AntiJen Pages: A Young Transsexual Newsletter
Vol. 1, Dec. 1, 1999
http://www.genderweb.org/~jenstar/Newsletter/Volone/page8.html

I'm sure most of you have heard about the recent situation regarding 
the Michigan Women's Music Festival. 

This message has a few purposes, the first of which is a general plea 
to the people who attend, the bands that attend and the labels that 
support these bands. 

The second is a more direct plea towards Mr. Lady Records, the 
Butchies and their fans. 

As you know, the Michigan Women's Music Festival has a policy of 
denying the entrance of anyone who is not a woman-born-woman. This 
definition excludes transgendered people. This policy is transphobia 
in its most insidious forms. It divides the women's community into 
"real women" and "kinda-women" and wastes valuable resources that 
could be used fighting for things that benefit all women.

It needs to end and it needs to end now.

In previous years, many different forms of protest have been tried, 
from Camp Trans (www.camptrans.com), to the Lesbian Avengers "Protest-
in-a-Box" to attempting to enter the festival-only to be removed-to 
talking with the organizers. 

The problem with all of these tactics is that they relied on the 
goodwill of the organizers to change the policy. We've been relying 
for their goodwill for what is now Michigan's 25th year. 

This year, I propose we no longer rely on their goodwill but rely on 
their need for the one thing that keeps MWMF going, our financial 
support. 

What you can do as an Individual:Ê I am asking all people who would 
normally attend or attempt to attend to do a few things this year. 

- Send a tally of how much you would normally spend (including 
entrance fees and granola lesbian pottery that you would buy from 
vendors) to WWTMC Box 22 Walhalla, MI 49458 with a note stating this 
is how much you would have spent if you went, but until the policy is 
rescinded, you have no intention on setting foot on the land. 

- Do not attend and let MWMF know why you plan on not attending. If 
you want to make the trip out there, plan on going to Camp Trans. 
Email riki@camptrans.com to let her know you plan on attending. 

- Boycott all bands that play this year. A person's actions speak a 
hundred times louder than words. By playing the festival, bands lend 
support to the policy. If you wouldn't spend money on homophobia or 
sexism, please do not spend it on transphobia. 

What you can do as a Band: 

I'm asking all bands who intend to play this year to immediately call 
up the organizers and tell them that as long as the policy is in 
effect, you will not play. 

It's really a simple statement that you will stand in solidarity with 
your sisters and will not support transphobia in any form. I know 
attempts to change it from the inside have been tried, but it is 
fairly obvious that they have not worked and that the organizers of 
MWMF will not change things without a reason to do so. Removing 
yourself from the performers list will give people a reason not to go 
and the organizers a reason to change the policy. 

Basically, if you wouldn't play a place with a "No Lesbians Allowed" 
policy, please, take a stand with us and do not play a place that has 
an "Only Certain Types of Women Allowed" policy.

What you can do as a Label: 

It's simple. Do not sign bands that play this year. You wouldn't sign 
a band that supports all the other *isms and *phobias, don't sign 
bands that through their actions support transphobia. 

These are all relatively simple statements to make in support of 
making this policy end. They take little effort and send a message to 
the organizers of Michigan that transphobia will no longer be 
tolerated. 

Now, on a side note, I am making a plea to the fans of the Butchies 
and Mr. Lady Records. The boycott instituted over the summer because 
of statements made by Mr. Lady Records is tearing apart our community. 
It is hurting bands on the label, and is taking up valuable resources. 


I am asking Butchies fans and fans of other bands on Mr. Lady to email 
them at mrlady@mindspring.com and request that they enter a dialog 
with the organizers of the boycott, using a 3rd party moderator if 
needed. In a showing of good faith, we will immediately cease the 
boycott when dialog begins. 

This is a chance to mend fences. I hope that they will take this 
opportunity to do so. 

-BethX 
beth@magenet.com