I don't know about you, but when I think of queer feminist radicals, I think of combat boots, hand-lettered zines, and fair trade coffee. Not knitting. And certainly not homemaking.
Turns out I'm not suited to knitting (I'm an angry, impatient knitter, who makes very ugly crafts). But luckily, I found out several important things along the way:
- Knitting can be bad-ass (check out Slave to the Needles, via Microcosm Publishing: knitted beer muffs and thongs, anyone?)
- Femininity is powerful, but only when embraced.
- Taking the means of production into your own hands (however clumsy) is one of the most radical acts in which you can participate.
Fast-forward three years, and enter Shannon Hayes, author of Radical Homemakers.
I got tickets to the Sustainable Living Fair in 2011, and while researching the presenters I came across Ms. Hayes' biography. Something struck a chord, so I followed my gut to the library and to her book....