But I'm not a cynic. I'm more of a conspiracy theorist. I'm hoping there is a large, organized, well-financed gay agenda working tirelessly to ensure equality to all, regardless of sexual orientation. Maybe I just haven't moved high enough in the lesbian hierarchy to hear about it yet.
Meanwhile, my own personal gay agenda goes something like this: clean the cats' litter boxes, do grocery shopping, get the oil changed on my car, go to work, come home, feed the cats, write, go to bed. Pretty terrifying stuff, huh?
Do gays and lesbians want special rights?
It depends on what you call special rights. I want the right to marry the person I love. I want the right to be free from discrimination on the job. I want the right to walk down the street with my lover and not be harassed. I want the government to get the hell out of my bedroom and my body. If you consider these things special rights, I guess that's what I'm after.
What's with that little hatchet thingy?
That little "hatchet thingy" is a labyris, a double-bladed axe supposedly carried into battle by ancient female warriors. It has close associations with the Greek goddesses Artemis and Demeter and with the Amazons, a tribe of women renowned for their fearlessness in combat. Today, lesbians wear labyrises (labyrii?) on chains or earrings to symbolize power, strength, and female unity. Oh, and to tip off other lesbians about our sexual orientation. You can't put all your faith in gaydar!
Why do some lesbians wear pink or black triangles?
This is edging into some serious territory. During the Holocaust, the Nazis forced gay men to wear pink triangles and "socially unacceptable" women (i.e., lesbians, prostitutes, etc.) to wear black triangles. When the allied forces arrived to free the concentration camps, gay men were not liberated-they remained imprisoned to serve out the remainder of the sentences for their "crimes." Wearing these symbols is a way to honor and memorialize the 200,000+ lesbians and gay men who died during the Holocaust, and a way to remind ourselves never to forget how thin the veneer of civilization truly is...especially for an oppressed minority.
Do lesbians really hate men?
What would be the point of that? Being a lesbian is about loving women, not about hating anybody.
Besides, I probably enjoy men far more than most of the straight women I know. After all, I don't have to have sex with 'em.
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