Butch Is Not a Dirty Word

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Butch is Not a Dirty Word
Butch is Not a Dirty Word June 2020 Issue 7 Cover.png
Issue 7 cover
EditorEsther Godoy
FrequencyBiannually
First issueMarch 2017
Based in Melbourne, Australia
Website www.butchisnotadirtyword.com
OCLC 988027677

Butch is Not a Dirty Word (BINADW) is an Australian biannual magazine for butch lesbians and their supporters, the only magazine in the world specifically dedicated to gender nonconforming women. The magazine's motto is "A queer magazine for butch dykes, butch lesbians, butch women, trans butches, non-binary butches & all those who love them."

Contents

History

The magazine was founded in Melbourne, Australia, in March 2017 as a not-for-profit project dedicated to butch lesbians and "masculine-of-center" women in Australia and throughout the world. The magazine is edited by pro-skateboarder Esther Godoy and was inspired by the San Francisco photographer Meg Allen's photo series "Butch". Godoy has said her experience of emigrating from Melbourne to Portland, Oregon, helped inspire her to create the magazine, because it was in Portland that she first felt accepted as a butch lesbian. [1] The magazine aims to reclaim the word "butch", provide more positive representation for butch lesbians and masculine-presenting women, and expand the butch lesbian community in Australia. [2]

Godoy has stated that the purpose of Butch Is Not A Dirty Word is about: [3]

breaking up the ideal that masculinity and femininity have to belong to male or female. Female masculinity is just as valid as male masculinity. It’s not really bound to your sex or gender. Yet it’s surprising how much of a taboo it still is, when you look like a guy but you’re a girl.

BINADW aims to combat lesbian invisibility and dispel the lesbophobic and ageist "old butch dyke" trope that associates being butch with "aggression, ugliness, and loneliness." [4] Godoy said this was a common stereotype where she grew up and it was especially painful because this stereotyping and rejection came from inside the queer community. BINADW uses stories and photos to provide positive representation instead. One participant said she appreciated how the project emphasized many types of butch-ness, showing people that there are many ways to be butch. [5]

Among the many issues that BINADW explores is ageism within lesbian communities. The third issue of the magazine was "dedicated to exploring the experiences and perspectives of Butches of all ages" to acknowledge and honor "the road that our Butch Elders have paved for us, and how their contributions have created a safer space for queers to exist and thrive." [6]

By 2025, BINADW had print and online versions and regularly hosted events in Portland. [5]

BINADW contributors include Jewel Robinson, Leah Peterson, and Avery Everhart. [7]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "BUTCH IS NOT A DIRTY WORD: 12 STUNNING PORTRAITS OF WOMEN WHO ARE PROUD TO BE MASCULINE". The Independent. 16 October 2017. Archived from the original on 14 April 2019. Retrieved 27 April 2019.
  2. ↑ Harmon, Steph (13 September 2016). "Butch Is Not a Dirty Word: masculine-presenting women – in pictures". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 8 July 2019. Retrieved 27 April 2019.
  3. ↑ "Reclaiming 'butch': 'It's surprising how much of a taboo it still is'". The Guardian. 13 September 2016. Archived from the original on 19 October 2018. Retrieved 27 April 2019.
  4. ↑ "Butch Is Beautiful: Exploring Queer Masculinity, in Photos". Broadly. 6 March 2017. Archived from the original on 26 June 2018. Retrieved 27 April 2019.
  5. 1 2 Hamilton, Emily (10 February 2025). "Portland-based photographer Esther Godoy wants you to know 'Butch is Not a Dirty Word'". OPB. Retrieved 26 July 2025.
  6. ↑ "16 Lesbian, Bisexual and Queer Instagram Accounts to Introduce You to Our Herstory". Autostraddle. October 2018. Archived from the original on 22 June 2019. Retrieved 27 April 2019.
  7. ↑ "The 28 Best Things to Do in Portland This Weekend: March 22–24". Portland Mercury. Archived from the original on 1 April 2021. Retrieved 27 April 2019.


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