''Butch Mystique'' is a 2003 documentary directed by Debra A. Wilson. The documentary explores the lives of a group of African American

butch Butch may refer to: People * Butch (nickname), a list of people * Barbara Butch, French lesbian DJ and activist * Butch Patrick, American child actor Patrick Alan Lilley (born 1953), best known for his role as Eddie Munster in ''The Munsters'' ...

identified

lesbians A lesbian is a homosexual woman or girl. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate nouns with female homo ...

within the Oakland/San Francisco

Bay area The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a region of California surrounding and including San Francisco Bay, and anchored by the cities of Oakland, San Francisco, and San Jose. The Association of Bay Area Governments ...

Content

The documentary follows nine African American butch identified lesbians: Chris Baldwin, Skyler Cooper, Elyse Duckett, Matu Feliciano, Pippa Fleming, Carol Hill, Kymberly Jackson, Sable McQuarters, and Johnnie Pratt. Within the documentary, the women range in their ages and share various aspects of their personal lives and specifically about their butch lifestyle. The topics discussed include: their look/

gender expression Gender expression (or gender presentation) is a person's behavior, mannerisms, interests, and appearance that are associated with gender in a particular cultural context, typically understood in terms of masculinity and femininity. Gender expr ...

, self acceptance and

coming out Coming out of the closet, often shortened to coming out, is a metaphor used to describe LGBTQ people's self-disclosure of their sexual orientation, romantic orientation, or gender identity. This is often framed and debated as a privacy issue, ...

, childhood, relationships with family members, partners, perceptions of society, and what it means to identify as butch. Because of these women's shared

racial identity Race is a categorization of humans based on shared physical or social qualities into groups generally viewed as distinct within a given society. The term came into common usage during the 16th century, when it was used to refer to groups of va ...

as African American butch lesbians, the interplay of race, gender, and sexuality is very much relevant to the documentary. The testimonies of these women have been described as raw, powerful, intimate, and ultimately convey the experience of finding and being one's self outside the norm of society. Wilson suggested that Butch Mystique, “goes beneath the surface, beyond the stereotypes, to reveal the heart of what it means to be an African American butch-identified lesbian.”

Reception

Malinda Lo Malinda Lo is an American writer of young adult novels including '' Ash'', ''Huntress'', ''Adaptation'', ''Inheritance,'' ''A Line in the Dark'', and '' Last Night at the Telegraph Club''. She also does research on diversity in young adult litera ...

proclaims that Butch Mystique: “succeeds in presenting an interesting and informative picture of the lives of African American butch lesbians, because the interviews succeed in making each of these women truly human.” Lo critiques that the documentary could have better situated the stories of the women within the relevant historical and geographical context.

Awards

The documentary was awarded the Audience Award for Best Short at the 2003 San Francisco International Gay and Lesbian Film Festival. Also, the documentary won the 2004 Showtime Black Filmmaker Showcase grant.

References

{{reflist 2003 films 2003 documentary films Documentary films about African Americans Documentary films about lesbians African-American LGBTQ-related films 2003 LGBTQ-related films 2000s English-language films 2000s American films English-language documentary films American LGBTQ-related documentary films

Content

Reception

Awards

See also

References