Wombstock rocks.Women's music Women's music (or womyn's music, wimmin's music) is the music by women, for women, and about women (Garofalo 1992:242). The genre emerged as a musical expression of the second-wave feminist movement(Peraino 2001:693) as well as the labor, civil rights, and peace festivals have been an integral part of the feminist and lesbian movements ever since the first events burst into existence in 1974, creating safe spaces for women of all walks of life to commune in blissful sisterhood sisterhood: see monasticism. . A smorgasbord of fests now thrive--under the banners of Ladyfest, Wiminfest, CampOut Calliope calliope, in music calliope, in music, an instrument also called steam organ or steam piano in which steam is forced through a series of whistles controlled by a keyboard. , Sistah Summerfest, and the more boringly named National Women's Music Festival. But the grandmommy of them all remains the legendary Michigan Womyn's Music Festival The Michigan Womyn's Music Festival, often referred to as "Michigan" or "MWMF" or "Michfest", is an international feminist music festival occurring every year in August near Hart, Michigan. , founded by lesbians in 1976 and still predominantly queer to this day. This year the female-only festival takes place August 10-15,on 650 acres of woodsy eastern Michigan. It's quite a trip for the uniniatiated: naked women in body paint, hotties on stilts This article is about the poles. For the type of bird, see stilt. For other uses, see Stilts (disambiguation). Stilts are poles, posts or pillars used to allow a person or structure to stand at a certain distance above the ground. , dyke punks pierced to the nines, and randy campers inhabiting rainbow-colored tent cities (and we won't even mention the scene in the showers). This year's lineup includes dyke performers like the Dolly Ranchers, Bitch, Kate Clinton Kate Clinton has been an American comedian for over 25 years, specializing in political commentary from a gay/lesbian point of view. She was born in Buffalo, New York. Comic career , and Laura Love Laura Love is an American musician born in Lincoln, Nebraska, United States. She describes herself as a "light skinned Black" woman. Laura Love had a difficult childhood, raised by a mother with schizophrenia and in foster homes. as well as a musical based on the comic strip "Hothead Paisan" starring Ani DiFranco. But like many women's music festivals, the tunes often take a backseat to the event itself, since artists, craftswomen, drum workshops, basketball games, and vendors create a marvelous minimetropolis. (There are even Butch/Femme 101 classes offered!) Now in its 28th year, this "Wombstock" festival's numbers of around 5,000 are down from the 8,000 attendees of a couple of decades ago. But the thing keeps expanding, even adding a lesbian circus to this year's events. "We build a literal city and create an infrastructure with plumbing and electricity. By the time we're done, we're the largest city in the county," explains coordinator Sandy Ramsey. "The festival actually takes place in the middle of Amish farming country. But they keep to themselves, and all the other locals support us--we're not like Heirs Angels coming in raping and pillaging, regardless\ of what the far right "would have people believe." |
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