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Lesbian Activism and Crafted Fashion

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This chapter examines the intersection of craft, fashion and lesbian activism. From the knitted jumpers of Greenham Common Women’s Peace Camp to hand-printed tshirts preserved in the archive, crafted fashion has been a powerful tool for lesbian activists for decades. Using lesbian, feminist and queer symbolism like the labrys, the double venus, the pink triangle and the moon, hand crafting can construct specific meanings. This chapter reflects upon and analyses craft’s persevering presence in the lesbian activist’s historical wardrobe: how it can be used to show affiliation with a cause or community, as a means of affordably conveying a message, or to make lesbianism visible by using lesbian hands and skills.

Keywords: Bathroom Bill ; dress history ; fashion history ; Glasgow Women’s Library ; Greenham Common Women’s Peace Camp ; Jewish lesbians ; knitting ; lesbian craft ; lesbian fashion ; lesbian feminism ; lesbian style ; sapphic ; symbolism ; t-shirts ; transgender

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Lesbian Activism and Crafted Fashion
Intellect , 15 (2023); https://doi.org/10.1386/9781789387742_2
/content/books/9781789387742.c01
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References

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  2. Burkhardt, Anna . ( 2017;), ‘Research spotlight: The radical story behind the famous “The Future is Female” graphic t-shirt: An interview with photographer Liza Cowan’. , Medium, 7 December, https://medium.com/items/research-spotlight-the-radical-story-behind-the-famous-the-future-is-female-graphic-t-shirt-accdbbe37b65. Accessed 6 September 2021 .
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  4. Kopytoff, Igor . ( 1986), ‘The cultural biography of things: Commoditization as process’. , in A. Appadurai . (ed.), The Social Life of Things: Commodities in Cultural Perspective, Cambridge:: Cambridge University Press;, pp. 64–92.29
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  5. Lesperance, Ellen . ( 2020), Velvet Fist, Baltimore:: Creative Print Group;.
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  6. Lesperance, Ellen . ( 2021a), Will There Be Womanly Times?, exhibition catalogue, Hollybush Gardens Gallery, London, 1 July–11 September.
  7. Lesperance, Ellen . ( 2021b), Will There Be Womanly Times?, exhibition, Hollybush Gardens Gallery, London, 1 July–11 September.
  8. Maltz, Robin . ( 1999;), ‘Toward a Dyke Discourse’. , The Journal of Lesbian Studies, 3:3, pp. 83–92.
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  9. Neal, Lynn S. . ( 2014;), ‘The ideal democratic apparel: t-shirts, religious intolerance, and the clothing of democracy’. , Material Religion: The Journal of Objects, Art and Belief, 10:2, pp. 182–207.
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  10. Parker, Rozsika . ([ 1984] 2010), The Subversive Stitch: Embroidery and the Making of the Feminine, New York:: I.B. Tauris;.
     [Google Scholar]
  11. Penney, Joel . ( 2013;), ‘Eminently visible: The role of t-shirts in gay and lesbian public advocacy and community building’. , Popular Communication: The International Journal of Media and Culture, 4:11, pp. 289–302.
     [Google Scholar]
  12. Pye, Bel . (@clochpei) ( 2017), ‘Look it's a tee shirt I did!! Hens Tae Watch Oot Fur! is a zine from @gwlkettle I can't recommend enough (not just cos I'm in it. Honest)’, Twitter, 24 February, https://twitter.com/clochpei/status/835242105580707840/photo/1. Accessed 6 September 2021 .
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     [Google Scholar]
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     [Google Scholar]
  15. Wednesday . ( 2008;), ‘Freaky Hands: A Phenomenological Reflection on Lesbian Hands’. , Journal of Lesbian Studies, 12:4, pp. 399–402.
     [Google Scholar]

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