Dyke

Dyke refers to a lesbian who is physically, romantically, and/or emotionally attracted to someone of the same sex or gender. ### Misconceptions About the Term Those outside the dyke community might think of dyke as a "sexual orientation" grounded in a masculine or androgynous (lesbian) gender identity or think that dyke equals butch (we can see this in the slur "bulldyke"). Part of this is historically grounded in the difficulty heterosexuals have with understanding gender where it comes to lesbians and not recognizing lesbians and (dyke) bisexuals when they present as feminine or femme. Masculine or masc-of-center dykes are more visible; in contrast, feminine or femme dykes have too often be read as heterosexual. This is one of the reasons why masculine or masc-of-center dykes have received more attention and (thus) more violence. Understanding dykes as not (really) belonging to feminine and femme dykes – and not recognizing that feminine and femme dykes historically having been at the front of the struggle for recognition – contributes to that erasure. Historically, cisheteronormativity, homophobia, and (cis)sexism have gone hand in hand. The self-identity of dyke, then, is not specific or restricted to any specific (lesbian) gender identity. Dyke is an increasingly inclusive term, also used by pansexual and bisexual (cis and trans) women as well as AFAB folk who identify as non-binary, and trans men too. ### Political and Historical Context Dyke is a term that has historically been reclaimed by the lesbian community in response to the term historically used pejoratively as a homophobic and (cis)sexist slur by those outside the LGBTQ community. In that sense, identifying as ‘dyke’ is a political act of resistance. It is fair to suggest, then, that dyke is a political identity, which recognizes dyke history and activism. Examples include the Dyke March, Dykes on Bikes, Rebel Dykes, SM Dykes, but also Alison Bechdel's Dykes to Watch Out For). An identity of dyke, then, includes an existential and political challenge to cisheteronormativity, homophobia, and cis/sexism. As an orientation, "dyke" is chosen by those who find it empowering for themselves. Those who identify as "dyke, then, situate themselves in a genealogy of Dyke Elders, Dyke History and Dyke Pride.