Alejandra (Lady Baroness of Xternetsa) ([info]aleja) wrote in [info]gimpgirl,
@ 2008-02-17 16:34:00
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Current mood: curious
Entry tags:anniversary, disability, gimpgirl, identity

Topic of the month: What does GimpGirl mean to you?

GimpGirl celebrates its 10th Anniversary!


Started in February 1998, the GimpGirl Community has been a long-time resource for women with disabilities.  We are currently gearing up to re-launch our new website, which has been on a bit of a hiatus. We're also becoming active on Facebook, as well as MySpace and the virtual community of Second Life. (See our website for more details, including how to get to our Second Life Open House, happening TODAY at 4:00 PM SLT/Pacific)

Our awesome LiveJournal community has been our mainstay for a long time, and we'd like to hear your thoughts as we move into our next decade...

TOPIC OF THE MONTH: What does being a "gimp girl" (AKA woman with a disability) mean to you?

For as long as the GimpGirl Community has been around, and long before that, people with disabilities, and especially women, have thought, written and talked about their identities -- how having a disability and identifying as a woman shapes (or doesn't shape) their lives.

What does it mean to be a GimpGirl for you? GimpGirl is a phrase used by our community, and of course it's not one that everyone uses. If you prefer a different phrase, what is it, and why?

EDIT:  Look under the cut to find out more about today's excellent GimpGirl open house event on Second Life!


This photo was taken at the GimpGirl Open House event online on Second Life, 2/17/08.

Photo on Flickr: This photo was taken at the GimpGirl Open House event online on Second Life, 2/17/08.

(Photo by Aleja Asturias, AKA superaleja AKA me, [info]aleja!  See more pictures at the GimpGirl Flickr group.)

Not pictured: Dancing on the beach!

Our open house began at 4:00 PM SLT/Pacific Time at our new Second Life location (link takes you directly there if you use SL), though some people showed up a bit earlier.  Some stayed for just a few minutes, others for 2 hours or more.  In fact, this photo was taken just before [info]jennylin and I logged off, and the party was still going strong...  at least a dozen people attended at various points.

Topics discussed included our topic of the month (as posted above), identity, accessibility and acceptance in Second Life and virtual words, perceptions about people with disabilities in the "non-disabled" world, visible and invisible disabilities, wheelchairs, language, clothes, partners... and other things I'm sure I don't remember.  We'll be working to build our SL branch to make it into a place to be, with discussions, classes, events, and other Second Life offerings tailored to fit the mission of our group.

If you're on SL, drop in sometime!  If not, that's okay too, there are plenty of places for us to connect!

 If accessibility issues are what keep you from logging on, let's talk about it!  Access to Second Life for people with disabilities (especially for people who are blind and visually impaired) is an issue that is being examined from several directions, by various people and groups.


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[info]haddayr
2008-02-17 10:54 pm UTC (link)
I'll be very interested in reading these responses.

I am so new to being a gimp (and to this community) that I don't know what it means to me.

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[info]desikitteh
2008-02-18 03:12 am UTC (link)
happy 10th GG!

i'd have to say to me it's an extra challenge in life, some frustration... but on the bright side... it's a good excuse for a nap or two.

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[info]laura_seabrook
2008-02-18 10:16 am UTC (link)
Not sure what it means really. My disabilities tend to be cognitive and fatigue related. But I am KEEN on SL, and wish I'd caught the party there.

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[info]jennylin
2008-02-18 05:06 pm UTC (link)
The open house certainly turned out wonderful! I was so happy to see the crowd of people that turned out. We really got some great support yesterday.:)

Perhaps this is just my own personality, but to me being a woman with disability is a constant balance between showing my feisty and straightforward personality and getting the things that I need, or has been in the past anyway. I believe that society expects women in general to be somewhat subservient or at the very least quiet about their needs especially when compared to other’s needs. While I was growing up, or at least when my father was around, I would get smacked in the face every time I had an opinion that I thought deserved to be said especially if it was counter to what he or my brothers had to say. I think that is something that an alarming number of women go through every day, disability or not. When you add on top of that the inherent physical weakness involved in certain kinds of disability, as well as the additional needs that disability can bring, it can complicate matters even further. You are expected to be even weaker, and to be eternally grateful for every little bit of help you get even from a parent. There have been times in my life where I would choose to do things like sleep naked on the bathroom floor rather than ask for help and deal with the consequences and expectations of the people who are available to help me.

Even though these days I have a deeply loving husband who may be crabby at times but would do anything for me, and a surprisingly reliable network of caregivers, both of which encourage me to speak up and have an opinion, it is something that stays with me and colors my thoughts every day.

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[info]feyandstrange
2008-02-19 11:41 am UTC (link)
Oh, sweet! Soon as I get my new video card and can log in again worth spit, I'll have to check out the SL site. Awesome that there is one. Wonder if anyone's scupted a decent powerchair yet?

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[info]jennylin
2008-02-22 10:20 pm UTC (link)
I'm working on it (especially for short avs).;) I have it built, just need to figure out the damn scripting! Rar.:)

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[info]museumfreak
2008-02-19 06:29 pm UTC (link)
I'm on SL (muse carmona, no surprise there), but I don't understand how to send an application for membership in.

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[info]violet_tigress1
2008-02-24 07:20 am UTC (link)
Being a gimpgirl means that after thinking "Oh yeah, I can do that," I have to think my actual needs....

Edited at 2008-02-24 07:21 am UTC

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for now, being a brand-new gimpgirl means . . .
[info]haddayr
2008-02-25 01:44 am UTC (link)
What bothers me most about being a gimp, I think, is how slow I am.

I was the one who would catch the glass before it hit the floor, who leapt onto the elevator last-minute without making the doors open again, who slid through lunchtime skyway crowds with impatient, irritable skill. I walked faster than most people jogged.

I stood in line behind old people as they s l o w l y took out their money, hands shaking, and carefully counted out the change, feeling as if I were crawling out of my skin in frustration. I never glared or rolled my eyes or sighed or anything, but I was pushing at them with my energy: push push push poke poke hurry hurry hurry.

When I wasn't paying attention, even if I wasn't running late, I would tailgate.

Now, I make people wait as I laboriously clamber off the bus: cane, foot. Cane, foot. Shuffle shuffle shuffle. I tell my friends: Hey. Slower. Hold on. Wait up. I fumble with my coat, my gloves, my keys, while everyone else is already out on the front stoop, wondering at the night sky.

So sorry, I say, excuse me, I apologize, I hope you're not in a hurry, go on without me. I feel others' impatience bouncing in the air around me as I clog doorways, hallways, and bathrooms. My shaking hands give me no quarter as I try to find the keyhole in the dark, squinting in the headlights of the impatient driver who is waiting for my spot.

I've had symptoms of MS now only since October. I don't even have a diagnosis yet. So now, my definition of myself appears to pretty much be what I can't do. I am becoming someone else, but I'm not quite there, yet.

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