Netpunk March 2002


I spent some time looking for homo-punk, queer-punk, whatever-you-wanna-call-it-core websites for this month's issue.  Since my personal orientation runs towards straight, chances are I've missed some of the best ones, but these are the sites that I thought looked pretty good.  None of these sites are pornographic (those are easy to find), though some might contain erotic images.

Probably one of the best resources for finding queer sites on the net has to be the Holy Titclamps site.  Larry-bob has put together an amazing collection of links, along with tour dates for queer bands, queer things to do in SF, rants, reviews, archives of old issues of the paper Holy Titclamps.  You must visit this site -- http://www.holytitclamps.com/ .

Gayscape (http://www.gayscape.com/) is a directory service, sorta like Yahoo, but everything in it is queer-related and non-pornographic in nature.  Categories are broken up by state and country, as well as by type of resource.  You'll find health info, personal websites, entertainment resources, and more.

I've mentioned the main ZNet site before as an alternative news resource, and they have a whole section dedicated to queer issues.  ZNet's Queer Watch (http://www.zmag.org/queerwatch.htm) has the latest in queer news, as well as links to activist organizations for the bi, gay, lesbian, and trans-gender communities.

Youth.org (http://www.youth.org/) is an online community for queer youth.  It offers a moderated newsgroup, links to other youth sites, and information for queer-curious kids.  It also is the home of P.E.R.S.O.N., which is an organization, dedicated to getting a positive images of people with different sexual orientations into the public schools.

The Wobblies have a queer labor page at http://www.iww.org/queer/ .  Not a lot of info here, but there is some interesting historical notes about queer Wobblies and a few links to other queer-oriented I.W.W. and labor sites.

The Queer Liberation Front (http://www.queerliberation.org/) is a direct action movement that encourages people to setup their own chapters of the organization in their town.  They state that they "believe that gender, sex, and sexuality are fluid and limitless rather than fixed and limited".  You can download their propaganda (flyers and sticker templates), find out how to create your own chapter of the organization, and also get info on the Richmond Queer Space Project.

On the entertainment side of things, Dyxploitation (http://www.dyxploitation.nu/) offers "entertainment for lezzies and their pals".  This is sorta like "The Onion" for dykes.  Everything reads like a news item, but is so over the top that it's funny.  In addition, their disclaimer states that if you visit, or even know about their website, then you're a lesbian.  Congratulations!

Shades Beyond Gray (http://www.shadesbeyondgray.com/) is a queer/pansexual erotic journal that is made up entirely of submissions.  You'll find erotic images, columns, poetry, prose, links and archives from every sexual perspective, all presented in a tasteful, non-porno manner.  This has a little something for every(kinky)one.

DykeDiva.com (http://www.dykediva.com/) is "the alternative lesbian" site.  This site contains information and reviews of movies, sex, and sex-movies, a message board, reviews, and a regular column on masturbation called "I (heart) my Clit".  They also have a listing of lesbian events in the Chicago area.

Xerox Revolutionaries is a cool source for punk zines, many of which are queer oriented.  They also have mix tapes, pins and patches, and a list of links.  Check 'em out at http://www.geocities.com/xeroxrevdistro/.

Kinda Sketchy (http://www.geocities.com/stompinpunk/) is a rant page with an anarchist, queercore, working class perspective.  Everything here is worth reading, but make sure you take a look at the manifesto.

Drub (http://www.drubskin.com/) is a queer skinead site with free artwork, some music reviews, rants and interviews, and a list of links dealing with sex, skins, scooters, punk and more.  Check out the link to the queer skinhead webring on the opening page to find a whole bunch more skin stuff.

Tom Jennings has made all of the issues of his late-80's/early-90's zine Homocore available online at http://www.wps.com/HOMOCORE/ .  The issues are scanned as images and each page is a big download if you have a slow connection, but they are readable and a good archive of the zine.

Punk Queers is a Yahoo! Club for LGBTG punk rockers.  It is a forum where you can post and chat about any issue you want without fear of being hassled for your orientation.  You have to join to use it, but it looks like a pretty good networking spot to find like-minded people.  You'll find it on Yahoo! at http://clubs.yahoo.com/clubs/punkqueers .

The queerpunk mailing list is also available at Yahoo!.  To get information about subscribing, visit http://groups.yahoo.com/group/queerpunk/ .  While boasting something like 300 members, it looks like most are inactive, as the statistics for the list show only about 100 messages a month.

Anyway, that's gonna do it for this month.  Hopefully there is something worthwhile here for everyone.  Let me know if I missed a major site, or give me some other sites (queer or not) to check out or review.  E-mail netpunk@diehippiedie.com, or visit my columns online at http://www.diehippiedie.com/netpunk/ .