sN Carr Michigan Womyn’s Music Festival Evolves From Folk to Hipflop Bv EUAN BEAR kay, before I hike down memory lane about some of the 10 or 11 times I’ve been to the Michigan Womyn’s Music Festival (the first time in 1977), let me quickly mention some of the current perfonners (wouldn’t want the under-25 crowd to skip this as an old-fogey article): Alix Olsen, Reno, Catie Curtis, Bitch & Animal, Magdalen Hsu- Li. Women of the Calabash, Pulp Vixens, Isle ofKlezbos, Betty, Nedra Johnson, Toshi Reagon and Big Lovely, and Cheryl Wheeler. And for us crones: Ferron, Adrienne Torf, Holly Near & Cris Williamson, and Sweet Honey in the Rock. Then there’s Ubaka Hill and the Drumsong Orchestra. and comedy, and drama, and and Food. naked bodies, political work- shops. recovery meetings. dyke-made craft and artwork. and meeting and hanging out with dykes (mostly. though some bi and straight women go) who are into whatever you’re into, whether it’s leather and tattoos or Dianic witch- craft rituals. And the systems that make it work are reportedly much smoother than those I remember. , This year’s incarnation — August l2- l7 — is the 28th consecutive Michigan Women’s Music Festival. There’s even a bus going from Vermont ifyou don’t want to make the 20-hour drive. I don't remember much about the first time I went because I spent all day shaking a fundraising can in front of women’s faces on behalf of a local lesbian fighting an expensive legal battle for custody of her daughter. The next time I went, in ’78 or maybe ’79, I was the first ‘'official’’ haircutter at the festival, though informal tress-snipping was happening at the I showers. The camping was rough, access for wheelchairs was inadequate at best, the showers were ice-cold, the food was two vegetarian meals a day (granola does get boring), everyone was expected to work a volunteer shift, and the sound at the main stage was liable to cut out when the rains came, despite liberal applica- tions of WD40 and plastic sheeting. But the muuuusic! And the feeling of being absolutely safe and connected and under- stood! I lost my money pouch on day three — an armouncement was made describing the pouch, and it was returned to me with every single hard-earned dollar still inside. There were workshops both planned and spontaneous, and lots of hanging out and talking and sunning and walking and politics and sex. Just as Girl Scout camp sustained me through long winters when I was young, the memories of “Michigan” fed my heart and spir- it through low-wage jobs with sexist jerks. It was a lesbian feminist dream of how our lives could be in stark contrast to the daily verbal, economic, spiritual, and physical assaults we endured in the rest of our lives. Returning to “the world” at the end of the festival was a major culture shock, so quickly had we settled in and embraced this reality as home. It was — and is — a temporary “town” built entirely by women. The women who built the first Festival structures took on jobs women rarely had access to back then: plumbing, elec- tricity, creating concert sound, building sound and lighting towers. stages, erecting perform- ance and kitchen tents, and more. There have always been struggles throughout the Festival’s 28 years. Boy children were not allowed — and eventually a separate camp with programming was established. Services for disabled women were critiqued — and improved. Displays by women into bondage and domination (B&D) and sadism and masochism (S&M) horrified survivors of sexual abuse — and a specific camping area was identified for the B&D/S&M crowd. Seating at the outdoor concert amphitheater got to be intricately mapped to address concerns: Deaf down front (to see the signer), wheelchair access by the aisles, chem- free on one side, beer-drinkers and smokers downwind. Women of color demanded and got more diversity from the white women’s music folkies who were the traditional headliners and a Women of Color community tent as well as earning positions of authority in the festival infrastructure. At one time, group tents were provided for city folk with no camping experi- ence or access to gear. Low-income women could apply to work additional shifts to reduce ‘ their ticket prices. The most recent struggle has been over whether transwomen will be admitted, how the terms are defined (pre-op? post-op? both?), and how the limitation will be moni- tored (strip searches? shower monitors?). To paraphrase one trans person writing on hir web page, any time you draw lines, they cut through someone’s flesh. Separatists and supporters of “womyn-bom-womyn” say no one socialized as a male should be admitted to “womyn-only space.” Some transwomen just want to be rec- ognized as women — who love women and want to be with womyn in womyn-only space. Other transwomen understand and respect the sepa- ratists’ desire to keep Michigan as sacred womyn’s space. g The current policy ~ which is not posted on the otherwise informative website — is that only “women-born-women who have lived all their lives as women and currently This year's festival's highlights will include Bitch & Animal (top) and Toshi Reagon (above). identify as women” are welcome at the festival, according to Festival spokeswoman Sarah Westlake. But struggles only dominate the expe- rience to the extent that you want to be ' involved. It is possible to go to Michigan and just enjoy the music, get in some workshops, play music‘, cruise the crowd (looking for your next ex-lover), buy fabulous dyke-made stuff and official festie gear, get sunbumed, run naked in the rain, collect garbage (one of the most prestigious volunteer gigs, second only to security), make art, and do rituals of various kinds. The We Want the Music Collective has become the We Want the Music Company. The site has changed from leased land in Hesperia (which we, of course, called “Hysteria”) to 650 acres of owned land in Hart, in the middle of national forest. There are now three meals a day and concession stands for betweens. The showers are warm. There are many, many more portajanes (emptying them was the one job men were allowed on the land at dawn to do). The disabled access is pretty good, with a dedicated resource team. If you’re not into tent camping, there’s an RV area, or even hotels, in the surrounding towns. There are now three kid-friendly camping areas, one for families and toddlers, one for girls and one for boys. And the music carries on: 40 per- formanccs over four days, from acoustic to electric and choral to band or solo. folk to hiphop. There are intensive workshops on Tuesday and Wednesday. some of them also about music — and dance and an and bicycle mechanics and interracial/intercultural dating and natural cronehood. Women have organized football, basketball, and volleyball games and the “Lois Lane Run” for all the athletes and wannabes out there. lt’s still a town built by and for women, run by women with a community cen- ter, a first aid center, and committees galore. Like all towns, it isn’t perfect, and you have to pay and/or work to be there. But oh, the things you’ll learn, the fun you’ll have, the music you’ll hear, the women-wombmoon-womyn- wimmin you’ll see! V For more information, check the festival web- site: www.michfest.c0m. For a seat on the bus from Vermont, contact Pay’ Bailey at 802-229- 9910 or via email: wadIeybailey@aol. com.