The statement, issued on the occasion of International Lesbian Visibility Day, underlines the importance of enhancing the visibility of lesbian identity and defending lesbian rights. The day, established in 2008, also aims to address the social exclusion lesbians continue to experience.
The statement notes that lesbians face not only gender oppression but also discrimination based on their sexual orientation, within a patriarchal system that defines the value of femininity in relation to men. Their experiences, it stresses, are often silenced, resulting in limited and controlled visibility, while lesbian identity is often represented through the prism of objectification.
Mera25 said it stands with lesbians fighting for equality, visibility and freedom, stressing the need for a world without discrimination, oppression and lesbophobia, where every person can live and love without fear.
The statement by the Gender Equality and LGBTQI+ Sector of Mera25 reads:
International Lesbian Visibility Day is marked every year on 26 April. The aim of this day, which was established in 2008, is to enhance the visibility of lesbian identity, defend lesbian rights and address social exclusion.
Under patriarchy, lesbians have to face not only gender oppression but also social exclusion because of their sexual orientation. Within the patriarchal system, the value of every femininity is determined through its relationship with the male gender. Lesbian experiences are often silenced, resulting in their visibility remaining fragmented and controlled by the dominant narrative. At the same time, lesbian identity is represented through its objectification by the male gaze.
Today, we honour the lesbian activists of the Stonewall uprising; the lesbians of the ‘Blood Sisters’ movement, who played a decisive role during the HIV/AIDS crisis by offering their time and blood to help those in need; the pioneering activist of intersectional feminism and philosopher Audre Lorde, who defined herself as ‘Black, lesbian, mother, warrior, poet’; and the lesbian activists of the British organisation Lesbians and Gays Support the Miners (LGSM), which was founded to provide financial and moral support to striking miners in their struggle against the Thatcher government.
As the Gender Equality and LGBTQI+ Sector of Mera25, we stand with lesbians fighting for equality, visibility and freedom. We fight alongside them for a world without discrimination, oppression and lesbophobia, where they can live and love without fear.
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