First, I was queer; then I was a feminist, and then feminism gave me “lesbian” as a category of identity. Now, looking back and looking around, I find myself troubled by my own genealogies and divisions.

 

But:

I am a lesbian. A mostly soft butch lesbian, which is an acceptable distinction for some feminists, an unknown/off-limits taxonomy for others, and an unacceptable or perhaps even theoretically arguable category for others. Who decides?

 

An aside:

My gender performance is not just lesbian or butch but also not a far cry from Montana women in general. But it is definitely queer.

 

Another aside:

In France, slang for a butch lesbian is camioneuse, or “female truck driver,” which I love because I come from a family of truck drivers, among other things.