Historically, many lesbians have been involved in women's rights. Late in the 19th century, the term Boston marriage was used to describe romantic unions between women living together, often while contributing to the suffrage movement.
Same sex marraige has now been legalized in Netherlands, Spain, Belgium, Canada, and South Africa but it is still not permitted by many countries. Continuing this tradition of inclusive acceptance, in 2004 Massachusetts became the first American state to legalize same-sex marriages.[31]
During the 1970s and 80s, with the emergence of modern feminism and the radical feminism movement, lesbian separatism became popular and groups of lesbian women gathered together to live in communal societies. Women such as Kathy Rudy in Radical Feminism, Lesbian Separatism, and Queer Theory remarked that, in her experience, stereotypes and the hierarchies to reinforce them developed in the lesbian separatist collective she lived in, ultimately leading her to leave the group.
During the 1990s, dozens of chapters of Lesbian Avengers were formed to press for lesbian visibility and rights. |
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