Lesbian Connection Magazine, "the Longest-running Periodical for Lesbians in the US", 8 Issues, 1976-84

Lesbian Connection Archive

Periodical

Early publications of Lesbian Connection, the lesbian feminist periodical archive of 8 issues spanning 1976 to 1984, documenting the growth of Lesbian Connection as a national communications network built through reader correspondence, movement announcements, cultural listings, and by mail distribution. The magazine connected readers beyond the major urban centers served by bookstores, bars, and established gay organizations. Founded in 1974 by the Ambitious Amazons at the Helen Diner Memorial Women's Center in East Lansing, Michigan, Lesbian Connection became the longest running grassroots periodical created by and for lesbians in the United States, functioning largely without editorial staff, relying almost entirely upon subscriber contributions, correspondence, and community reporting. These eight early run issues show the publication while its national network was still being established through Contact Dykes listings and reader letters, and the contents document early intersectional debates over race within lesbian feminism, and hold references and recommendations to other materials produced by the lesbian feminist movement during the late 1970s.

Lesbian Connection. East Lansing, Michigan: Ambitious Amazons, 1976 to 1984. Eight issues, illustrated self wrappers, quarto digest, varied pages.

[1] Lesbian Connection. Vol. II, Issue 5. September 1976. News on lesbian conferences and events, articles on motherhood and custody, reader submitted fiction.
[2] Lesbian Connection. Winter Supplement. Winter 1977. Illustrated issue including lesbian artists, profiles, and other lesbian businesses and events.
[3] Lesbian Connection. Vol. IV, Issue 1. May 1978. Article on how to perform routine car maintenance, debate on "Transexualism", and book reviews.
[4] Lesbian Connection. Winter Supplement. Winter 1978/1979. Illustrated issue including lesbian artists, profiles, and other lesbian businesses and events.
[5] Lesbian Connection. Vol. V, Issue 3. September 1981. News of library set fire, criticism on diets, lesbian directory, and reader letters.
[6] Lesbian Connection. Vol. V, Issue 4. May 1982. Articles titled "Playboy's Feminism?," "Dykes for Sobriety," "Going to Have a Baby," and "Fat Liberation -- Two Lesbians Speak."
[7] Lesbian Connection. Vol. V, Issue 5. July 1982. Articles titled "Nuclear Realities," "Often-Asked Legal Questions," "Zionism: A Strategy for Jewish Survival," and "Statement to a Racism Workshop."
[8] Lesbian Connection. Vol. VI, Issue 6. February to March 1984. Articles titled "Lesbians of Color Gather in Malibu, CA," "A Theory on Violence Between Womyn," ads and announcements, and reader letters.

Lesbian Connection functioned as a decentralized communication system through which readers exchanged housing, travel assistance, political organizing, personal correspondence, employment information, conferences, and local news. The Contact Dykes directory became one of the publication's defining features, connecting volunteer hosts across North America and beyond who offered travelers lodging, transportation, and introductions to local communities. Light toning and handling wear, original mailing labels on rear covers, occasional pen and pencil notation, primarily in the May 1978 issue, staples sound. Overall very good condition. The archive documents lesbian communities and how the Lesbian Connection helped to build national networks of communication, political debate, travel, publishing, and mutual aid during the formative years of the American lesbian feminist movement.

Item #23721

Price: $885.00