"In search of community": Debate and solidarity in Victoria's lesbian-feminist newsletter LesbiaNews, 1989-1996
Date
2026
Authors
Lancaster, Kendra
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
University of Victoria
Abstract
LesbiaNews was a lesbian-feminist print newsletter launched in Victoria, B.C. in 1989. The newsletter was volunteer-run and produced to "provide a supportive forum for Victoria lesbians." LesbiaNews was a crucial site for debate, community formation, and a literary tradition of lesbian historical self-documentation. Over the course of seven years, contributors were deeply devoted to understanding what community meant to them. LesbiaNews demonstrates that a forum encouraging generative debates enabled the consultation of diverse viewpoints and served to strengthen the community as a whole. The newsletter functioned as both a reflection of and a forum for local lesbians. Through its editorials, letters to the editor, classifieds, and cultural coverage, this thesis reveals that through LesbiaNews, lesbians in Victoria simultaneously negotiated and produced community during a period shaped by lesbian-feminism, the sex wars, censorship debates, and increasing queer visibility.
Description
Keywords
lesbian, lesbian-feminism, print literature, Victoria, Jamie Cassels Undergraduate Research Awards (JCURA)