As the Second Wave Feminist Movement gained momentum, women and especially lesbians saw how their history had been forgotten and began asking: how do we preserve our legacy? As Joan Nestle, a lesbian writer and activist stated: \u201cwithout our memories we are in an endless prison\u201d (Hodges 13). Lesbian authors wrote about the erasure of their stories and other oppressions. Lesbian activists began creating archives to preserve these works and their history. One of the authors that contributed to this body of lesbian writing is Cher\u2019rie Moraga. Her poem \u201cIt\u2019s the Poverty\u201d explores how the intersection of race, class, sexuality and gender affects one\u2019s experiences. Sleeping beauty: a lesbian fairy tale, written by Vicki Gabriner and published by Sojourner Truth Press in 1971, continues this exploration of lesbian identity by shifting the well-known heterosexual love story to a lesbian one. These revolutionary poems and stories are conserved in archives across the country, such as the Lesbian Herstory Archives in Brooklyn, NY. The mission of the Archives, as stated by the mission statement on their website, is \u201cto gather and preserve records of Lesbian lives and activities,\u201d which \u201censures future generations will have ready access to materials relevant to their lives\u201d (Lesbian Herstory Archives). The creation and memorialization of lesbian history is vital to the movement because it unites generations of lesbians in their fight to be heard.<\/p>\n
—Jocelyn Bliven<\/p>\n
Inside the Lesbian Herstory Archives: Interview with Joan Nestle and Deborah Edel<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s the Poverty\u201d by Cher\u2019rie Moraga<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cWhat Does It Take?” by Cher\u2019rie Moraga<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cEdward the Dyke\u201d by Judy Grahn<\/a><\/p>\n Sleeping Beauty: a lesbian fairy tale<\/em> by Vicki Gabriner<\/a><\/p>\n Works Cited:<\/p>\n Hodges, Beth. \u201cAn Interview with Joan and Deborah of the Lesbian Herstory Archives.\u201d Sinister Wisdom, no. 11, Oct. 1979, pp. 3-13, https:\/\/jstor.org\/stable\/10.2307\/community.28044739.<\/p>\n Lesbian Herstory Archives, https:\/\/lesbianherstoryarchives.org\/. Accessed 09 November 2021.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" As the Second Wave Feminist Movement gained momentum, women and especially lesbians saw how their history had been forgotten and began asking: how do we preserve our legacy? As Joan Nestle, a lesbian writer and activist stated: \u201cwithout our memories … Continue reading