THE WOMANKIND MANIFESTO
HEADLINES OF WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER THE 4TH, 2020:
Wall St. Journal - "SHERI LYNNE LAMBERT, UNITED STATES PRESIDENT!"
USA Today - "The WomanKind Party Presidential Candidate Wins - BIG!"
New York Times - "The WomanKind Party Obliterates the Glass Ceiling!"
Los Angeles Times - "WOMAN POWER AT THE POLLS!"
to list just a few from that historic day.
Wall St. Journal - "SHERI LYNNE LAMBERT, UNITED STATES PRESIDENT!"
USA Today - "The WomanKind Party Presidential Candidate Wins - BIG!"
New York Times - "The WomanKind Party Obliterates the Glass Ceiling!"
Los Angeles Times - "WOMAN POWER AT THE POLLS!"
to list just a few from that historic day.
From The Diary of an Old Dyke:
In hindsight, the beginning of The Womankind Party in July of 2011 was much like a fairy tale gone mad, a Stephen King novel without the horror but plenty of the pathos, a world-wide womens' dream suddenly and magically no longer deferred. All in all, it was the unlikeliest of beginnings. But it did begin and the world changed that July, though the change wasn't recognized by many for another few years.
Out of anger, frustration, fear and loneliness, an elderly woman - a lesbian, disabled, mentally ill, reclusive and no longer having sufficient emotional energy to maintain ongoing social contacts of almost any type - created a web site titled thewomankindparty.com. Anger was the original impetus, an anger born from what the woman perceived as a general lack of caring and unwillingness to even simply discuss badly needed social and political changes among a group of women she had been conversing with on the internet, a yahoo group of senior lesbians. She created the website while continuing to share her so-called "radical" thinking until she was ostracized from the group by the very effective tactic of the other women refusing to comment on any of her posts.
In time, after must internal debate, worry and trepidation, she joined another lesbian yahoo group, LesRenegades50, which proved to be a more friendly, more political minded group of women, a group of women willing to listen to the differing opinions and beliefs of one another without rancor or retaliation. For a time she thrived there. She thrived and became more unguarded, more sharing of herself and her life. It was the sharing that undid the old woman, that taxed her sparse emotional energy to almost a breaking point. She withdrew and for a time did nothing more emotionally taxing than watching entire series of past TV shows on hulu, nothing more intellectually taxing than playing various games on pogo, nothing more physically taxing than walking her beloved dog on his daily walks. In essence she hibernated, a spiritual, emotional and physical hibernation. And in that time of hibernation she slowly but deliberately pondered the mysteries of herself, her way of being, the why of her life, the limits of the boundaries arbitrarily set for her by circumstances beyond her control. Eventually she came to conclusions that would change the landscape of her life and of the world; eventually she found the path she grew to believe fate had always intended for her. She dedicated herself wholly to The Womankind Party site and never looked back again.
In hindsight, the beginning of The Womankind Party in July of 2011 was much like a fairy tale gone mad, a Stephen King novel without the horror but plenty of the pathos, a world-wide womens' dream suddenly and magically no longer deferred. All in all, it was the unlikeliest of beginnings. But it did begin and the world changed that July, though the change wasn't recognized by many for another few years.
Out of anger, frustration, fear and loneliness, an elderly woman - a lesbian, disabled, mentally ill, reclusive and no longer having sufficient emotional energy to maintain ongoing social contacts of almost any type - created a web site titled thewomankindparty.com. Anger was the original impetus, an anger born from what the woman perceived as a general lack of caring and unwillingness to even simply discuss badly needed social and political changes among a group of women she had been conversing with on the internet, a yahoo group of senior lesbians. She created the website while continuing to share her so-called "radical" thinking until she was ostracized from the group by the very effective tactic of the other women refusing to comment on any of her posts.
In time, after must internal debate, worry and trepidation, she joined another lesbian yahoo group, LesRenegades50, which proved to be a more friendly, more political minded group of women, a group of women willing to listen to the differing opinions and beliefs of one another without rancor or retaliation. For a time she thrived there. She thrived and became more unguarded, more sharing of herself and her life. It was the sharing that undid the old woman, that taxed her sparse emotional energy to almost a breaking point. She withdrew and for a time did nothing more emotionally taxing than watching entire series of past TV shows on hulu, nothing more intellectually taxing than playing various games on pogo, nothing more physically taxing than walking her beloved dog on his daily walks. In essence she hibernated, a spiritual, emotional and physical hibernation. And in that time of hibernation she slowly but deliberately pondered the mysteries of herself, her way of being, the why of her life, the limits of the boundaries arbitrarily set for her by circumstances beyond her control. Eventually she came to conclusions that would change the landscape of her life and of the world; eventually she found the path she grew to believe fate had always intended for her. She dedicated herself wholly to The Womankind Party site and never looked back again.
VOICES FROM THE PAST:
there is a woman in this town
she goes to different bars
sits in the remotest place
watches the other people
drinks til 2 & goes home - alone
some say she is lonely
some say she is an agent
none of us speak to her
Is she our sister?
there is a woman in this town
she lives with her husband
she raises her children
she says she is happy
& is not a women's libber
some say she is mis-quided
some say she is an an enemy
none of us know her
Is she our sister?
there is a woman in this town
she carries a lot of weight
her flesh triples on her frame
she comes to all the dances
dances a lot; goes home - alone
some say she's a lot of fun
some say she is too fat
none of us have loved her
Is she our sister?
there is a woman in this town
she owns her own business
she goes to work in the day
she goes home at night
she does not come to the dances
some say she is a capitalist
some say she has no consciousness
none of us trust her
Is she our sister?
there is a woman in this town
she comes to all the parties
wears the latest men's fashions
calls the women mama
& invites them to her home
some say she's into roles
some say she hates herself
none of us go out with her
Is she our sister?
there is a woman in this town
she was locked up
she comes to many meetings
she volunteers for everything
she crys when she gets upset
some say she makes them nervous
some say she's too pushy
none of us invite her home
Is she our sister?
there is a woman in this town
she fills her veins with dope
goes from house to house to sleep
borrows money wherever she can
she pays it back if she must
some say she is a thief
some say she drains their energy
none of us have trusted her
Is she our sister?
once upon a time, there was a dream
a dream of women, a dream of women
coming together and turning the world
around, turning the world around and making it over
a dream of women, all women being sisters.
a dream of caring; a dream of protection; a dream
of peace
once upon a time, there was a dream
a dream of women, for the women who rejected the
dream; there had only been a reassurance. for the
women who believed the dream - there is dying, women,
sisters dying
once upon a time there was a dream, a dream of women
turning the world all over and it still lives -
it lives for those who would be sisters
it lives for those who need a sister
it lives for those who once upon a time had a dream.
Pat Parker - "Movement In Black"
January 20, 1944 - June 19, 1989
there is a woman in this town
she goes to different bars
sits in the remotest place
watches the other people
drinks til 2 & goes home - alone
some say she is lonely
some say she is an agent
none of us speak to her
Is she our sister?
there is a woman in this town
she lives with her husband
she raises her children
she says she is happy
& is not a women's libber
some say she is mis-quided
some say she is an an enemy
none of us know her
Is she our sister?
there is a woman in this town
she carries a lot of weight
her flesh triples on her frame
she comes to all the dances
dances a lot; goes home - alone
some say she's a lot of fun
some say she is too fat
none of us have loved her
Is she our sister?
there is a woman in this town
she owns her own business
she goes to work in the day
she goes home at night
she does not come to the dances
some say she is a capitalist
some say she has no consciousness
none of us trust her
Is she our sister?
there is a woman in this town
she comes to all the parties
wears the latest men's fashions
calls the women mama
& invites them to her home
some say she's into roles
some say she hates herself
none of us go out with her
Is she our sister?
there is a woman in this town
she was locked up
she comes to many meetings
she volunteers for everything
she crys when she gets upset
some say she makes them nervous
some say she's too pushy
none of us invite her home
Is she our sister?
there is a woman in this town
she fills her veins with dope
goes from house to house to sleep
borrows money wherever she can
she pays it back if she must
some say she is a thief
some say she drains their energy
none of us have trusted her
Is she our sister?
once upon a time, there was a dream
a dream of women, a dream of women
coming together and turning the world
around, turning the world around and making it over
a dream of women, all women being sisters.
a dream of caring; a dream of protection; a dream
of peace
once upon a time, there was a dream
a dream of women, for the women who rejected the
dream; there had only been a reassurance. for the
women who believed the dream - there is dying, women,
sisters dying
once upon a time there was a dream, a dream of women
turning the world all over and it still lives -
it lives for those who would be sisters
it lives for those who need a sister
it lives for those who once upon a time had a dream.
Pat Parker - "Movement In Black"
January 20, 1944 - June 19, 1989
.............portions of an interview with Senator Sheri Lambert (D-CA) by Barbara Walters on July 10, 2012:
( About 25 minutes into the interview.........):
BW: "Your support of Gays and Lesbians and their sexual preference has long been noted, Senator. Would you care to share your views on that issue?"
SL: "Well, Barbara, first of all, I believe that Gays and Lesbians have a sexual orientation rather than a preference. Preference implies a choice, and I don't believe there is any real choice involved in one's sexual orientation. The only choices any of us have in regards to our individual sexual orientation is in how we decide to live with whatever our orientation may be. Of course, heterosexuals don't have much need to make many decisions regarding their sexuality as heterosexuality is perceived by many as the "norm", the sexuality we are all suppose to strive, and this belief is strongly held particularly by fundamental Christians. So mostly heterosexual choices revolve around relatively simple decisions regarding marriage, having children, or spending their lives enjoying the sexual freedoms of staying single. Gays and lesbians, however, have many, many more life-defining choices to make in terms of their sexual orientation and, sadly, many of those choices are made based on societal and familial pressures rather than orientation, and this was especially true in the years before the Gay and Lesbian movements began."
BW: "What are some of the life choices that Gays and Lesbians may consider?"
SL: "They may choose to live to the best of their ability as heterosexuals and ignore, perhaps even deny, their true orientation. In that case, using the popular term, they decide to stay in the closet, sometimes consciously, sometimes without even being aware of making a choice. They may choose to live a very discrete life, a somewhat closeted life, allowing very few to know their orientation. Others may come "flaming" out of the closet at any early age and live their lives fully and openly as gays and lesbians. These men and women were and are often the crusaders of the Gay and Lesbian movements and they unfortunately still to this day may be putting their very lives on the line by doing so. And some may come out of the closet in their senior years and they, also sadly, often run the risk of losing the support and love of family members and long time friends. But whatever the case, their orientation was, I believe, at birth Gay or Lesbian and that orientation is never a conscious preference any individual is able to make despite popular belief to the contrary."
BW: "And what, if you would like to share, is your orientation, Senator Lambert?"
SL: (laughing) Actually, I believe as a bi-sexual I have the best of all possible sexual orientations despite the fact that many people from both the heterosexual community and the homosexual community consider me a traitor to each side.
BW: (somewhat shocked) "I've heard rumors in the past that you were bi-sexual, but to hear you say it so boldly..........isn't that a rather dangerous admission as a politician?"
SL: "Yes, of course it is. But it is the truthful answer and I made a decision years ago that if I were to ever enter the political arena I would remain as honest as possible no matter the consequence. And actually, this is not the first time I've been asked and answered this question. The "rumor" was laid to rest many years ago: I am bi-sexual and this fact is well known by insiders. It's just this is the first time I've been asked on national television.
BW: "How interesting. So, Senator, are you in a relationship at this time?"
SL: "No, I'm not. I was single when I decided to run for the Senate in California and I made the decision at that time to remain single for as long as possible because I felt that my sexual orientation could limit the good I might be able to do in the political arena, could become a red herring that I just didn't feel would serve the people I hoped to represent as much as I would like . Please understand, though, that I have never denied my orientation and I never will. I just don't see it as important in my life right now as it hopefully will be in my future once I'm out of politics."
BW: "So would you say you're asexual? Is being asexual an orientation?" (sounding almost exasperated) Just how many orientations are there?"
SL: "Absolutely not. Being asexual is having no desire for sex at all and that is not my orientation in the slightest way. And, yes, I beleive being asexual is an orientation rather than a preference. I also believe there may be five sexual orientations: heterosexuality, homosexuality, bi-sexuality, asexuality and, most problematic of all, pedophilia."
BW: (now totally shocked) "Pedophilia? Sex with children? How could that be an orientation?"
SL: "I don't think anyone knows yet for sure just how or why we are born with the sexual orientation we discover within ourselves as we grow into puberty, but just as there is ample historical evidence to show that neither men or women are able to truly change their orientation, whatever it might be, there seems to be more and more evidence on a daily basis that pedophilia exists to a degree much more prevelent than once believed and that it is indeed a sexual orientation."
BW: "What brought you to believe that pedophilia is a sexual orientation."
SL: "I think the one single event that helped me form my current beliefs concerning pedophilia as a sexual orientation was last years' Jerry Sandusky scandal out of Penn State. The sheer number of young men this man sexually abused - and I have absolutely no doubt that pedophilia is child abuse - confounded me. How in the world could such an accomplished man, such an socially-active member of society with his foundation, the Second-Mile, such a successful college-level football coach allow himself to be sexually involved with a child?
Drawing from my own experiences with coming to terms with my own bisexuality in my young adulthood and from many of the stories shared with me by older gays and lesbians, I began to realize that Jerry Sandusky did what he did because that was his sexual orientation. Too many things fit together once I began to look at his behavior from my own personal life experiences and that of many gays and lesbians. Sandusky was driven by a sexual orientation he could not change and could not find enough moral strength within himself to not act upon."
BW: "So if one is indeed born with an orientation of pedophilia, does that mean those people should have the same freedoms and rights as those you advocate for Gays and Lesbians, and also Bi-sexuals, to be all inclusive."
SL: "Absolutely not! Sexual behavior involving children is where we as a society must draw the line in the sand. This cannot be allowed. But what I feel is most important about recognizing pedophilia as a sexual orientation is that we can then begin to formulate new laws around the issue of pedophilia. If it is indeed a sexual orientation that one is unfortunately born with, we then have to consider the fact that there is no cure, there is no way of changing that person's innate sexuality. We learned that long ago from our fellow gays and lesbians. True change is not possible. Long term prison sentences will not change a pedophile; intensive therapy will not change a pedophile; no child is safe with a pedophile. So the only logical conclusion I can come to that would help protect our children is to enact nation wide and consistently enforced laws that provide an automatic life sentence with no possibility of parole for pedophiles that are caught acting out their sexual orientation. I can see no other way to protect the children."
BW: "Indeed the children must be protected. I agree we have no other course of action. But perhaps we could jump from this very painful topic and turn to another, much lighter but still quite important topic. I've also been hearing rumors lately that there might be a bid for the Presidential candidacy in your future. Would you care to comment on that?"
.........a post from the LesRenegades50 yahoo group by Daisy on 2/1/12
RE: Because I like it........
Women should be tough, tender, laugh as much as possible, and live long lives.
The struggle for equality continues unabated, and the woman warrior who is armed
with wit and courage will be among the first to celebrate victory.
- Maya Angelou
RE: Because I like it........
Women should be tough, tender, laugh as much as possible, and live long lives.
The struggle for equality continues unabated, and the woman warrior who is armed
with wit and courage will be among the first to celebrate victory.
- Maya Angelou
VOICES FROM THE PAST
shapeshifter poems
1
the legend is whispered
in the women's tent
how the moon when she rises
full
follows some men into themselves
and changes them there
the season is short
but dreadful shapeshifters
they wear strange hands
they walk through the houses
at night their daughters
do not know them
2
who is there to protect her
from the hands of the father
not the windows which see and
say nothing not the moon
that awful eye not the woman
she will become with her
scarred tongue who who who the owl
laments into the evening who
will protect her this prettylittlegirl
3
if the little girl lies
still enough
shut enough
hard enough
shapeshifter may not
walk tonight
the full moon may not
find him here
the hair on him
bristling
rising
up
4
the poem at the end of the world
is the poem the little girl breathes
into her pillow the one
she cannot tell the one
there is no one to hear this poem
is a political poem is a war poem is a
universal poem but is not about
these things this poem
is about one human heart this poem
is the poem at the end of the world
Lucille Clifton
June 27, 1936 - February 13, 2010
.........a post from the LesRenegades50 yahoo group by Deanne on 2/5/12:
Re: Guardian Angel/ Brights
R,
Brights is simply an umbrella group for secular humanists, atheists, or however self-defined.
The-Brights.net definition:
What is a bright?
A bright is a person who has a naturalistic worldview
A bright's worldview is free of supernatural and mystical elements
The ethics and actions of a bright are based on a naturalistic worldview
It's a movement for those who affirm the above statement and sign up at the
website. That's all there is to it. I don't know how this all jives with your
views.
Hope this helps.
Deanne
