collects herstory denied by patriarchal historians in the interests of the culture which they serve. The Lesbian Herstory Archives analyzes and reevaluates the Lesbian experience; it is hoped the existence of the Archives will encourage Lesbians to record their experiences in order to formulate a living herstory

Online Archives of Sexuality and Gender

My dangerous desires : a queer girl dreaming her way home

Amber L. Hollibaugh is a lesbian sex radical, ex-hooker, incest survivor, gypsy child, poor-white-trash, high femme dyke. She is also an award-winning filmmaker, feminist, Left political organiser, public speaker, and journalist. "My Dangerous Desires" presents over twenty years of Hollibaugh's writing, an introduction written especially for this book, and five new essays including "A Queer Girl Dreaming Her Way Home, " "My Dangerous Desires, " and "Sexuality, Labour, and the New Trade Unionism." In looking at themes such as the relationship between activism and desire or how sexuality can be intimately tied to one's class identity, Hollibaugh fiercely and fearlessly analyses her own political development as a response to her unique personal history. She explores the concept of labelling and the associated issues of categories such as butch or femme, transgender, bisexual, top or bottom, drag queen, b-girl, or drag king.The volume includes conversations with other writers, such as Deirdre English, Gayle Rubin, Jewelle Gomez, and Cherrie Moraga. From the groundbreaking article 'What We're Rollin' Around in Bed With' to the radical 'Sex Work Notes: Some Tensions of a Former Whore and a Practicing Feminist', Hollibaugh charges ahead to describe her reality, never flinching from the truth. Dorothy Allison's moving foreword pays tribute to a life lived in struggle by a working-class lesbian who, like herself, refuses to suppress her dangerous desires. Having informed many of the debates that have become central to gay and lesbian activism, Hollibaugh's work challenges her readers to speak, write, and record their desires - especially, perhaps, the most dangerous of them - 'in order for us all to survive'.