A quest for authenticity: contemporary butch gender

Sex Roles: A Journal of Research,  May, 2004  by Heidi M. Levitt,  Katherine R. Hiestand

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Relating in the Professional World: The Challenge of Securing Respect

The participants described being largely comfortable in their work environments. Although some reported needing to be closeted or trying to pass as heterosexual, many did not. One woman described her butchness as a workplace asset, "I think that they have learned to treat me as an equal and view me as professional when I present myself as a butch. They can argue with me about things more openly, but also they have this respect." (P-02). Unfortunately, there also were stories about workplace harassment, sometimes related to being lesbian and other times to being butch. One woman reported, "If you're butch you're gonna get more grief than a woman who looks feminine. So you're gonna have a few more battles than a femme girl" (P-01). Many of the butches learned to avoid or ignore harassment or would try to protect themselves by changing jobs or by seeming tougher.

Discrimination and Harassment: Pressures to Be Inauthentic

All of the participants described social pressures to change their gender expression; these took the form of familial or peer pressures or harassment and discrimination. Most frequently, women described being harassed by strangers. They were identified as lesbian and were called derogatory names, chased, threatened, chastised, and sent out of women's restrooms or activities. Participants described being stared at, having parents pull children away from them, having men act threateningly, and having people be rude to them in general. The butch women described their harassment as different from that of femme lesbians, who were thought to face sexual harassment more often, but aggressive harassment less often.

Participants described different reactions to harassment and discrimination. Depending on their mood, social context demands, and level of safety, they could avoid or ignore difficulties, become angry or confrontational, or appear tough and wait. Some women would encourage people to expand their gender categories: "Well, I usually pop a few witty sayings ... I'll let them know I have a brain ... and that usually throws them for a loop, and then I become immediately charming and likeable and then they like me and they're really confused" (P-03). Decisions about whether or not to correct others and how to deal with harassment occurred daily for some of the women. It was largely because of these shared tribulations that many women in the community had a great sense of respect for butches, as they courageously challenged gender norms despite the personal risks entailed.

Being Political and Butch: Advocating Authenticity

For many of the participants their butch identity developed in conjunction with the need to be ready to take stands on political or interpersonal conflicts. Many of the women were regularly mistaken as men or faced discrimination when their gender was unclear. They described having to stand up for themselves and protect their partners in a variety of contexts. One interviewee said, "I don't want to leave that part of me, I want to fight for it. I say 'This is the way that I am, you're going to accept me the way that I am ...'" (P-02). Being butch itself was seen as a political act. By adopting this gender presentation, they made lesbianism visible in society and acted to broaden the category of women. "Women who are butch don't look like women in general so that confuses people concerning gender ... and makes them think" (P-01). Women described opening up dialogues about gender diversity at times, for instance, by asking why their gender was important within the context at hand and by using other's confusion to create a teachable moment. The women took pride in their advocacy role, and they believed that the serious daily risks they took could help to sensitize others about women's gender diversity and about lesbian existence.