The History of the Blatant Lesbian Image

Once more, with feeling . . .

© Honey Lee Cottrell, On Our Backs

I wrote this, as a love letter. It's a letter evoked by many authors before me— a story written secretly, without fanfare of any sort, for as long as women have conjured up a picture of their sex, and their sex together.

If there's anything unique about my love letter, it's that it's not so much sentimental as it is revolutionary, not inscribed to a single beloved but to an army of lovers. I bow my head to them, I couldn't have done it without them. I could not know what it means to be a lesbian if I had not seen the pictures in this book.

Seeing lesbian photography is just the tip of my radicalized clitoris. I have modeled for, commissioned, published, and fought for these pictures, and answered threats against them. I've seen the feminist movement bring these pictures to life, and I've seen that same movement try to suppress its own liberating results. I've witnessed lesbian erotic artists single-handedly transform the image of female sexuality.