Lisa Vogel, the founder and producer of Michigan Womyn's Music festival released the following statement on Wednesday, August 9th, 2006 as a response to the continued attempts by parts of the TG community to be included in the Michigan womyn's music festival. This year they released a completely false statement to the press claiming the womyn born womyn festival would be open to transpersons next year.
"I
deeply desire healing in our communities, and I can see and feel that you
want that too. I would love for you...............to find the place in your
hearts and politics to support and honor space for womyn who have had the
experience of being born and living their life as womyn.
I ask that you respect that womon born womon is a valid and honorable gender
identity. I also ask that you respect that womyn born womyn deeply need our
space -- as do all communities who create space to gather, whether that be
womyn of color, trans womyn or trans men . . . I wish you well, I want healing,
and I believe this is possible between our communities, but not at the expense
of deeply needed space for womyn born womyn."
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"As feminists, we call upon the transwomen's community to help us maintain
womyn only space, including spaces created by and for womyn- born womyn. As sisters
in struggle, we call upon the transwomen's community to meditate upon, recognize
and respect the differences in our shared experiences and our group identities
even as we stand shoulder to shoulder as women, and as members of the greater
queer community. We once again ask the transwomen's community to recognize that
the need for a separate womyn-born womyn space does not stand
at odds with recognizing the larger and beautiful diversity of our shared community."
If you want to know more of this story you can find more at the Michigan Women's Festival Forum Site