Lesbos Lesbians Tongue Tied
The native lesbians of the Aegean Island of Lesbos are asking a Greek court to draw the line between gay women and themselves. Confused?
Three islanders from Lesbos filed a lawsuit against gay rights group Homosexual and Lesbian Community of Greece on April 10 for using the word ‘lesbian’ in its name. The word lesbian is also associated with the natives of the Lesbos Island, and some locals want no connection with the homosexual organisation.
“My sister can’t say she is a Lesbian,” said local Dimitris Lambrou. “Our geographical designation has been usurped by certain ladies who have no connection whatsoever with Lesbos.”
The island is also known as Mytilene, after its capital and was home to poet Sapphos who praised love between women in her lyrics. Lesbos, particularly the town of Eressos, is a preferred holiday spot for many gay women.
“This is not an aggressive act against gay women,” Lambrou said. “Let them visit Lesbos and get married and whatever they like. We just want [the group] to remove the word lesbian from their title.”
According to Lambrou, the term lesbians have only been associated with gay women in the past few decades but natives have been known as “Lesbians for thousands of years.”
Evangelia Vlami, the gay rights group’s spokeswoman said the lawsuit is “a joke in bad taste that borders on discrimination.”
“Most people from Lesbos prefer to use the word Mytilene, which is the more ancient version and because some people may be afraid of being misunderstood,” she said. “I don’t see what the problem is… Can’t a woman just say – I am from the island of Lesbos?”
The case will be heard in an Athens court on June 10.
All About
Your Thoughts
Hey there, you need to be logged in to get involved with SameSame, click here to login if you're already a member, or here if you need to become a new member.
Swampy
said ages ago