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Lesbians: Women
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The cultural origins of African American lesbians and bisexual women are rooted in the tribes of Western Africa and in their identity as descendants of slaves who were unwilling immigrants to the United States. Historically, all black women in the diaspora have the horrific legacies of the slave trade in common. Prior to leaving Africa and becoming slaves, African women were not a homogeneous group. To the contrary, the mixed pre-slavery lineages of African women included membership in many different tribes speaking hundreds of distinct languages, with different systems of family values, relations, and tribal customs. Furthermore, the wide range of differences in the kinds of slavery policies practiced in the different countries to which slaves were taken, as well as the presence of cross ethnic relationships/marriages, created even greater heterogeneity among group members. All of these pre-slavery diversities and post-slavery realities gave rise to a wide range of expressions of female sexuality, and therefore, to same-sex sexual relationships among Black women in the diaspora.
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Bacterial vaginosis prevalence among lesbians in these studies has ranged from 24% to 51%, compared to 21% for heterosexual clients of sexually transmitted disease clinics and 9%–14% for pregnant women. Although bacterial vaginosis is not a classic STI in that a specific microbial precipitant has not been identified, among heterosexual women, report of a new male sex partner and unprotected intercourse are frequently associated (20). Moreover, in early studies of "Hemophilus vaginalis vaginitis," Criswell and Gardner transmitted bacterial vaginosis from one woman to another by transferring vaginal secretions of women with bacterial vaginosis to noninfected women (23). Indeed, bacterial vaginosis is frequently found in both members of monogamous lesbian couples (7,24). In these women, bacterial vaginosis has been associated with sexual behavior that is likely to result in the transfer of vaginal fluid (7). These observations have prompted some authors to propose that sexual transmission of some etiologic factor, as yet undefined, is responsible (24).
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Many lesbians have been involved in women's rights. Late in the 19th century, the term Boston marriage was used to describe romantic unions between women living together, often while contributing to the suffrage movement. Lesbian feminism gained renewed popularity in North America and Western Europe during the "second wave" of the 1970s and early 1980s. By the end of the 1970s lesbian feminism was accepted as a field of study within academic institutions, although mostly as a branch of feminist disciplines. More recently, lesbian feminism has emerged as an expression of dissatisfaction with the 1970s era second wave feminist and gay liberation movements.[22]
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Beyond African cultural legacies, characteristics of African American lesbians and their families constitute responses and attempts to cope with American racism and the patriarchal social structure that characterize the majority culture in the United States. Slavery, institutional racism, and the resulting lack of employment opportunities made it difficult for African American men to conform to the Western ideal of the male as the sole provider. This ideal devalued women who worked as well as the men who needed their female partners to work outside the home for economic survival. This ideal was never consistent with the reality of African slaves and their descendants.
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Chlamydia and Gonorrhea are rare in lesbians but if they are present may be passed on through sharing sex toys or rubbing vulvas together. Often there are no symptoms, though there may be a discharge. The first sign of both infections may be pain in the pelvic region (pelvic inflammatory disease or PID). There is a risk of infertility for women who have had untreated chlamydia.
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The California Supreme Court is scheduled to hear oral arguments in three child custody and support cases involving lesbians who parted ways acrimoniously after becoming mothers. The three cases center on whether laws crafted to protect children by establishing clear parental rights and responsibilities for absent fathers apply when the estranged couples consist of two men or two women. Following are experts who can comment on child custody and support cases involving same-sex couples:
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