By Ann E. Menasche
This piece is the opinion of the author and does not necessarily represent the opinion of Feminists in Struggle as an organization
Lesbian existence is fundamentally about women’s autonomy and independence from men- the freedom to say “no” to men and to say “yes” to other women. Both are acts of resistance that are deeply stigmatized and often severely punished. Without the freedom to be an open lesbian, there can be no women’s liberation.
From the early days of the Second Wave, some feminists did the work of the patriarchy – silencing, excluding and disappearing lesbians.
It happened once again at the nation
al conference of the National Organization for Women (NOW) held in Alexandria, Virginia, June 25th to 27th 2026. About 200 people, mostly women, attended the conference in person, and a couple of dozen attended remotely.
At the Conference, lesbians who met in caucus to demand the basic right to meet together and self-organize as lesbians in women- only spaces (apart from males, whatever their “gender identity”) were treated abysmally. They were disrespected, yelled at, called “TERFS” – an anti-lesbian, anti-feminist slur – accused of “discrimination” and verbally abused.
The lesbian caucus proposed a resolution calling on NOW to support Lesbian-only spaces. The resolution read in part, “WHEREAS, lesbians have a right to define their sexual orientation on the basis of same sex attraction…WHEREAS the sex-based rights of lesbians includes the freedom to assemble and to organize on the basis of their common same sex sexual orientation…THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the National Organization for Women (NOW) reaffirms its solidarity in standing with lesbians when lesbians seek to create sex-segregated spaces to gather to discuss their lives in safety and mutual support.”
The leadership of NOW pulled all stops to make sure this resolution did not reach the floor for a vote. Gender ideologues have captured most of NOW’s leadership and part of its membership. There are, of course, dissenters, but at least until recently, they have been terrified of speaking out and facing the fury of witch-hunters who not only ostracize apostates but destroy jobs and livelihoods, and threaten or even carry out physical assaults. The true believers at the Conference, in an apparently coordinated fashion, spent substantial time challenging every resolution and bylaw that came before the body, nitpicking every word and phrase in an attempt to take up as much time as possible.
Exactly twelve minutes before the time the conference was set to close, the delegates finally began to address the lesbian resolution. After a couple of lesbians including myself spoke in favor, one woman asked “what about transwomen, are they to be included in these spaces since they are lesbians too?” Then a motion was made to table the resolution “indefinitely”, which is not even possible under Roberts Rules. That motion was defeated. The resolution itself was now ready to be voted on. It was exactly 4:00 p.m., the time the Convention was scheduled to end. Voting would have taken two to three minutes, done quickly by raising hands and credentials, as it had throughout the day. However, the chair, NOW President Kim Villanueva, closed the meeting and called my motion to allow the vote to proceed “out of order.” The message was that lesbians, at least those who stand up for their community, are not truly welcome in NOW.
Lesbians have always fought back. In May of 1970, lesbians attending the Second Congress to Unite Women were sick of being forced into the closet, and the exclusion of lesbian issues from the movement. They took over the stage, unveiled “lavender menace” tee-shirts, and demanded recognition of lesbian issues as part and parcel of the struggle for women’s liberation.
For a time, the women’s movement embraced its lesbian sisters. No longer. The misogyny and homophobia of gender identity ideology has assigned lesbians to irrelevance and conspired to our complete erasure. For if men can be lesbians, there ARE no lesbians!
But our little group of lesbians and radical feminist allies, many defiantly sporting their own Lavender Menace tee-shirts at the Conference, have just begun to fight to take our movement back. THE LAVENDER MENACE SHALL RISE AGAIN!
