Why would you discuss the DYKE march on PITTSBURGH'S MAN STATION!

What was I thinking? That some men might actually crawl out of their caves and *get* it? Did I actually think that there are heterosexual radio listening men who aren't homobigots? Could I work with John McIntire and use satire to create a teachable moment?

Or that there might actually be a dyke or two listening to John's show?

Silly lesbian, dykes are for girls.

Are you the organizer? I must be a silly dyke, because i thought the march was about dykes. It's not about teachingn or men at all.

I have to back up anonymous here. Although John McIntire has a lesbian on his show, and I personally *like* John McIntire, I disagree that "Pittsburgh's Man Station" is an appropriate place to be talking about the Dyke March. I listened to it just this morning (to see what the station was about because of this issue) and the on-air hosts were laughing about the "To Catch a Predator" show and discussing their own experiences with 14 year olds. NICE.

I also found your response to anonymous to be pretty sarcastic and invalidating. "Silly Lesbian, dykes are for girls?" What does that even mean?

Was the organizer of the Dyke March asked to be a part of this interview? I know the organizer, and it isn't you. Are you on a dyke march committee? In what way are you an authority on the dyke march and how it will go down? These are serious - not sarcastic - questions.

Finally, will there be an opportunity for the lesbian community to hear this interview? I mean, other than the couple of dykes that listen to Pittsburgh's Man Station. I would like to hear how the interview went and *shockingly* I wasn't listening yesterday.

No I am not the organizer and I never claimed to be. Why is that accusation continually leveled at me? Do people really assume I'd pretend to be the organizer? That's a serious question, not intended to be sarcastic.

It wasn't an interview. It was part of an ongoing segment I do about LGBTQ issues, some local and some not.

I didn't posit myself as an authority on the dyke march. I'm just a dyke with an opinion. I'm just reporting on what I know about it. No one ever told me that I couldn't comment publicly on the dyke march because I'm not on the organizing committee. Even if they did, I'd still feel free to express my opinion.

Are you on the committee?

I'm not sure if they podcast the shows or not. That's a good question. As soon as John invited me on the show, I posted it on my blog. That's the best I can do to inform people about Lesbian Correspondent segments. I knew I'd be opening myself to criticism, but that's something with which I have to live. If people want to know when I'll be on the radio talking about LGBTQ issues, read this blog or read McIntire's blog to see his lineup of guests.

You are right about the sarcasm. I was annoyed that someone would anonymously hurl out some criticism without giving me any context to engage them (him/her?). However, that's something I continue to struggle with as a blogger. I'm human and I make poor choices.

It is fine if you don't think the Man Station is an appropriate place to talk about the Dyke March. You don't have to listen. You can criticize my choices, but you do not get to censor me. I'm not going to run my decisions before the lesbian community for approval. I'm going to make them based on my own judgment.

Thank you for your feedback.

Sue

It is always fun to respond to comments from people who aren't willing to use their name. I have no gauge of your sincerity. However, I do understand that not everyone has the privilege to be openly "out," even on the Internet, so I'll be straightforward with my response.

I am not the organizer. Eli is the organizer. I helped with one teeny portion of the organizing.

I am a dyke and have identified myself in that way frequently on this blog (I've also identified as gay, queer, lesbian, etc).

The march is about dykes. My appearance on McIntire's show was about educating people ... about the march. There's a clear distinction. I think it is a good thing if people who do not identify as dykes increase their consciousness of dyke issues. That's a consequence of visibility and part of the struggle against mysogeny within the queer community and beyond.

I have clearly stated, both on the blog and on the radio show, that this is about dykes and that allies are not part of the actual march, but welcome to support the march. Some of those allies are men.

I think if you listen to that segment, you will hear John and I talk about these very issues. I gave the appearance some real thought and would not have done it if I thought John would merely take it to an exploitive place. I trust John's support of the LGBTQ community and sometimes go places in our conversations that might be uncomfortable b/c I think he knows what he's doing. That's the value of an alliance -- a little bit of trust. Not a lot of "man station" hosts would have a lesbian correspondent who talked about serious issues rather than sexual frolic and fun.

You may not know John and not have that trust. I get that and I respect your opinion. But I stand behind the belief that visibility is connected to education. And there are educable people who listen to The Zone. And, frankly, I appreciate the opportunity to do some of the educating.

Hope to see you Saturday night.

I did identify myself by my name - Jen, and I am completely sincere.

I think that Eli, the actual organizer, might have appreciated the opportunity to have some input on when, where, and how people are educated about the Dyke March. Does she even know that this interview took place? She is not only the organizer, she is the founder of the Pittsburgh Dyke March, and I think that at this point only she can provide the most accurate information.

I would love to hear the interview. Do you know how I can do that? Will you ask your friend John McIntire to put it on the Pittsburgh Man Station web site and then post a link to that here?

Jen,

I was replying to Anonymous, but the order of comments changed (I think your comment was posted while I was composing mine). Sorry for the confusion.

If Eli wants to talk with me about the radio interview, I'm sure she will do so. She's a grown woman capable of speaking for herself and I have no doubt she will share her thoughts with me.

If you can say with authority (publicly) "I think Eli ..." how can you criticize me for saying "I think the Dyke March ...?"

Again, it wasn't an interview. It was part of a semi-regular feature on the show. The Dyke March is a publicly advertised event and I am not obliged to get anyone's permission to talk about it. No one made that argument when I posted it on my blog and I can tell you that just as many men read this blog as women. Does that make it an inappropriate format to discuss the Dyke March?

If you would like to hear the show, I'd suggest you contact the station administration and ask them how you accomplish that. This is their website http://www.937thezone.com/ . Y

John does not own the station. CBS does. So I doubt he can force them to put anything on the site. But you can ask him. His site is http://macyapper.blogspot.com

I bet both CBS and John would like to hear from the public. I'll warn you that any email you send to John could be posted on his website. As for me, I will ask if there is a podcast of the segment and let you know.

Listen Jen, I doubt you and I will ever agree. You didn't listen to the show, but you imply I didn't share accurate information. You haven't spoken with Eli, but you make assumptions about what she thinks or should think or might think. You don't like the station, so you condemn me for appearing on it.

Perhaps we have to agree to disagree.

I have to say that I agree with Jen here. I think that any publicity about the dyke march should at the very least be discussed with Eli first, because that is the right thing to do since she is the main organizer and her objective behind having a dyke march is very specific and should not be misrepresented. As a pillar of the dyke community yourself, I believe you would expect the same courtesy and would not be happy if i went on a radio station and discussed the meaning behind the Pittsburgh Lesbian Correspondents. And while this blog might not be an appropriate place for the following comment, I believe it's important to note that it is somewhat hypocritical to say that it was not necessary to notify eli, even though you got bent out of shape when you thought we were organizing without your input (re: private emails between us and on the queer listserv). I found your comments then to be somewhat paranoid and groundless, but at the very least would expect you now to follow your own lead and let Eli know about any representation you plan to do, ESPECIALLY when it is through such a controversial medium.

Thank you for the compliment, but I do not consider myself a pillar of the dyke community. I'm just a lesbian with an opinion who created a few venues to express it. Any other lesbian could do the same. I wish more would get into the blogosphere to diversify the discussion.

As I've said repeatedly, you are entitled to disagree with my decision to appear on the air and with what I did or did not say. But I don't need permission to express my opinion, even one that clashes with yours. You can call me a hypocrite until the end of time, but I'm not going to capitulate to women who would silence me because you don't like the company I keep.

Characterizing my appearance on McIntire's show as publicity is inaccurate. I wasn't representing Eli on the show. I was a lesbian talking about an community event. Just like I talked about PrideFest or the Film Festival or the protest of Focus on the Family in the past.

Attempting to paint me as paranoid and crazy/bent out of shape isn't really necessary. I'll let people to reach their own conclusions about how crazy I am :-)

for what it's worth, i had a discussion like this with eli once and i feel you are very much on the same page as to what the point of a dyke march is and how it should be executed.

she also, very clearly, told me, on a separate occasion, that any and all publicity was very much appreciated.