WSW EDITORIAL
Lesbianism, though no longer the explosive and often bitterly divisive issue it was in the women's liberation movement of the late 60's and early 70's, still demands discussion, clarification, and ́understanding among all feminists. There is no one definitive statement of what it is to be a lesbian. Women approach lesbianism from a variety of perspectives: for many, it simply means women having sex with women; for some lesbian separatists, it means having relationships exclusively with other lesbians; for others, it means living women-centered lives, a vision that extends beyond the sexual identification of bed partners.
The third alternative is an ideal view that assumes the bonding of women with other women in love and
Features
A Conversation....
respect is primary in our work together. We are not only trying to open new possibilities for women in the world as it is but are also determined to create new worlds-where it would be inconceivable to see women as less than independent people, fully engaged in living out lives freely chosen. The rejection of sexual roles and what, for many women, are lifetimes lived in reaction to the expectations and dictates of our male-dominated culture is only possible if we look to ourselves and other women for our values.
We believe that any woman who responds to the ideals of feminism, however "straight" she perceives and defines her own sexuality, can in her own private moments of truth, understand and emphathize with
CONTENTS
Yvonne Wanrow: 7 Years Later.
Legal Rights....
8
4000
Viewpoints....
3
Bits & Pieces...
3
Cleveland Women's Groups..
13-14
News
Local
Clio's Musings...
13
Cleveland "Take Back the Night”.
2
Find It Fastest..
...back cover
Gaylor: Pro-Abortion Speaker...
2
Pro-Choice Demonstation in Cincinnati.
.2
Letters to WSW.......
2
Poetry...
10
State and National
What's Happening.
15
.
Legislative Update.....
Ohio Politicians on Choice...
Classified Ads..
14
Cover: Photo by Janet Century
What She Wants
What She Wants goes to production the middle of the month. Copy should be submitted the first week of the month so at we can discuss and edit collectively at our editorial meetings. Contact us for specific deadlines. Please print or type articles. Leave material in our mailbox (second floor of the White House, 2420 S. Taylor Rd. at Scarborough, Cleveland Hts.) or mail to WSW, P.O. Box 18465, Cleveland Hts., Ohio 44118.
WHAT SHE WANTS IS:
A MONTHLY NEWS JOURNAL PRODUCED FOR ALL WOMEN. We always like input from our readers in the form of articles, personal experiences, poetry, art, accouncements, and letters. We welcome women who are willing to help us in specific areas of the paper (writing, lay-out, advertising, distribution, publicity, etc.) and/or who are interested in our collective.
WHAT SHE WANTS ADVOCATES:
...equal and civil rights
...the right to earnings based on our need, merit, and interest ...access to job training, salaries, and promotions we choose
...the right to organize in unions and coalitions to advance our cause ...the right to decent health care and health information
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...the right to safe, effective birth control and to safe, legal abortions. ...the right to accept or reject motherhood
....the right to choose and express sexual preference without harassment .......access to quality education and freedom from prejudice in learning materials
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her lesbian sisters. Societal pressures make it very difficult for heterosexual women even to conceive of relating to women in sexual terms. Everywhere we turn in mainstream society we see heterosexual signposts pointing the way toward "acceptable" feelings and behavior. How precious little room there is for stretching our imaginations beyond the privacy of early memories, fantasies and dreams of women.
We all recognize our right to freedom from sexual harassment, psychological and physical abuse, and rape, our right to quality health care, control of our own bodies, and educational and job equality. But unless we include every woman's right to define herself as a lesbian politically, sexually, or spiritually, we have denied her the basic right to be herself.
We must break through the mutual fear and distrust between straight and lesbian women, and collectively reject those "shoulds" imposed upon all women by male values and systems.
The "special" problems lesbian women face are very similar to the problems straight women face when they "step out of line" in a male-dominated society. If a lesbian mother can be denied custody of her children because she openly expresses her affectional or sexual preference for another woman or women, how secure is a straight woman from a judge who does not personally approve of her sexual behavior? If a lesbian woman loses her job, how secure is a straight woman from a boss who does not approve of her response to his sexual harassment? If a lesbian woman suffers rejection from her family or others important to her, how secure is a straight woman who chooses to act on her own feelings or beliefs (e.g., rejection of "roles," marriage, motherhood)?
We must recognize that the right of a woman to express affectional and sexual preference as she chooses is fundamentally the same issue as that of reproductive control. The mentality that regards pregnancy as just punishment for sexual intercourse only serves to reinforce a woman's primary place in society as childbearer and childrearer. The effect is the confinement of our sexuality within culturally determined institutional relationships between women and men, that is, marriage and the family. This requirement that sexuality be exercised for the purpose of procreation clearly attaches a negative value to human sensual and sexual expression.
The ability of women to consider the possibility of affording women the love and respect now reserved for men in societally sanctioned relationships grants us the same status in society men have always enjoyed as autonomous beings worthy of love and respect. This possibility also implies a reorientation of sensuality and sexuality. Within a caring relationship, as an extension of respect and concern, sensual and sexual expression are an unfolding of human potential for communication, and that can only be positive.
WADDA HEAN YOU WONT KISS ME AKSE You HAVE NO INTEREST IN HANDSOME TRINGS
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WE ARE:
Carol Epstein, Linda Jane, Marycatherine Krause Gail Powers, Barb Reusch, Mary Walsh
FRIENDS OF THIS ISSUE:
Jenny Reece Aberdeen, Deb Adler, Terry Bullen, Janet Century, Paula Copestick, Jesse Epstein, Chris Guarnieri, Jan Held, Laura Kamlen, Christine Link, Randi Powers, Alexandria Ruden, C. B. Smithe, Gale Stone
What She Wants is pleased to announce that we are beginning our seventh year of publication. We wish to thank all those who have contributed to our success over the years, and we chcourage you to continue your support. If you do not have a subscription, buy one now. If you do have one, buy one for a friend. Support Cleveland's only women's newspaper!
Copyright
1979
June, 1979/What She Wants/Page 1