Just out., April 21, 2000, Image 1

I
re >8
<
V olume 1 7 ♦ N umber 1 2 ♦ A pril 2 1 , 2 0 0 0
P o r tla n d , O r e g o n
bait ¿»s’l u k s r w k id *
FR EE
ooo
Gay Life Health Network
gathers men to give them
the lowdown on
gettin’ down,
down there
by Inga So ren sen
■
Page 2 6
she was a big meanie
who refused to have
any sympathy for
the discrimination
experienced by trans
people.
Wrong, wrong,
wrong.
I learned how
wrong I was via e-
mail. (I thought
we’d disagree so
much that I was
afraid to interview
her in person. I had
some tough ques­
tions in mind, so I
A somewhat adversarial interview
with outspoken lesbian feminist
and women’s music avant-gardist
Alix Dobkin
hat?!” I
gasped. “You
want me to
interview
A lix Dobkin?
Isn’t she that crazy, trans­
la tin g lesbian separatist?”
“Well, not exactly...”
came the answer. “We just
thought you interviewing
her would be more interest­
ing than her being inter­
by C h risto ph er
I). O t t o n i
viewed by another lesbian
feminist.”
Aside from her impending arrival in Oregon for a
slew o f events April 29 through May 6, the extent
of my knowledge about Dobkin was a one-sentence
quote and a lot of hearsay regarding her involve­
ment in an unfortunate episode in Philadelphia in
1 9 9 8 .1 thought she was a fanatical separatist who
lusted for a world dominated by women; I thought
Alix Dobkin
ev en feared a Ph on e
conversation.) Turns
out Dobkin and I have a few things in common.
We both grew up in Philly, both enjoy critical
thinking and discussion of social issues, and we
agree to disagree.
First of all, I want to let you know my perspec­
tive. I’m a queer-identified bisexual man, 26-years-
old, and I’ve spent a fair amount of time pondering
the “ sociology of gender” at the university level.
Thanx for your intro. Even if you hadn’t
described your background I would have guessed it
from your questions...a dead giveaway.
Continued on Page 6