*Bologna, April 24, 2019* – To celebrate *Lesbian Visibility Day*, which occurs annually on April 26, the Arcigay Women's Network conceived and created the social media campaign* Enjoy your visibility. Show your pride, tell about it!*. The campaign's protagonists are the women of the Arcigay Women's Network, who photographed themselves in playful and complicit situations to share the joy they feel in being lesbian and visible, each in her own way.
“"The campaign's message," explains Natascia Maesi, head of gender policies at Arcigay, "is direct: it's time to come out and enjoy your visibility, the right to be yourself. Being visible is a choice for happiness that can be made with fun and pride, because homosexuality is not a fault, it's not something to be ashamed of, it's not a burden, and it can no longer be a source of pain or discomfort. Lesbian subjectivity has always been the victim of a process of invisibilization, stigmatization, and stereotyping implemented—in a structural and systemic way—by the dominant sexist, patriarchal, and chauvinistic culture. Lesbians don't exist in public/political space and discourse, and this is demonstrated by the fact that, in language as well as in common perception, the word "lesbian" is still considered an insult. Machismo, in short, even weighs heavily in discrimination: even hate speech offers us a vast array of words with which to call gay men, denigrating them, while only one word is used to label them. Women who love women, simply as lesbians. Lesbian subjectivity is defined by denial. The rhetoric of the "failed male" is a clear example of a narrative that disqualifies lesbian women, placing them at the lowest rung of the social ladder. In a country that targets women by controlling their bodies, limiting their self-determination, and violating their acquired rights and freedoms, lesbians are a minority within a minority, experiencing firsthand the double and triple stigma of being lesbian women and lesbian trans women. Research highlights how much more difficult it is for lesbians to be visible. The choice to relegate one's homosexuality to an individual and private sphere, which finds a comfort zone in a couple's relationship, is too often dictated by fear. Fear of being insulted, ridiculed, belittled. Fear of losing jobs and opportunities. Lesbians are burdened by the social pressure of compulsory heterosexuality, the lack of positive role models with which to identify, and the stereotypical image offered of them as subjects who betray the norm, embodying an unsuitable femininity. Conforming and not embedded in imposed gender roles and expressions. Lesbians are the recipients of policies that fail to meet their needs in terms of prevention, sexual health, and access to parenthood. They are not protected by measures to combat gender-based violence, which they experience as lesbian women and lesbian trans women; nor are they supported by labor policies capable of guaranteeing equal economic and career opportunities. All of this conditions and hinders their public coming out. For this and much more, even today, calling oneself a lesbian and being visible is a political act. Visibility is the instrument of a revolution that re-signifies and socializes lesbian subjectivity, transforming lesbian women into resilient existences, capable of creating new imaginaries and new narratives that speak of freedom and liberation.
The campaign invites everyone to share a post on social media explaining what visibility means to them. You can use a photo, phrase, song, or quote, or even write your own thoughts about your coming out or the beauty and power of visibility in small, everyday gestures and situations. All tagged with the hashtag #Lezbevisible. The campaign was created by Gianni Redi (Chimera Arcobaleno – Arcigay Arezzo) with the valuable collaboration of Andrea Foti Delfino and Giovanni Romeo Bova (Arcigay Reggio Calabria I Due Mari), and Greta Sartarelli (Movimento Pansessuale Arcigay Siena).
Here are the campaign materials: www.arcigay.it/enjoy-your-visibility/#.XMB28hbOOEc&gid=1&pid=11
