Some members of the lesbian community eschew butch or femme classifications, believing that they are inadequate to describe an individual, or that labels are limiting in and of themselves.


Prior to the middle of the 20th century in Western culture, homosexual societies were mostly underground or secret, making it difficult to determine how long butch and femme roles have been practiced by women.


It is known that butch–femme dress codes date back at least to the beginning of the 20th century as photographs from 1900–1920 exist of butch–femme couples in the United States; [ 55 ]  they were at the time called "transvestites". However, according to the  Routledge International Encyclopaedia of Women , although  upper-class  women like  Radclyffe Hall  and her lover  Una Troubridge  lived together in unions that resembled butch–femme relationships, "The term butch/femme would have been categorically inconsequential, however, and incomprehensible to these women." [ 56 ]


Butch and femme lesbian labels were only starting to become apparent in the 1940s, since it started to become common  to allow women to enter bars without men. [ 57 ]  In the 1940s in the U.S., most butch women had to wear conventionally feminine dress in order to hold down jobs, donning their starched shirts and ties only on weekends to go to bars or parties as "Saturday night" butches. Butches had to take a subtle approach to butchness in order to exist in society. [ 58 ]  They created outfits that were outwardly accepted by society, but allowed those who were butch to still present as more masculine than the norm- Alix Genter states that "butches wore long, pleated skirts with their man-tailored shirts, sometimes with a vest or coat on top" at Bay Ridge High school. [ 58 ] [ 59 ]


The 1950s saw the rise of a new generation of butches who refused to live double lives and wore butch attire full-time, or as close to full-time as possible. This usually limited them to a few jobs, such as factory work and cab driving, that had no dress codes for women. [ 60 ]  Their increased visibility, combined with the anti-gay politics of the  McCarthy era , led to an increase in violent attacks on gay and bisexual women, while at the same time the increasingly strong and defiant bar culture became more willing to respond with force. Although femmes also fought back, it became primarily the role of butches to defend against attacks and hold the bars as gay women's space. [ 61 ]  While in the '40s, the prevailing butch image was severe but gentle, it became increasingly tough and aggressive as violent confrontation became a fact of life. [ 62 ]  In 1992, a "groundbreaking" anthology about the butch–femme socialization that took place in working class bars of the 40s and 50s was published— The Persistent Desire: A Femme–Butch Reader , edited by femme  Joan Nestle . [ 63 ]


Although butch–femme was not the only organizing principle among lesbians in the mid-20th century, it was particularly prominent in the working-class lesbian bar culture of the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s, where butch–femme was the norm, while butch–butch and femme–femme relationships were taboo. [ 4 ]  Those who switched roles were called  ki-ki , a  pejorative  term, and they were often the butt of jokes. [ 64 ]  In the 1950s, in an early piece of  lesbian studies , the gay rights campaigning organisation  ONE, Inc.  assigned Stella Rush to study "the butch/femme phenomenon" in gay bars. Rush reported that women held strong opinions, that "role distinctions needed to be sharply drawn," and that not being one or the other earned strong disapproval from both groups. [ 65 ]  It has been noted that, at least in part, kiki women were unwelcome where lesbians gathered because their apparent lack of understanding of the butch–femme  dress code  might indicate that they were policewomen. [ 66 ]


In contrast to ONE, Inc. studies, more conservative homophile organizations of the 1950s, such as the  Daughters of Bilitis , discouraged butch–femme roles and identities. This was especially true in relation to the butch identity, as the organization held the belief that assimilation into heterosexual society was the goal of the homophile movement. Gender expressions outside of the norm prevented assimilation. [ 67 ]


In the 1970s, the development of lesbian feminism pushed butch–femme roles out of popularity. Lesbian separatists such as  Sheila Jeffreys  argued that all forms of masculinity, including masculine butch women, were negative and harmful to women. [ 68 ]  The group of radical lesbians often credited with sparking lesbian feminism,  Radicalesbians , called butch culture "male-identified role-playing among lesbians". [ 69 ]  This encouraged the emergence of androgyny in lesbian feminist circles, with many women wearing clothing like T-shirts, jeans, flannels, and boots. This dress was very similar to butch dress, weakening a key identifier of butch lesbians. [ 36 ]


While butch–femme roles had previously been the primary way of identifying lesbians and quantifying lesbian relationships in the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s, lesbian feminist ideology had turned these roles into a "perversion of lesbian identity". [ 70 ]  Lesbian feminism was publicly represented though  white feminism , and often excluded and alienated working class lesbians and lesbians of color. In these excluded communities, butch–femme roles persisted and grew throughout the 1970s. [ 34 ]  Despite the criticism from both middle-class lesbians and lesbian feminists, butch and femme roles reemerged in the 1980s and 1990s, but were no longer relegated to only working-class lesbians. [ 36 ]


In the 21st century, some writers and commentators began to describe a phenomenon in the lesbian community called "The Disappearing Butch". Some felt butches were disappearing because it had become easier for masculine women who might have previously identified as butch to have  sex reassignment surgery  and live as men. [ 71 ]  Others claimed the Disappearing Butch was the result of lesbian 'commodification' in the media, influenced by the viewing public's desire to see lesbians as "reproductions of Hollywood straight women". [ 72 ]  One writer noted that in the increased drive for LGBT 'normalization' and political acceptance, butch lesbians and  effeminate   gay men  seemed to be disappearing. [ 73 ]  In the 21st century, some younger people were also beginning to eschew labels like 'butch' or even 'lesbian' and identify instead as  queer .' [ 74 ]


However, others noted that butch women have gained increased visibility in the media, mentioning  Ellen DeGeneres , frequently referred to as 'a soft butch', political commentator  Rachel Maddow , once described as a 'butch fatale'  and the character Big Boo in  Orange Is the New Black , played by butch comic and actress  Lea de Laria . [ 75 ] [ 76 ] [ 77 ]


The 21st century also saw a re-examination of the meaning of 'femme', with the term being used in a broader and more politically charged way, particularly by women of color, and some critics challenging what is seen as its appropriation by  heteronormative  culture. [ 78 ] [ 79 ]


Camel toe , or  cameltoe , is  slang  for the outline of the  labia majora  (the outer lips of the  vulva ) in tightly fitting clothes. [ 1 ] [ 2 ] [ 3 ]  Owing to a combination of anatomical factors and the fabric tension in the crotch area, the outer labia and  mons pubis  may, together, display a shape resembling the  forefoot  of a  camel . Camel toe commonly occurs as a result of wearing clothing with crotch-area vertical tension, such as  Spandex   activewear  or  athleisure  bottom wear,  hotpants  or  swimwear . [ 4 ]


In the 1930s, following the development of  Lastex  rubberized yarns for swimwear, the resulting exposure of the pubic-area outline resulted in manufacturers adding a "modesty panel" to women's swimsuits to conceal the camel toe; this persisted through the 1950s. [ 5 ]


In the early 21st century, the display of camel toe in public or in the media has caused controversy on a number of occasions. [ 6 ] [ 7 ] [ 8 ]


A  dominatrix  ( / ˌ d ɒ m ɪ ˈ n eɪ t r ɪ k s /   DOM -in- AY -triks ;  pl.   dominatrixes  or  dominatrices   / ˌ d ɒ m ɪ ˈ n eɪ t r ɪ s iː z ,   ˌ d ɒ m ɪ n ə ˈ t r aɪ s iː z /   DOM -in- AY -triss-eez,  DOM -in-ə- TRY -seez ), or  domme , is a woman who takes the dominant role in  BDSM  activities. The BDSM practice is called  female dominance , or  femdom . A dominatrix can be of any  sexual orientation , but this does not necessarily limit the genders of her submissive partners. Dominatrices are popularly known for inflicting physical pain on their submissive subjects, but this is not done in every case. In some instances  erotic humiliation  is used, such as verbal humiliation or the assignment of humiliating tasks. Dominatrices also make use of other forms of  servitude . Practices of domination common to many BDSM and other various sexual relationships are also prevalent. A dominatrix is typically a paid professional ( pro-domme ) as the term  dominatrix  is little-used within the non-professional BDSM scene.


Dominatrix  is the feminine form of the  Latin   dominator , a ruler or lord, and was originally used in a non-sexual sense. Its use in English dates back to at least 1561. Its earliest recorded use in the prevalent modern sense, as a female dominant in  sadomasochism , dates to 1961. [ 1 ]  It was initially coined to describe a woman who provides punishment-for-pay as one of the case studies within Bruce Roger's pulp paperback  The Bizarre Lovemakers . [ 2 ]  The term was taken up shortly after by the Myron Kosloff title  Dominatrix  (with art by  Eric Stanton ) in 1968, and entered more popular mainstream knowledge following the 1976 film  Dominatrix Without Mercy . [ 3 ]


The term  domme  is likely a coined pseudo-French feminine inflection of the slang  dom  (short for  dominant ). The use of  domme ,  dominatrix ,  dom , or  dominant  by any woman in a dominant role is chosen mostly by personal preference and the conventions of the local BDSM scene. [ 4 ]  The term  mistress  or  dominant mistress  is sometimes also used.  Female dominance  (also known as  female domination  or  femdom ) is a BDSM activity in which the dominant partner is female. However, while the term  mistress  is often used in the media, members of the BDSM community often avoid it, as it can be confused with  mistress  in the sense of a woman who has an illicit relationship with a married man, a term which has the negative implication of cheating on a partner. Since there is a large overlap between the BDSM and  polyamory  communities, where ethical conduct is a prime concern, any such relationship is a source of disapproval.


Although the term  dominatrix  was not used, the classic example in literature of the female dominant-male submissive relationship is portrayed in the 1870 novella  Venus in Furs  by Austrian writer  Leopold von Sacher-Masoch . The term  masochism  was later derived from the author's name by  Richard von Krafft-Ebing  in the latter's 1886 forensic study  Psychopathia Sexualis .


The history of the dominatrix is argued to date back to rituals of the goddess  Inanna  (or  Ishtar  as she was known in Akkadian), in ancient  Mesopotamia . Ancient cuneiform texts consisting of "Hymns to Inanna" have been cited as examples of the  archetype  of powerful, sexual female displaying dominating behaviors and forcing gods and men into submission to her. [ 5 ]  The pseudonymous archaeologist and BDSM historian Anne O. Nomis notes that Inanna's rituals included cross-dressing of cult personnel, and rituals "imbued with pain and ecstasy, bringing about initiation and journeys of altered consciousness; punishment, moaning, ecstasy, lament and song, participants exhausting themselves with weeping and grief." [ 6 ]


The fictional  tale of Phyllis and Aristotle , which became popular and gained numerous versions from the 12th century onwards, tells the story of a dominant woman who seduced and dominated the male intellect of the greatest philosopher. In the story, Phyllis forces  Aristotle  to kneel on the ground so that she rides on his back while whipping and verbally humiliating him. [ 7 ] [ 8 ]


The profession appears to have originated as a specialization within  brothels , before becoming its own unique craft. As far back as the 1590s, flagellation within an erotic setting is recorded. [ 9 ]  The profession features in erotic prints of the era, such as the British Museum mezzotint "The Cully Flaug'd" (c. 1674–1702), and in accounts of forbidden books which record the flogging schools and the activities practised. [ 10 ]


Within the 18th century, female "Birch Disciplinarians" advertised their services in a book masked as a collection of lectures or theatrical plays, entitled " Fashionable Lectures " (c. 1761). [ 11 ]  This included the names of 57 women, some actresses and courtesans, who catered to birch discipline fantasies, keeping a room with rods and cat o' nine tails, and charging their clients a Guinea for a "lecture". [ 11 ]


The 19th century is characterised by what Nomis characterises as the "Golden Age of the Governess". No fewer than twenty establishments were documented as having existed by the 1840s, supported entirely by flagellation practices and known as "Houses of Discipline" distinct from brothels. [ 12 ]  Amongst the well-known "dominatrix governesses" were Mrs Chalmers, Mrs Noyeau, the late Mrs Jones of  Hertford Street  and London Street, the late Mrs  Theresa Berkley , Bessy Burgess of York Square and Mrs Pyree of  Burton Crescent . [ 12 ]  The most famous of these Governess "female flagellants" was  Theresa Berkley , who operated her establishment on  Charlotte Street  in the central  London  district of  Marylebone . [ 13 ]  She is recorded to have used implements such as  whips ,  canes  and birches, to chastise and punish her male clients, as well as the  Berkley Horse , a specially designed flogging machine, and a pulley suspension system for lifting them off the floor. [ 14 ]  Such historical use of  corporal punishment  and  suspension , in a setting of  domination  roleplay, connects very closely to the practices of modern-day professional dominatrices.


The "bizarre style" (as it came to be called) of leather catsuits, claws, tail whips, and latex rubber only came about in the 20th century, initially within commercial fetish photography, and taken up by dominatrices. [ 15 ]  Within the mid-20th century, dominatrices operated in a very discreet and underground manner, which has made them difficult to trace within the historical record. A few photographs still exist of the women who ran their domination businesses in London, New York, The Hague and Hamburg's  Herbertstraße , predominantly in sepia and black-and-white photographs, and scans from magazine articles, copied and re-copied. Amongst these were Miss Doreen of London who was acquainted with  John Sutcliffe  of  AtomAge  fame, whose clients reportedly included Britain's top politicians and businessmen. [ 16 ]  In New York, the dominatrix Anne Laurence was known within the underground circle of acquaintances during the 1950s, with Monique Von Cleef arriving in the early 1960s, and hitting national headlines when her home was raided by police detectives on 22 December 1965. [ 17 ]  Von Cleef went on to set up her "House of Pain" in The Hague in the 1970s, which became one of the world capitals for dominatrices, reportedly with visiting lawyers, ambassadors, diplomats and politicians. [ 18 ]   Domenica Niehoff  worked as a dominatrix in Hamburg and appeared on talk shows on German television from the 1970s onwards, campaigning for  sex workers' rights . [ 19 ]  Mistress Raven, founder and manager of  Pandora's Box , one of New York's best known BDSM studios, [ 20 ]  was featured in  Nick Broomfield 's 1996 documentary film  Fetishes . [ 21 ]


The term  dominatrix  is mostly used to describe a female professional dominant (or "pro-domme") who is paid to engage in  BDSM play  with a submissive. Professional dominatrices are not prostitutes, despite the sensual and erotic interactions they have. [ 22 ]  An appointment or roleplay is referred to as a "session", and is often conducted in a dedicated professional play space which has been set up with specialist equipment, known as a "dungeon". [ 23 ]  Sessions may also be conducted remotely by letter or telephone, or in the contemporary era of technological connectivity by email, online chat or platforms such as  OnlyFans . Most, but not all, clients of female professional dominants are men. Male professional dominants also exist, catering predominantly to the gay male market. [ citation needed ]


Women who engage in female domination typically promote and title themselves under the terms "dominatrix", "mistress", "lady", "madame", " herrin " (German for "mistress") or "goddess". In a study of German dominatrices, Andrew Wilson said that the trend for dominatrices choosing names aimed at creating and maintaining an atmosphere in which class, femininity and mystery are key elements of their self-constructed identity. [ 24 ]


Some professional dominatrices set minimum age limits for their clients. Popular requests from clients are for dungeon play including  bondage ,  spanking  and  cock and ball torture , or for  medical play  using hoods, gas masks and  urethral sounding . [ 25 ]  Verbal  erotic humiliation , such as  small penis humiliation , is also popular. [ 26 ]  There are some professional dominatrices that engage in sexual contact activities such as  facesitting ,  handjobs  or  fellatio  but others disapprove of this. [ 27 ]  Other BDSM activities can include various forms of  body worship , such as  foot worship , ass worship, breast worship [ 28 ]  and pussy worship; [ 29 ]   tease and denial ; corporal punishment including  breast torture ,  caning ,  whipping ;  orgasm denial ; and as well as face slapping, hair pulling,  dripping hot wax on the genitals , spitting,  golden showers , "forced"  chastity , cock and ball torture, and pussy torture. [ citation needed ]


It is not unusual for a dominatrix to consider her profession different from that of an  escort  and not perform  tie and tease  or " happy endings ". Typically professional dominatrices do not have sexual intercourse with their clients, do not become naked with their clients [ 25 ]  and do not allow their clients to touch them. [ 30 ]  The Canadian dominatrix  Terri-Jean Bedford , who was one of three women who initiated an application in the  Ontario Superior Court  seeking invalidation of Canada's laws regarding  brothels , sought to differentiate for clarity her occupation as a dominatrix rather than a  prostitute  to the media, due to frequent misunderstanding and conflation by the public of the two terms. [ 31 ]


That being said, it is now generally accepted that a professional dominatrix is a sex worker, and many of the acts conducted during a session may be interpreted as equally sexual to the participants. [ 32 ] [ 33 ] [ 34 ] [ 35 ]


While dominatrices come from many different backgrounds, it has been shown that a considerable number are well-educated. Research into US dominatrices published in 2012 indicated that 39% of the sample studied had received some sort of graduate training. [ 36 ]


A 1985 study suggested that about 30 percent of participants in BDSM subculture were female. [ 37 ]  A 1994 report indicated that around a quarter of the women who took part in BDSM subculture did so professionally. [ 38 ]  In a 1995 study of Internet  discussion group  messages, the preference for the dominant-initiator role was expressed by 11% of messages by heterosexual women, compared to 71% of messages by heterosexual men. [ 39 ]


Professional dominatrices can be seen advertising their services online and in print publications which carry erotic services advertising, such as  contact magazines  and  fetish magazines  that specialise in female domination. [ 40 ]  The precise number of women actively offering professional domination services is unknown. Most professional dominatrices practice in large metropolitan cities such as New York, Los Angeles, and London, with as many as 200 women working as dominatrices in Los Angeles. [ 41 ]


Professional dominatrices may take pride or differentiation in their psychological insight into their clients'  fetishes  and desires, as well as their technical ability to perform complex BDSM practices, such as  Japanese shibari , head-scissoring, [ 42 ]  and other forms of bondage,  suspension ,  torture  roleplay, and  corporal punishment , and other such practices which require a high degree of knowledge and competency to safely oversee. From a sociological point of view,  Danielle Lindemann  has stated the "embattled purity regime" in which many pro-dommes emphasise their specialist knowledge and professional skills, while distancing themselves from economic criteria for success, in a way which is comparable to avant-garde artists. [ 43 ]


Some dominatrices practice  financial domination , or findom, a fetish in which a submissive is aroused by sending money or gifts to a dominatrix at her instruction. In some cases the dominatrix is given control of the submissive's finances or a "blackmail" scenario is acted out. In the majority of cases the dominatrix and the submissive do not physically meet. The interactions are typically performed using the Internet, which is also where such services are advertised. Findom was originally a niche service that a traditional dominatrix would offer, but it has become popular with less-experienced online practitioners. [ 44 ]


To differentiate women who identify as a dominatrix but do not offer paid services, non-professional dominants are occasionally referred to as a "lifestyle" dominatrix or Mistress. The term "lifestyle" to signify BDSM is occasionally a contention topic in the BDSM community and that some dominatrices may dislike the term. Some professional dominatrices are also "lifestyle" dominatrices—i.e., in addition to paid sessions with submissive clients they engage in unpaid recreational sessions or may incorporate power exchange within their own private lives and relationships. [ 45 ]  However, the term has fallen out of general usage with respect to women who are dominant in their private relationships, and has taken on more and more the connotation of "professional". Nathalie Lugand in her 2023 book "A Psychodynamic Approach to Female Domination in BDSM Relationships" describes this strict separation as artificial.


Catherine Robbe-Grillet  is a lifestyle dominatrix. Born in Paris on September 24, 1930, she then became France's most famous lifestyle dominatrix. She is also a writer and actress, the widow of  nouveau roman  pioneer and sadist  Alain Robbe-Grillet . [ 46 ]  She currently lives with Beverly Charpentier, a 51-year-old South African woman who is her submissive companion. Although being such a famous dominatrix, she has never accepted payment for her "ceremonies". She's quoted as saying "If someone pays, then they are in charge. I need to remain free. It is important that everyone involved knows that I do it solely for my pleasure." [ 47 ]  "Catherine is my secret garden," Charpentier says. "I have given myself to her, body and soul. She does whatever she wants, whenever she wants, with either or both, according to her pleasure—and her pleasure is also my pleasure." [ 47 ]  Robbe-Grillet has been criticised for writing about S/M stories. [ citation needed ]  She identifies as a "pro-sex feminist" and "the kind of feminist who supports the right of any man or woman to work as a prostitute, if it is their free choice." [ 46 ]


The dominatrix is a symbolic female  archetype . In popular culture, the conception of the dominatrix is generally associated with specialized clothing and props used to signify her role as a strong, dominant, sexualised woman. This role is linked to but distinct from images of  sexual fetish . [ 48 ]  During the twentieth century, dominatrix imagery was developed by the work of a number of artists including the costume designer and photographer  Charles Guyette , the publisher and film director  Irving Klaw , and the illustrators  Eric Stanton  and  Gene Bilbrew  who drew for the fetish magazine  Exotique .


One of the garments associated with the dominatrix is the  catsuit . The black leather female catsuit entered dominant fetish culture in the 1950s with the  AtomAge  magazine and its connections to fetish fashion designer  John Sutcliffe . Its appearance in mainstream culture began when catsuits were worn by strong female protagonists in popular 1960s TV programs like  The Avengers  and by comic super-heroines such as  Catwoman . The catsuit represented the independence of a woman capable of "kick-ass" moves and action, giving complete freedom of movement. At the same time, the one-piece catsuit accentuated and exaggerated the sexualized female form, providing visual access to a woman's body, while simultaneously obstructing physical penetrative access. "You can look but you can't touch" is the message, which plays upon the BDSM practice known as " tease and denial ". [ 49 ]


Another common image is that of a dominatrix wearing  thigh-high boots  in leather or shiny PVC, which have long held a fetishistic status and are sometimes called  kinky boots , along with very high  stiletto heels .  Fishnet  stockings,  seamed hosiery ,  stockings  and  garter belts  (suspenders) are also used in the representation and attire of dominatrices, to emphasize the form and length of the legs with erotic connotation.


Tight leather  corsets  are another popular dominatrix garment. Gloves, whether long  opera gloves  or fingerless gloves, are often a further accessory to emphasize the feminine role.  Neck corsets  are also sometimes worn.


Dominatrices frequently wear clothing made from  fetish fashion  materials. Examples include  PVC clothing ,  latex clothing  and garments drawn from the  leather subculture . In some cases elements of dominatrix attire, such as leather boots and peaked cap, are drawn from  Nazi chic , particularly the black  SS officer 's uniform which has been widely adopted and fetishized by underground gay and BDSM lifestyle groups to satisfy a  uniform fetish .


A dominatrix often uses strong, dominant body language which is comparable to  dominant posturing in the animal world . The props she brandishes signify her role as dominatrix, such as a flogger, whip or riding crop as illustrated in the artwork of  Bruno Zach  in the early 20th century. [ 50 ] [ 51 ]


Another often-depicted characteristic of the dominatrix character is of  smoking , either of  tobacco   cigarettes  or  cannabis  products. While smoking tobacco has been in rapid decline worldwide, depiction of it in BDSM literature and media is increasing, as the negative image of smoking reinforces the "bad girl" stereotype associated with a dominatrix. [ 52 ]


Practicing professional dominatrices may draw their attire from the conventional imagery associated with the role, or adapt it to create their own individual style. There is a potential conflict between meeting conventional expectations and a desire for dominant independent self-expression. Some contemporary dominatrices draw upon an eclectic range of strong female archetypes, including the goddess, the female superheroine, the femme fatale, the priestess, the empress, the queen, the governess and the  KGB  secret agent. [ 53 ]


Themes associated with the dominatrix character have appeared in literature since the 10th century.  Canoness Hroswitha , in her manuscript  Maria,  uses the word  Dominatrix  for the main character. [ 54 ]  She is portrayed as an unattainable woman who is too good for any of the men who are in love with her. The theme of "the unattainable woman" has been used thoroughly in medieval literature as well, although it differs from a dominatrix. Medieval themes surrounding the unattainable woman concerned issues of social classes and structure, with chivalry being a prime part of a relationship between a man and woman. There are some exceptions to this trend during medieval times. In Cervantes’  Don Quixote  (1605), Celadon is imprisoned by Galatea. Celadon complains that his "mistress . . . Galatea keeps me on such a short leash". In  Robert Herrick 's  Hesperides , a book of poems published in 1648, there were three revealing poems  An Hymne to Love ,  The Dream , and  To Love  which showcase masculine longing for domination, restraint, discipline. In  Ulysses  by  James Joyce , the character  Leopold Bloom  has many fantasies of submission to a lady and of receiving whippings from her. [ 54 ]


There have been a number of depictions of dominatrices in film and television, almost always featuring a professional dominatrix. Depictions of dominatrices in popular culture include:


Dusk!  is a monthly  subscription   adult film   television channel  and website dedicated to  "porn for women" . [ 1 ]  Based in the  Netherlands , Dusk! is available on all Dutch cable operators (including  Ziggo ,  UPC Netherlands , CAIW and  KPN ), 15 other European countries and the United States. [ 2 ]  The channel broadcasts 24/7 [ 3 ]  and is owned by 2GrapesMedia. [ 1 ]


Dusk! was founded in 2008 [ 1 ]  by Martijn Broersma with the aim of building an erotic TV channel based on the sexual preferences of women. [ 4 ] [ 3 ]  When it was launched in the Netherlands in 2009, Dusk! was the first adult TV channel in the world aimed at a female audience. [ 2 ]  In 2011, the channel was reportedly available to 1.2 million viewers. [ 4 ]  By January 2015, it had undergone significant growth: all Dutch cable operators offered Dusk! in their erotic package, and 15 other European countries and the United States offered it via video on demand. [ 2 ]


The supply of female-oriented adult films – variously known as "porn for women",  women's pornography ,  women's erotica , or  porna  according to Dusk! – has been increasing since the rise of  feminist pornography  in the 1980s, and has become increasingly accepted since. [ 2 ]  With rising success in the 2010s, Dusk! played a significant role in helping many (potential) female porn consumers find what they like according to their own fantasies and needs, which many of them had not found in mainstream porn, which usually only focuses on  men 's sexual pleasure. [ 2 ] [ 5 ]


A panel consistsing of roughly 2000 women (as of January 2015) together decide which films and videos are broadcast according to what they consider to be  porna . [ 2 ]  This selection process goes as follows:


The material that makes it through the selection process is dubbed  porna  (to distinguish it from 'traditional porn' [ 7 ] [ 3 ] ), and is broadcast. [ 2 ]  This term, popularised by Dusk! to the extent that it has become a household term in feminist pornography, [ 6 ] [ 8 ]  approximately means 'pornography that women  really  enjoy,' [ 2 ] [ 6 ]  based on 'intimacy' with a 'clear context', [ 2 ]  and which is 'realistic, explicit, with 'real' people and a well-balanced development of sexual desire, made with respect.' [ 6 ]  Broersma and American erotic filmmaker  Jennifer Lyon Bell  said that  porna  puts sex 'into a storyline' in which the actors and especially the actresses 'put their hearts into' instead of looking absent-minded. [ 3 ]  Dusk! employee Xaviera Wong A Soy stated in 2016 that 'this doesn't mean that there is only cuddling and long talks', but that  porna  can also be rough and  in your face , with dominant men or women, and few words. [ 5 ]  Dusk! net manager Nadine Meanwell said that extra attention is paid to women achieving  orgasms  (often absent, unclear or  faked  in mainstream porn), and showing the entire body of a man instead of just his  penis  (a turnoff for many women watching mainstream porn). [ 5 ]


Some critics including former employee Yvette Luhrs have claimed that the selection process filters out a lot of niches of female sexuality, such as hard sadomasochism and more 'mainstream' porn that some women do enjoy. Dusk! thus excludes minority preferences amongst women and its  porna  is therefore appealing to most, but not all female viewers. [ 2 ] [ 9 ]


The TV channel schedules films by female porn directors including  Candida Royalle , [ 3 ] [ 6 ]   Petra Joy , [ 4 ] [ 6 ]   Erika Lust , [ 4 ] [ 6 ]   Anna Span , [ 4 ] [ 6 ]   Tristan Taormino , [ 6 ]   Émilie Jouvet , [ 6 ]  and  Maria Beatty . [ 6 ]  Some of these directors make feminist pornography or pornography targeted at a female audience, [ 4 ] [ 3 ]  while others cater to couples. [ 3 ]


The channel also broadcasts short films by Swedish filmmaker Mia Engberg, who, along with twelve other directors, produced a collection of feminist pornographic short films entitled  Dirty Diaries . [ 6 ]


El tren de la libertad  ( The Freedom Train  in English) is a movement in defense of the sexual and reproductive rights of women. In late 2013, the conservative-led Spanish government proposed dramatically restricting access to abortion in the country. [ 1 ] [ 2 ] [ 3 ] [ 4 ]


In 2010, the socialist government led by José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero reformed the Law of Abortion originally passed by the Congress of Deputies on December 19, 2009, [ 5 ]  which decriminalized abortion during the first fourteen weeks. The law was passed on July 5, 2010, replacing the Ley Orgánica 9/1985. The conservative Partido Popular filed an appeal with the Supreme Court in June 2010, and included the modification of the law as part of their 2011 electoral platform.


On February 1, 2014, the group hosted a massive demonstration in  Madrid  calling for the withdrawal of the preliminary draft of the abortion law presented by Justice Minister Alberto Ruíz Gallardón and demanding his resignation, as well as defending the existing law, which had been in use since 2010. [ 6 ]  The protest was an initiative that emerged in  Asturias  from the Feminist  Tertulia Les Comadres  and the organization  Women for Equality of Barredos . It was joined by numerous women's organizations, feminist organizations, and entities involved in the fight for sexual and reproductive rights throughout Spain, which chartered trains and buses to bring participants to the central event of the Madrid Summit. The event was also supported by opposition parties and unions. [ 7 ]  The demonstration began at Paseo del Prado and traveled all the way to the  Congress of Deputies , where a group of feminist representatives presented the manifesto "Because I decide" [ 8 ] [ 9 ]  — written by  Alicia Miyares , a respected philosopher and feminist writer, [ citation needed ]  and detailing the demands of the marchers - to the Registration of the Congress in the name of the President of the Government, the Congress, the Minister of Health,  Ana Mato , and the Minister of Justice,  Alberto Ruiz Gallardón . [ 10 ] [ 11 ] [ 8 ]


Tens of thousands of people participated in the mobilization of the Freedom Train. At the time it was considered the largest feminist protest in the history of Spain, a distinction it held until 2015. [ 12 ] [ 13 ] [ 14 ]


Supporters of the effort also staged demonstrations in several European capitals ( Edinburgh ,  Rome ,  Paris ,  Luxembourg ) and  Latin American  ( Buenos Aires ). [ 15 ] [ 16 ] [ 17 ]


The protest's growth and development was recorded in the documentary  es:Yo decido. El tren de la libertad [ 18 ] [ 19 ] [ 20 ]  (in English:  My Choice. The Freedom Train [ 21 ] [ 22 ] , I Decide: The Train of Freedom , Because it's my choice .  The Freedom Train ). [ 23 ] [ 24 ] [ 25 ] Over 80 filmmakers and professionals from the audiovisual world participated in the project, [ 26 ] [ 27 ]  including  Gracia Querejeta ,  Ángeles González-Sinde , Mabel Lozano,  Icíar Bollaín ,  Isabel Coixet , Georgina Cisquella and Virginia Yagüe. [ 28 ] [ 29 ] [ 30 ]


As a consequence of The Freedom Train movement, the Spanish government had to abandon plans to tighten abortion law, ending months of speculation and prompting Alberto Ruiz-Gallardón, the justice minister and architect of the abortion proposal, to resign, charged with enacting some of the toughest legislation on the issue in Europe. [ 31 ] [ 32 ] [ 33 ] [ 34 ]


"Because it's my choice" (" Porque yo decido " in Spanish) is a text written by feminist philosopher  Alicia Miyares , given to Congress and dedicated to Prime Minister  Mariano Rajoy , Minister of Justice Alberto Ruiz Gallardón, as well as Minister of Health Ana Mato. [ 35 ] [ 36 ] [ 37 ] [ 38 ] [ 39 ] [ 40 ]


The route of the march was from  Asturias  to  Madrid , and the people joined it from different Spain cities:  Andalucia , Canarias,  Catalonia , Valencian Community,  Castilla-La Mancha ,  Extremadura ,  Galicia ,  Murcia  and  Pais Vasco . [ 41 ]  In the afternoon, they organized an assembly, where different delegation representatives attended the movement.


Several Europeans cities joined the march, including  Paris ,  Rome ,  London ,  Luxembourg  and  Edinburgh . In  Latin America , the participation of  Buenos Aires  was important.


Female intrasexual competition  is  competition  between women over a  potential mate . Such competition might include self-promotion, derogation of other women, and direct and indirect  aggression  toward other women. Factors that influence female intrasexual competition include the genetic quality of available mates,  hormone  levels, and  interpersonal dynamics .


There are two modes of  sexual selection : intersexual selection and intrasexual selection. Intersexual selection includes the display of desirable  sexual characteristics  to attract a potential mate. Intrasexual selection is competition between members of the same sex other over a potential mate.


Compared to males, females tend to prefer subtle rather than overt forms of intrasexual competition. [ 1 ] [ 2 ]


Self-promotion tactics are one of the main strategies that can be used during intrasexual competition for mates. [ 3 ]  It is often perceived to be the most socially desirable strategy, as it can be perceived as self-improvement, rather than an attack on competitors. Self-promotion tactics are especially useful for when women are looking for short-term mates, as such tactics will directly promote their sexual availability. [ 4 ]


Self-promotion tactics refers to the different strategies that women might use to make themselves look better compared to other competing women. For example, women are interested in luxury items that enhance their attractiveness. [ 5 ]   Luxury items  can indicate attractiveness by emphasising a higher status, which is a factor that potential mates will take into consideration.


It has been shown that when women are at their peak fertility, they will have an increased awareness and sensitivity to female intrasexual competition. This is due to the fact that when women are at their peak fertility, this is the most optimal time for them to mate and produce offspring. [ 6 ]  However, this tends to be only applied in situations when women are faced with rivals who they consider to be attractive. When with an unattractive rival, women might not necessarily see them posing any threat, as they would feel more attractive in comparison. [ 7 ]


By using  plastic surgery , women can surgically change their appearances to make themselves more attractive. They can surgically alter their faces and bodies according to their wishes. They can use  botulinum toxin  to prevent wrinkles and get face lifts. Or they can use get  liposuction  to remove fat and achieve a more desirable body. Research has shown that the  waist–hip ratio  (WHR) of a female is a good indicator of their health, and that males tend to have a preference for females with a low WHR. [ 8 ]  When comparing women's pre- and post-operative photographs, post-operative photographs where women have a lower WHR are rated as more attractive, regardless of their weight gain or their  body mass index  (BMI). [ 9 ]   Culture  plays a role in the type of plastic surgery a woman gets. The beauty standards for  Westerners  and  Easterners  are extremely different. Western models tend to be used to promote clothing and to portray  seductiveness , whereas Asian models tend to be used to promote hair and skin products. Research suggest that Western models are more body-oriented. [ 10 ] [ 11 ]


Regardless, by using cosmetic surgery, females can change various aspects of their body to make themselves more attractive by displaying a more desirable waist–hip ratio. This can lead to competition with other females who may be considered less attractive in comparison. When women change their appearances, such as by applying cosmetic products and wearing sexy or stylish clothes, do make a difference and has been proven to be effective. [ 3 ]


Wearing form-fitting attire, such as dresses that highlight the waist and hips or pants that accentuate curves, is a common strategy to enhance the overall figure. Such outfits highlight the importance of the waist-hip ratio (WHR). [ 12 ]


Short skirts,  high-heels , and attire that showcases the legs. These clothing choices subtly emphasize leg length and overall  body proportions , which are characteristics often deemed attractive.


Makeup , too, plays a role in self-promotion, allowing to enhance certain facial features and draw attention to specific areas such as the eyes and lips. [ 13 ]


There are a number of competitive strategies that females may use in a bid to appear more attractive in comparison to other females. Whilst males may use direct forms of aggression during intrasexual competition [ 14 ] [ 15 ]  females typically compete for access to desired mates through the use of indirect aggression. Unlike direct aggression which involves delivering harm face to face, [ 16 ]  indirect aggression describes acts that are done circuitously, where an individual aims to cause harm but attempts to appear as if they have no harmful intentions. [ 17 ]  In the context of intrasexual competition, indirect aggression works to reduce the opportunities the rival may have in securing access to the desired mate to, therefore, increase one's chances of  reproductive success . [ 18 ]  These include behaviours such as  shunning ,  social exclusion , getting others to dislike the individual, spreading rumours and criticizing the rival's appearance.


Female derogation is a form of indirect aggression where females attempt to reduce the perceived value of another female 'rival'. Fisher (2004) [ 19 ]  studied female derogation and the effects of estrogen levels on this form of competition. Females disclosed their ovulation status and rated the attractiveness of male and female faces. Competitor derogation (giving low ratings) towards same-sex rivals occurred frequently when women were at their most fertile stages. In contrast, women gave same-sex rivals higher ratings during the least fertile stages of their ovulation. This indirect form of competition appears exclusive toward females as findings also showed that women, irrespective of ovulation status (high or low), showed no difference in the rating of male faces. Supporting research has also found that younger women who are considered as having high fertility,  gossip  about other women more than older women, who are no longer at their most fertile stage. [ 20 ]


Indeed, indirect aggression appears more prevalent amongst (or exclusive to) females than males who are said to engage in more direct forms of competition. [ 21 ]  Research studying the relationship between indicators of attractiveness, such as physical attractiveness and indirect victimisation, showed that the likelihood of experiencing indirect victimization increased by 35% for females who perceived themselves as physically attractive. [ 22 ]  In contrast, being a male who is physically attractive decreased the chances of experiencing such indirect victimization. This also highlights how the physical attractiveness of a female is a trigger for indirect aggression and forms a core part of intersexual selection between the sexes.


Female derogation is also used to enforce equality amongst females which prevents high-status ambitious females from using their status to gain resources, allies and mates at the expense of other females. Thus attempts to gain social status are punished while norms of "niceness" (which is defined as a lack of competitiveness) and equality dominates as a social norm amongst females. Equality is enforced by threat of social exclusion (which can be directed against any female but females attempting to gain status are more likely to be targets) and low thresholds for dissolving relationships when inequality arises. Within a peer group, a high-status woman who tries to interfere with another's goals risks social derision and exclusion. [ 2 ]


Another form of competitor derogation that is instrumental in making rivals appear less desirable is  slut-shaming . In slut-shaming, females criticize and derogate same-sex rivals for engaging in sexual behaviors that are deemed "unacceptable" by society's standards, as it violates social expectations and norms with regards to their  gender role . For example, an act of  sexual promiscuity  demonstrated by a female is often considered non-conventional and inappropriate as such behaviors are not viewed as acts that constitute femininity. Females may choose to personally confront or spread rumors and gossip about the promiscuous activity of another female. Buss and Dedden explored sex differences in competitor derogation to investigate the tactics that are commonly adopted by both sexes for intrasexual competition. [ 23 ]  Researchers presented both sexes with a list of tactics that are often employed by individuals to derogate same-sex competitors in an attempt to make them look undesirable to the opposite sex. On a scale from 1 (likely) to 7 (unlikely), participants rated the likelihood that members of their own sex would perform each act. Results revealed that tactics that pointed out a competitor's promiscuity were used by females more frequently than males. These involved "calling her a tramp", "telling everyone that she sleeps around a lot" and that "she cheats on men". Indeed, accusations of promiscuity are a frequent cause of female-female violence, where females may physically retaliate in a bid to defend their sexual reputation. [ 24 ]  British schoolgirls were surveyed and asked questions about their involvement in fights. In addition to 89% stating that they had actually been involved in a fight, 46% of reported fights were attacks on personal integrity related to promiscuity or gossiping. [ 25 ]


With an ultimate goal of enhancing reproductive success at the expense of others, slut-shaming effectively works to arouse suspicion and cause suitors to question the fidelity of these females. In the long term, men may have doubts regarding the paternity of any offspring produced and since humans strive for reproductive success, (which, for a man is to reproduce and to continually invest in his  own  children), the decision to mate with such an individual drastically reduces the chances of reproductive success. Considering this and the high-value that men attach to women who practice chastity, men are less likely to mate with a supposedly promiscuous female due to the fear of becoming a  cuckold .


Generally speaking, competitor derogation is often rated as less effective than self-promotion tactics. Men and women tend to judge self-promotion tactics that show resource potential and sexual availability as highly effective for short and long-term mating, respectively. [ 26 ]  Women, relative to men, appear more likely to engage in self-promotion than competitor derogation tactics. [ 27 ]  With females having a tendency to engage in more indirect forms of aggression/derogation such as spreading rumors and shunning (social manipulation), [ 17 ] [ 18 ]  studies investigate the extent to which such strategies enable females success by increasing their mating opportunities. Common indicators of reproductive success are sexual activity and dating behaviors. Research has found that the use of indirect aggression is positively correlated with increased dating behavior and early engagement in sexual activity. Arnocky and Pavilion [ 28 ]  investigated whether the use of victimization or personally experiencing victimization could predict the dating behavior of adolescents over a year. In a follow-up assessment, indirect aggression (peer-nominated) was found to predict dating behavior one year after the initial assessment. Moreover, indirect aggression appeared to be a more powerful predictor of dating behavior than other factors such as initial dating status, peer-rated attractiveness, peer-perceived popularity, and age. Overall, females who used indirect aggression were more likely to be dating in comparison to victimized individuals, who were less likely to have a dating partner. The notion that peer aggression is associated with adaptive dating outcomes is further supported by studies that note that females who frequently displayed indirect aggression began dating much earlier in life than individuals who experienced female-female peer victimization, for whom dating behavior had a much later onset. [ 29 ]  Dating popularity is also found to have a strong association with the use of indirect aggression. [ 30 ]  With regards to sexual activity, White et al. [ 31 ]  investigated the influence of peer victimization and perpetuated aggression on reproductive opportunities amongst young adults. Measures of sexual activity such as the number of previous sexual partners and the age of their first sexual intercourse were obtained alongside measures of their social experiences in middle and high school. Results found that females who experienced more peer aggression during adolescence had their first sexual intercourse at a later age. In contrast, females who perpetuated high levels of indirect peer aggression tended to have their first sexual encounter at earlier stages of adolescence.


Females often compete using low-risk strategies compared to males as females have to provide primary care and protection to their offspring. [ 32 ]  Fisher (2015) suggested that  attractiveness  is the single route by which women compete and men have shown a preference for attractive women.
 [ 33 ]


Other factors that influence women's intrasexual competition are:


Females will promote themselves more often when males demonstrate various abilities to provide secure resources, protection for offspring, or when the costs of competing are inferior to the benefits gained. [ 34 ]  They choose males with the highest possible qualities that can maximise reproductive success. Attractiveness and gene quality are both believed to be highly correlated. [ 35 ] [ 36 ]
Some research suggests that male attractiveness is biased by female's phenotypic quality, male attractiveness does not necessarily correspond to their gene quality. [ 37 ]  This leads to the  state-dependent choice theory  which suggests females with lower qualities prefer low-quality males than high-quality males. [ 38 ] [ 39 ] [ 40 ]  Promiscuity does not affect attractiveness rankings if physical attractiveness outweighs this variable. [ 41 ]


The  ovarian cycle  phase is an emerging concern in exploring issues related to female intrasexual competitive behaviour. It has been found that when  fertility  rate was maximised during the ovarian phase, women gave significantly lower ratings of attractiveness to other females. Ovarian hormones affect how females view their potential competitors and cause them to behave more competitively. [ 19 ] [ 42 ]


Many studies implied that  testosterone  levels were one of the key factors in aggressive competitive behaviour in social situations. [ 43 ] [ 44 ]  When testosterone is produced in the brain and gonads in both genders, the androgen receptors in neural and peripheral tissues are being possessed and trigger behavioural and physiological responses to testosterone. The role of  androgenic steroids  is to activate or facilitate aggressive behaviour. [ 45 ]  High levels of  oestrogen  are shown to have an effect on women's  derogation  on potential competitors (e.g. rating other female faces as less attractive) but there is no effect on ratings of male attractiveness. [ 19 ]


Females often compete with their own sex to gain the attention of potential mates with high genetic qualities in order to induce reproductive success. [ 46 ] [ 47 ]  Miller et al. (2011)’s study revealed that presence of another sex individual leads to testosterone enhancement. [ 48 ]


The ratio of females to males in the course of competition might alter salivary testosterone levels in both genders which lead to competition. [ 46 ]
The nonequivalent ratio of men with "good genes" to a large number of accessible females also leads to female intrasexual competition. Biosocial status hypothesis [ 46 ]  indicated that to win in the female competition, it is thought to enhance in testosterone production thus facilitating violent, prevailing behaviours and exhibition of high status. Whereas, losing in female competition lowers testosterone levels which weaken the tendency of competing. [ 49 ] [ 50 ]  Testosterone levels correspond to various factors such as form of competition, [ 43 ]  characteristics of opponent, [ 51 ]  psychological state and baseline hormone levels of the person competing.


Female sex tourism  is  sex tourism  by  women  who travel intending to engage in  sexual activities  with one or more locals, including  male sex workers . Female sex tourists may seek aspects of the sexual relationship not typically shared by male sex tourists, such as perceived  romance  and  intimacy . [ 3 ] [ 4 ] [ 5 ] [ 6 ]  The incidence of female sex tourism is much lower than male sex tourism, and the low number of female sex tourists makes it difficult to research this phenomenon, which has been described as "poorly understood". [ 7 ] [ 8 ]


Female sex tourism occurs in diverse regions of the world. Africa, the  Caribbean  and  southern Europe  appear to be preferred destinations for female sex tourists, but some other regions with many unemployed or underemployed locals are also becoming popular. [ 1 ]  Recent research has suggested that some female sex tourists do not seek male sex workers. A 2018 study found that Australian female sex tourists were more likely to seek female prostitutes than male prostitutes. [ 7 ]


Female sex tourists can be grouped into three types:


With this movement of different populations to different countries, problems concerning health increase, especially ailments involving  sexually transmitted infections  (STIs) and  HIV / AIDS . Some women involved with sex tourism do not use barrier contraceptives during the majority of their visit, leaving them and those they have sex with unprotected against STIs. [ 7 ] [ 10 ]


There is an ongoing debate on terminology regarding female sex tourism. Pruitt and LaFont argue that the term  female sex tourism  is not representative of the relationship that female tourists have with local men. They argue that  female sex tourism  oversimplifies the motives of these women and that  romance tourism  explains the complex nature of what these women are engaging themselves in while involved in romance tours. [ 9 ]  They also propose that while traditional male sex tourism "serves to perpetuate  gender  roles and reinforce power relations of  male dominance  and female subordination", female romance tourism in Jamaica "provides an arena for change". [ 9 ]


Scholars such as Klaus de Albuquerque counter that the term  romance tourism  overcomplicates what the motives of sex tourists are. de Albuquerque stated that concepts like "romance tourism" are only representative of small niches, like that of Jamaica and its cultural beliefs. Through his research, he concludes that the majority of female sex tourists are solely touring for physical encounters and not romance. He also says that the "tourist and beach boys may define their relationships as one of romance, [but] in reality, the relationship is one of  prostitution ". [ 11 ]


Researcher Jacqueline Sanchez-Taylor argues that the term  female sex tourism  and even the term  romance tourism  undermine what is actually happening in these situations. She compares female and male sex tourism and shows how each relationship is based upon sexual-economic relationships. She also explores whether or not female sex tourism is based on romance and if there is some sort of sexual-economic relationship occurring between the two parties. She added, "The fact that parallels between male and female sex tourism are widely overlooked reflects and reproduces weaknesses in existing theoretical and commonsense understandings of gendered power...[and] sex tourism." [ 12 ]


Female sex tourists visit Africa (The Gambia, Kenya, Morocco),  the Caribbean (Jamaica, The Bahamas, Cuba, and Barbados), and  Southern Europe (Greece, Italy, Spain, Portugal, and Croatia). [ 1 ]  Other destinations include parts of Latin America such as Ecuador and other places such as such as Turkey, Thailand, and Fiji. [ 1 ]  Bali in Indonesia is a known destination where women from Japan and Australia engage in sex tourism with male locals. [ 13 ]  A survey from 2009 conducted by Wanjohi Kibicho in Malindi Kenya from the book  Sex Tourism in Africa: Kenya's Booming Industry,  found that out of the sex tourists surveyed, 61% were between the ages of 46–50, 31–35 (3%) being the youngest age bracket. Of the background of these women surveyed 22% were from Germany, 19% from Italy, and 15% from the Netherlands. In addition 71% of those surveyed were revisiting the destination. In gauging the reasoning for sex touring, Kibicho summarizes that women who feel rejected by men in the developed countries for being "overweight and older" find that in Kenya this is suddenly reversed. There they are "romanced", appreciated and "loved" by men. [ 14 ]


Traditional female sex tourists have the same intentions as their male counterparts, and travel to foreign countries that have lower wages, and take advantage of cheap prostitution at a level unaffordable in their own countries. [ citation needed ]


Situational sex tourists differ from traditional sex tourists by considering their sexual activities with the  sex worker  as an added amenity to their original motive to travel. [ 3 ]


The majority of situational sex tourists are first-time tourists who do not plan on being involved with local men, and who become involved in romantic relationships rather than having exclusively physical relationships with sex workers. [ 11 ]


Situational sex tourism occurs when foreign tourists are attracted by male sex workers, known as  beach boys  in the Caribbean or  gringueros  in Costa Rica. According to the tourists, they are usually attracted by the exotic appeal that these men possess. This appeal can result from the ethnic differences between the sex worker and the sex tourist or the foreign lifestyle that the local men live. [ 11 ]  Women who have sexual encounters with such men are typically middle-aged and of European ethnicities. [ 15 ]


The sex workers will often approach women who they deem  vulnerable  for various reasons, such as weight or age. [ 11 ]


Romance tourism refers to a different relationship than female sex tourism. [ 9 ]


The concept of romance tourism came from researchers' observations in  Jamaica ; it appeared to them that the female tourist and local males viewed their relationship with each other solely based on  romance  and courtship rather than  lust  and monetary value. [ 11 ]  Romance tourism is an issue of  gender  identification: "gender identity is a relational construct, the  Western  women who seek to break from conventional roles require a different kind of relationship with men in order to realize a new gender identity". [ 9 ]  With increasing independence and financial self-reliance, women are able to travel, showing their independence from men of their culture, "female tourists have the opportunity to explore new gender behavior". [ 9 ]


Male sex workers have more freedom and security than female sex workers do because in most of the cases males are not confined to a  brothel  or a  pimp  and are not generally physically abused by their clients. [ 8 ]


Similar to the sex tourists, sex workers have their own intentions. Just as some  Western women  may consider the local men exotic, the local men may consider Western women to be exotic. Popular characteristics that appeal to a majority of sex workers are women with  blonde  hair and light colored eyes. [ 16 ]  Some sex workers will target this type of exotic woman for their own personal pleasure with no guarantee of monetary gain. [ 11 ]


On the other side of the spectrum, most sex workers have the intention of making some form of monetary gain. Such a sex worker typically profiles tourists in order to maximize potential payouts. While profiling he will look for older women, over the age of forty or young, overweight women. The sex worker considers these women  vulnerable  and will play on their vulnerability to get the tourists to obtain feelings for the sex worker. Once the tourist and sex worker obtain a relationship, the sex worker finds it easier for them to engage in a monetary exchange. [ 11 ]


Romance tourists do not label their sex workers "prostitutes". The local men and the tourists understand their roles in the relationship. The primary difference in definition of a local man to a romance tourist and a local man to a sex tourist is the emphasis the romance tourist places on passion instead of a transaction of goods or money for sexual favors. [ 9 ]


The rate of  sexually transmitted infections , including  HIV/AIDS , may be relatively high in some countries which are popular destinations for female sex tourism, particularly in comparison to the home countries of many sex tourists. [ 17 ]  Little or no research has been done into the transmission rates of HIV and other STDs pertaining to sex tourism. Neither has there been reliable research done into whether or not  condom  use is prevalent among female sex tourists. However, writer  Julie Bindel  speculates, in an article for  The Guardian , that HIV infection figures for the region suggest that condom use by the "beach boys" in the Caribbean may be sporadic, yet female sex tourists do not appear especially preoccupied by the potential risks. [ 18 ]


Women seeking to experience sex with foreign men put themselves at a higher risk for sexually transmitted infections. Condom use during sex tours is relatively low. It is often cited that women have the intention to have safe sex with their casual sex partners while on vacation, but at some point during the initiation of the condom, the women do not follow through. [ 10 ]


The sex workers usually will not initiate the use of a condom due to the limited availability of condoms, cost, beliefs, or previous experiences the sex worker has had with condoms. Female sex tourists report that, given the atmosphere and the exoticness of their lover, condoms are rarely used or discussed prior to engaging in sexual activities. [ 16 ]


The lack of  barrier contraceptives  increases the risk of the tourist obtaining a sexually transmitted infection from their foreign partner especially when their partner has been with multiple women.


It has been found that in the  Monteverde  region of Costa Rica, female sex tourists engage in some form of unprotected sexual activity with local men known as  gringueros  (men who pursue  gringas , women from the United States), according to data researched by  Nancy Romero-Daza . The women in the study were found to not be traditional sex tourists but situational sex tourists. [ 16 ]


Femme  ( / f ɛ m / ; [ 1 ]   French:   [fam] , literally meaning "woman") is a term traditionally used to describe a  lesbian  woman who exhibits a  feminine  identity or  gender presentation . [ 2 ] [ 3 ]  While commonly viewed as a lesbian term, alternate meanings of the word also exist with some non-lesbian individuals using the word, [ 4 ]  notably some  gay men  and  bisexuals . [ 1 ]  Some  non-binary  and  transgender  individuals also identify as lesbians using this term. [ 5 ]


Heavily associated with lesbian history and culture, [ 3 ]   femme  has been used among lesbians to distinguish traditionally feminine lesbians from their  butch  (i.e. masculine) lesbian counterparts and partners. [ a ]  Derived from American lesbian communities following  World War II  when women joined the  work force , [ 6 ]  the identity became a characteristic of the  working class   lesbian bar  culture of the 1940s–1950s. [ 8 ]
By the 1990s, the term  femme  had additionally been adopted by  bisexual  women. [ 6 ]


Scholars Heidi M. Levitt and Sara K. Bridges state that the terms  butch  and  femme  are derived from the 1940s–1950s American lesbian communities following World War II "when women joined the work force and began wearing pants, creating the possibility for the development of a butch aesthetic and  gender expression  within gay women's communities." They state that "the butch-femme culture made lesbians visible for the first time." [ 6 ]


Femme lesbian scholar  Joan Nestle  describes the femme lesbian identity as being underrepresented in historical records, with femme women having been often attacked for passing as straight while also being accused of imitating  heteronormativity  for pairing with a butch partner. In Nestle's text on femme identity, "The Femme Question", she challenges this commonly held belief by stating that butch-femme relationships are "filled with a deeply lesbian language of stance, dress, gesture, love, courage and autonomy." [ 9 ]  Arlene Istar Lev argues that through their subversive appropriation of heteronormative gender roles, these identities were considered "complex erotic and social statements" rooted in "gendered erotic identities". [ 5 ]  Nestle states that they publicly declared same-sex love between women at a time when there was no liberation movement to support or protect them, and adds that "in the 1950s particularly, butch-femme couples were the front-line warriors against sexual bigotry. Because they were so visible, they suffered the brunt of street violence. The irony of social change has made a radical, sexual, political statement of the 1950s appear today a reactionary, non feminist experience." [ 9 ]


Lesbian feminism  saw a rejection of the  butch-femme  dynamic and therefore femme identity. During the emergence of lesbian feminism, femme lesbians were accused by prominent lesbian feminist figures of aping  patriarchal  beauty standards for wearing traditional feminine clothing. Black lesbian feminist poet and activist  Audre Lorde  wrote in  Tar Beach  that "butch and femme role playing was the very opposite of what we felt being gay was all about – the love of women". [ 10 ]


Many bisexual women also active in the lesbian community felt pressured to identify as "lesbian", resulting in  bisexual erasure  factoring into the history of  femme  identities. [ 11 ] [ 12 ]  This is further impacted by the fact that bisexual communities and the related bisexual movement did not formalize until the 1970s. [ 11 ] [ 13 ]


During the 1990s and the emergence of the  lipstick lesbian  identity into the mainstream,  femme  became a catch-all term to describe a feminine lesbian. Citing research from the 1990s, Levitt and Bridges stated that the terms  butch  and  femme  "began infiltrating bisexual communities, and women began writing about their experiences as bisexual femmes", but also that "very little empirical research has been conducted looking at the expression and experience of gender expression and gender identity within bisexual women." [ 6 ]


With expansion of the femme identity, sexual attraction differences between butches and femmes began to be analyzed. [ 6 ]  Scholars Cheris Kramarae and Dale Spender wrote, "Femme diversity is also manifested in the sexual arena. As many femmes may be attracted exclusively to butches, some are attracted to other femmes, and still others are also attracted to men and consider themselves bisexual." [ 14 ]  Some research has indicated that butches are more likely to be exclusively lesbian, while femmes are sometimes bisexual. [ 7 ]  In 2005, preliminary research conducted by Levitt and Bridges indicated that lesbians are more likely to identify as butch and have a more masculine gender expression than bisexual women. 4.5 percent of the bisexual women they studied identified as butch compared to the 30.1 percent of lesbians who did. [ 6 ]  Lesbians were more sexually attracted to women whose gender expressions contrasted theirs, and bisexual women were more sexually attracted to those whose gender expressions were more similar to theirs. Levitt and Bridges theorized that "this finding may be in part due to the different aesthetics that are available and popular within lesbian and bisexual communities." [ 6 ]


The term  femme  has also been used to refer to  gender non-conforming  people who do not identify as lesbian or to  transgender  or  non-binary  people. In 1994,  Kate Bornstein  chronicled their experience as a gender non-conforming person who is a femme lesbian in their book  Gender Outlaw . [ 15 ]  Praising the publication of  Ivan Coyote 's  Persistence: All Ways Butch and Femme  in 2011, Bornstein said, "The butch/femme dynamic is a conscious, loving binary of desire and trust ... it's a dance of love and outlawed romance. Butches and femmes share a sense of tribe, extended family and kinship—no matter what our genders might be." [ 16 ]  Since the late 2010s, influenced by the emergence of queer and transgender culture on sites such as  Tumblr , Everyday Feminism, and  Autostraddle ,  femme  has been expanded to describe feminine people across gender and sexuality categories including  heterosexual  women,  cisgender  men and  transfeminine  people. [ 17 ] [ 18 ] [ 19 ] [ 20 ]


The  postmodern  queer conception of femme is a femme-identified person who does not always dress or act in a "traditionally feminine" (meaning a feminine aesthetic, such as wearing makeup, heels, and numerous accessories) way, but who expresses femme identity through feminine-associated behaviours, interactions and political views. [ 21 ]  Rather than an erotic identity rooted in lesbian women's culture, queer femme has been reframed into a  political identity  that is inclusive of all who wish to identify with it, feminine-presenting or not. As femme has moved into the mainstream, it has also been connected to notions of  emotional labor ,  witchcraft  and  self-empowerment . [ 22 ]


Based on the understanding of  femme  as describing a person (not necessarily a woman) who presents femininely, the expression "women and femmes" is sometimes used, but it has been criticized as conflating two different categories of identity. [ 23 ]


Femme  has also been used to describe a form of contemporary feminism which rejects the  gender binary  and acknowledges that individuals can fall anywhere within the gender spectrum, resulting in the possibility to be gender-less, gender-fluid, femme or masculine of center. Often using the phrase "women and femmes", adherents to this definition of femme believe that misogyny is used not only against women to inflict theoretical and physical violence but primarily against all feminine people. Connecting cisgendered male violence to toxic masculinity, they believe that patriarchy not only negatively affects female-identified people but men as well. [ 21 ] [ 22 ] [ 20 ]


Many prominent femme-identified voices in mainstream media tend to be transfeminine and or non-binary individuals. [ 24 ] [ 25 ] [ 26 ]  The term  femme  is also essential to  ballroom culture  through the terms  butch queen  and  femme queen , denoting a  gay man  and  transgender woman  respectively. [ 27 ]


By the 1990s, the term  femme  had additionally been adopted by  bisexual  women.  Citing research from the 1990s, Levitt and Bridges stated that the terms  butch  and  femme  "began infiltrating bisexual communities, and women began writing about their experiences as bisexual femmes", but also that "very little empirical research has been conducted looking at the expression and experience of gender expression and gender identity within bisexual women."


It has however also been argued by  bi+  and other queer activists that since the term bisexual is relatively newer than lesbian, and the term bisexual as a sexual orientation only began to take shape in the mid-19th century, bisexual women historically once formed part of the lesbian community and thus used the term femme as a sub-group of lesbians. [ 28 ] [ 29 ]  This argument posits that the claim that only women with no attraction to men have identified as femmes is ahistoric. [ 30 ]


While today there is a common consensus that the term lesbian refers to women who exclusively feel attraction towards women and femmes, the term has carried various changing implications and expansive interpretations throughout history, particularly with the rise of political lesbianism in 1979. [ 31 ]


Hence, the adoption of  femme  by bisexuals in the 1990s is considered by some to be a re-adoption by a portion of the same community following the distinction between lesbians and bisexual women [ 32 ]  and the lesbian separatist movement of the 1970s. [ 33 ]


Theorists have used aesthetics to analyze and addresses the evolution of the word "femme" throughout the 21st century. Femme theorist Andi Schwartz uses comparisons of modern and historical associations of the femme identity to outline "soft femme theory."  She asserts that in the mid-to-late 20th century, "femme" was used to describe rough, badass women. Today, however, especially on social media, the word "femme" is used to describe the "soft, sad girl" trope that is commonly seen online and in trending fashions. While Schwartz offers a critique of this aesthetic and the erasure of pre-internet femme identities, she also considers how "performing softness" as an identifier for femininity, both on and offline, can be effective in transgressing hegemonic gender norms. [ 34 ]


From the 70s through 90s, gay male culture included the phrase "No Fats, No Femmes", [ 35 ] [ 36 ]  and that persists in queer dating culture today. Constrained by character limitations on gay hookup apps such as  Grindr  and  Scruff , "fem", "femm", and "femme" are used as an abbreviation for feminine. The ubiquitous phrase "No Fats, No Fems", indicating that a user does not want to be contacted by men of a certain size or  feminine men , has been challenged by some in the gay community for perpetuating homonormative beauty ideals. "Fem" is used as a descriptor of one's appearance or mannerisms. [ 37 ] [ 38 ] [ 39 ]


Partly in response to the controversy which emerged regarding which communities are entitled to use femme as a personal identity, as well as in recent efforts to carve out unique bisexual identifiers, bi terms were proposed as equivalents to butch and femme among other gender expressions and presentations. This largely arose in 2016 on the social media and blogging website  Tumblr . The term coined for a feminine bisexual woman is “doe”, while “stag” signifies masculinity and “tomcat” represents androgyny. [ 40 ]


However this bi-specific lingo never caught on as much as the more widely-known “butch” and “femme”, even amongst the bisexual community itself, and one would be hard-pressed to find a bisexual who identifies as such offline. [ 41 ]  These neologisms quickly fell out of favor with some in the bisexual community in online discourse, particularly with  women of color  and other  BIPOC , as many found the animal-based terms to be demeaning, dehumanizing, and historically fraught.


The contemporary  queer  concepts of femme have been challenged by lesbians who still use the term based on its original meaning. [ 42 ]  With concern about the  erasure of lesbian  culture and history, it has been argued that taking a term from an already marginalised society is a form of  misogynist  appropriation that undervalues lesbian identities, history and women's autonomy to self-identify outside patriarchal structures. [ 43 ]


In her paper, Femme Theory: Refocusing the Intersectional Lens, femme theorist Rhea Hoskin offers an intersectional framework of femme theory and addresses the capabilities of subversive femininities. She uses an intersectional lens to address discourse surrounding femme-phobia and the ways in which this issue is not taken seriously as a form of oppression within the queer community and especially in academic feminist queer spaces. [ 44 ]


Megumi Igarashi  ( 五十嵐恵 ,  Igarashi Megumi , born 1972) , who uses the pseudonym  Rokudenashiko  ( ろくでなし子 or 碌でなし子 ) , is a Japanese sculptor and  manga  artist who creates works that feature female genitalia and are often modeled after her own  vulva . [ 1 ]  Rokudenashiko considers it her mission to reclaim female genitalia as part of women's bodies and demystify them in Japan's male dominated society, where she believes that they are "overly hidden" and marginalized as “ taboo ” and “ obscene ” in comparison to  phallic  imagery. [ 2 ] [ 3 ]  As such, the artist has created a variety of different representations of  manko , the Japanese slang for vagina or pussy, using representations of her own body as the raw material to emphasize as return to experience within art and manga. [ 4 ]  Rokudenashiko has been called an international symbol of “manko positivity.” [ 5 ]


The  pseudonym  Rokudenashiko translates to “good-for-nothing-girl,” a name the artist made up by combining  rokudenashi  (which translates to “good-for-nothing,” “bastard,” “ne’er-do-well”) and the diminutive feminine suffix  -ko  (usually translated as “girl” or “child”). [ 2 ]


In 2014, Rokudenashiko was arrested following the creation of  Man-Boat  (short for  manko  boat), a  kayak  with an opening attachment modeled after a 3-D scan of her own vulva, for which she drew financial support from an online  crowdfunding platform . [ 4 ] [ 6 ]  Accused on the grounds of posting the downloadable  3-D scanned  digital data of her vulva for the public as part of her crowdfunding campaign, Rokudenashiko became the first woman in Japanese history tried on the grounds of obscenity. [ 2 ] [ 7 ]  The ensuing legal battle attracted a lot of media attention in Japan and internationally, where the artist amassed public support and became the subject of online protests about Japan's inconsistent obscenity laws. [ 8 ]  In 2016, Rokudenashiko was fined 400,000 yen (around US$3,660) for making the data publicly available. [ 9 ]


Rokudenashiko studied  Philosophy  at the  Kokugakuin University  in  Tokyo . [ 10 ]  After graduation, she began to work in the manga industry and was awarded a new artist award from the publisher Kōdansha in 1998. [ 11 ]  Despite this achievement, the artist was discouraged by the industry's competitive dependency on reader surveys, and eventually found work at a publisher that specialized in the genre of “experiential reportage” (体験ルポ, taiken rupo), also known as reality manga. [ 11 ]  The artist has explained that this work has formed the basis for her sculptural artworks—the genre relies on life experience as the source material for manga, using first person voice to depict real events through the eyes of the writer. [ 11 ]  Rokudenashiko has described her work as "literally putting real experiences into manga.” [ 11 ]


Growing up in Japan, where women's genitalia are censored and stigmatized, Rokudenashiko has described how she had never seen other women's genitalia and did not know what they should look like, and was therefore concerned from a young age that her own vulva was abnormal. [ 12 ] [ 5 ]  She decided to make a  plaster cast  of her own vulva to understand what it looked like and started to make related artworks using this mold. [ 13 ]  She claims that women should be able to speak about their bodies without shame, the artist arguing that the vulva should be a "part of the body...no different from arms or legs". [ 14 ]  She hopes to make the vulva something that is "casual and  pop ," declaring that in Japan, the "vagina is treated like it's something underground and hidden, so I want to industrialize and mass-produce it." [ 15 ]


When Rokudenashiko first began to use a mold of her vulva to create artworks, she treated the idea light-heartedly. However, after receiving a lot of criticism and backlash, she began to use her art as a statement and form of  protest . [ 12 ]  In her book documenting her legal battles (see section below), she wrote: “Since I’ve started my work in manko art, I’ve been fighting back against the old men who complain about it…I’ve decided to keep making even more ridiculous work, with all seriousness. Though this was kind of a joke at first, now I am joking around with every ounce of my body and soul.” [ 16 ]


Many of Rokudenashiko's artworks have been  confiscated  during police raids in 2014 and 2015, but photographs document her body of work. [ 15 ]


Since Rokudenashiko was not exposed to many realistic depictions of women's genitalia, she decided to mold a plaster cast of her own vulva to understand the reality of what it looked like. [ 13 ]  Rokudenashiko felt that the  plaster mold  was too plain so she began to decorate them, creating an ongoing series she refers to as  Deco Man  (a play on “decoration” and “ manko” ). [ 13 ]  She has used the mold to create many casts of her vulva, including a series of  dioramas  that draw on 19th century  landscape paintings  by turning the form of her own genitalia into the grounds for various landscapes— moonscapes , beaches, golf courses,  riverbeds , as well as rustic  cottage  and church settings, among others. [ 13 ] [ 17 ]  In these tediously crafted dioramas, Rokudenashiko brings the vaginal form out of its hidden setting, positing it as a setting for the world. [ 17 ]


The artist has created many more vulva-themed works, including dioramas, a chandelier, lampshades, tissue covers, a  remote control car , necklaces, iPhone cases. She creates a variety of these  Deco Man  objects under the category of  nado , or etcetera. [ 17 ]


In 2012, Rokudenashiko published a reportage style  manga  entitled  Deco Man  that documented the complicated relationship she has with her own body and the artist's process of starting to create her vulva-themed artistic creations. [ 18 ]  The manga is structured as seven fairy tales in the mode of a  shōjo manga , documenting Rokudenashiko's own artistic formation through the main character's struggles with body insecurity and inadequacy that pushed her to get plastic surgery on her labia. [ 18 ]  The main character comes to the conclusion that many other women are plagued with the same anxieties, and starts to help herself and other women by creating  Deco Man  sculptures and leading workshops for making manko art. [ 18 ]


Rokudenashiko also created her signature cartoon character  Manko-chan  (the effeminate suffix  -chan  added as an endearing way to refer to the manko, often translated into English as Miss  Pussy  or Cute Little Pussy). [ 6 ] [ 13 ]   Manko-chan  is a cute, personified manko with two legs and a  labia  articulated like a mane around a simple yet expressive face that includes a characteristic yellow clitoral “third eye.” [ 6 ]   Manko-chan  is featured on the cover of Rokudenashiko's 2016 book  What is Obscenity? , and has been featured in the artist's  newsletter , website, as well as the  autographed  photos she passes out at  book signings  and other events.  Manko-chan  is also purchasable as a sticker set for her fans, and has been made into plastic figurines, a  plush doll , and a full-size costume. [ 6 ] [ 15 ]


In February 2023, Rokudenashiko established 6d745 Software, a company aimed at creating art pieces utilizing AI and web technologies. Later in June of the same year, she unveiled the "Rokudenashiko Museum", a web-based  virtual museum  accessible via browsers, at an exhibition in Art Lab TOKYO.  [ 19 ]
Within the museum, visitors can interact with characters in a 3D environment to view and comment on art pieces. Additionally, the museum offers a role-playing experience titled "Detention Game", which is based on her personal experiences.
Rokudenashiko has expressed that her goal is that the "Museum provides a fun and cutting-edge alternative to the art industry's existing bias towards physical-world museums"  [ 20 ]


In 2013, Rokudenashiko was inspired to make a larger sculptural work through the use of 3-D printing. [ 15 ]  She considered making a door and a car, before settling on a  kayak , inspired by the connection between  female sexuality  and the sea. [ 15 ]  She decided to create  Man-Boat  (short for  manko  boat), enlisting help from the public via the  crowdfunding platform  “Campfire” to create an attachment to mount on the cockpit of a 2-meter yellow kayak modeled from a 3-D scan of her own  vulva . [ 6 ] [ 4 ] [ 21 ]  The crowdfunding platform was online from June 18 - September 6, 2013 and raised ¥100 million (194% of its total goal) from 125 people. [ 6 ]  With their support, Rokudenashiko went forward with her project, spending the rest of the year creating  Man-Boat , the process of which she documented in detail on her blog. [ 6 ]


In March 2014, Rokudenashiko successfully sailed  Man-Boat  down the  Tama River  in Tokyo (the artist referred to it as the Ta-manko River). [ 4 ]  That same month, the artist emailed the  downloadable  3-D scanned data of her vulva to the 65 crowdfund supporters who had contributed ¥3,000 or more to her campaign, and gave a  CD-ROM  with the data to 17 others. [ 22 ] [ 6 ]  She claimed that she distributed this data to encourage people to use the data to make their own original genitalia artwork. [ 2 ]


On July 12, 2014, Rokudenashiko was arrested for alleged violation of Article 175 of the criminal code for distributing obscene data, becoming the first woman in Japanese history tried on the grounds of  obscenity . [ 7 ] [ 4 ]  She spent a week in a Tokyo women's prison for the alleged violation of obscenity laws. [ 23 ] [ 3 ]  Her arrest launched a frenzy of media attention about Rokudenashiko, her work, and images of the artist sailing the Man Boat in question down the Tama River; this surge in press led to an international outcry of support for the artist. [ 8 ] [ 4 ]  More than 21,000 people worldwide signed an online petition on  Change.org  urging the government to free her immediately. [ 6 ] [ 8 ]  She was released on July 18, 2014, after having successfully appealed her detention. [ 24 ] [ 7 ]  Following her release, Rokudenashiko created a manga that  satirized  the police after her first arrest. After her second arrest, she suggested “[the police] trumped up some charges and arrested me in December” for releasing the work. [ 6 ]


The artist was arrested again at an exhibition of her  diorama  manko works at a  sex shop  on December 3, 2014, alongside the owner of the shop, writer and  feminist activist  Watanabe Minori (who uses the  pseudonym  of Kitahara Minori). [ 25 ]  Watanabe was later released. [ 26 ]  After almost a month in jail, Rokudenashiko was indicted on December 24 for three separate counts of violating Japan's obscenity law: "obscenity display", "obscenity electromagnetic record", and "obscenity electromagnetic recording medium distribution." [ 27 ]   She pleaded not-guilty and was released on  bail  on December 28. [ 4 ] [ 28 ]


Rokudenashiko's trial began 14 April 2015 in Tokyo District Court. [ 22 ] [ 29 ]  The trial served as a venue for the artist to challenge the  double standard  on representations of male bodies in comparison to female's bodies. [ 7 ]  The artist's defense was built around the claim that  Man Boat  was a work of art rather than a  pornographic  or  erotic  image. As shared with the  creative agency  MASSIVE in an interview, Rokudenashiko's  full statement to the court was as follows:


“I make fun, cheerful things that attempt to overturn prevailing perceptions of female genitalia. I’ve attempted to make things specifically for supporters of my work, but was then indicted and arrested, as you know. While I find the whole ordeal absurd, it is precisely because of my arrest that so many more people have been able to think more seriously about the perception of female genitals and of their right to a freedom of expression, which is ultimately a good thing. And yet, I have absolutely no idea what makes the three pieces for which I’ve been indicted, crimes of obscenity, why other works haven’t been deemed obscene.
It has become impossible to establish a standard (of so-called obscenity), and this case will shut down any opportunity I may have in the future, to create other similar work. I am also financially challenged. If there continues to be no fair criteria, museums will be less inclined to hang challenging art or work by similar artists, and the arts as an institution will become closed minded. I am convinced of my innocence and I believe the court is capable of viewing the situation with fairness. I beg of you consider my circumstances.” [ 9 ]


Man Boat  (and many other artworks) were confiscated and held as  evidence  over the course of the trial. [ 6 ]  At its height, Rokudenashiko could have faced up to two years in jail and fines up to ¥2.5 million (around US$25,000), but the  prosecution  later stated an intent to seek a fine of ¥800,000 (around US$7,800) and no jail time. [ 7 ] [ 29 ]


During the trial Rokudenashiko spoke out about her situation many times, explaining her perspective to the public and incorporating her legal battle into her artworks. This included attending a press meeting of the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Japan in a widely circulated address, as well as giving an address when she won the second place prize in the Tokyo Designers Week Art Fair. [ 8 ]  She playfully mocked the  police  in her address at the Art Fair, saying "If I had not been arrested, I could not have spread my activities in this way, I would not have been invited to this event and I could not have let the contemporary art world know the name of Rokudenashiko. I really appreciate all the police’s support." [ 8 ]


On 8 May 2016, the court handed down a rare, mixed decision: Rokudenashiko was found  not guilty  of the charges related to the kayak, on the grounds that the sculpture, with its bright color and decoration, "did not immediately suggest female anatomy", in the words of the  BBC  report. [ 30 ] [ 7 ]  However, the artist was found  guilty  of the charges related to the 3D data, and was fined ¥400,000 (roughly US$3,660), about half what the prosecution had suggested was appropriate. [ 9 ] [ 30 ]  Rokudenashiko and her legal team immediately vowed to appeal. [ 7 ]


The appeal of Rokudenashiko‘s ¥400,000 fine was unsuccessful, bringing an end to the case in 2017. [ 31 ]


Rokudenashiko's case drew international attention. Many disputes about women's rights, artistic freedom, censorship, and double standards in Japan emerged due to Igarashi's arrests. [ 23 ]  After the announcement of the verdict for her second arrest, more than 1,000 tweeted expressing anger and questioning the logic of the court. [ 23 ]  Many felt that there was a blatant double standard in the manner in which Japan's obscenity laws functioned; a widespread example, especially among those living outside Japan, was that male genitalia are shown at shrines and festivals (such as the  Kanamara penis festival ), while women's genitalia in an object as innocent as a kayak could be grounds for arrest. [ 15 ] [ 32 ]   The Daily Show  host  Jon Stewart  noted that in Japan, female reproductive organs remain taboo while there is a  festival dedicated to the penis . [ 32 ]  An article in  The Guardian  inquired, "how can it be OK for  comics to publish underage pornography  but illegal to invite people to 3D scan your vagina?" [ 33 ]


The documentary film  #Female Pleasure  follows Igarashi during the trial. The film is about five women, including her, fighting social taboos regarding  female sexuality . [ 34 ] [ 35 ]


The artist married  Mike Scott , the frontman of Scottish folk rock band  The Waterboys , in October 2016. Their first child, a son, was born on 2 February 2017. [ 36 ]


" Lipstick lesbian " is  slang  for a  lesbian  who exhibits a great amount of  feminine   gender  attributes, such as wearing  make-up , dresses or skirts, and having other characteristics associated with feminine women. [ 1 ]  In popular usage, the term is also used to characterize the feminine  gender expression  of  bisexual  women, [ 1 ]  or the broader topic of  female–female sexual activity  among feminine women. [ 2 ] [ 3 ]


An alternate term for  lipstick lesbian  is  doily   dyke . [ 4 ] [ 5 ]


The term  lipstick lesbian  was used in  San Francisco  at least as early as the 1980s. In 1982, Priscilla Rhoades, a journalist with the gay newspaper  Sentinel , wrote the feature story "Lesbians for Lipstick". [ 6 ]


In 1990, the gay newspaper  OutWeek  covered the Lesbian Ladies Society, a  Washington, D.C. –based social group of "feminine lesbians" that required women to wear a dress or skirt to its functions. [ 7 ]


The term  lipstick lesbian  became popular when used by writer Deborah Bergman, a reporter for the  Los Angeles Times . [ 8 ]


Some authors have commented that  lipstick lesbian  is commonly used broadly to refer to feminine bisexual women or to heterosexual women who temporarily show romantic or sexual interest in other women to impress men. For example, Jodie Brian, in  Encyclopedia of Gender and Society, Volume 1  (2009), states, "A common depiction of lipstick lesbianism includes conventionally attractive and sexually insatiable women who desire one another but only insofar as their desire is a performance for male onlookers or a precursor to sex with men." [ 2 ]  In  Intersectionality, Sexuality and Psychological Therapies  (2012),  lipstick lesbian  is defined as "a lesbian/bisexual woman who exhibits 'feminine' attributes such as wearing makeup, dresses and high heeled shoes"; the book adds that "more recent iterations of feminine forms of lesbianism such as ' femme ' (e.g. wears dresses/skirts or form-fitting jeans, low cut tops, makeup, jewelry), or 'lipstick lesbian' [...], are an attempt to define as both lesbian and feminine." [ 1 ]


Some lipstick lesbians say that they choose to perform femininity rather than be subjected to it, adding that they have made an active decision to be feminine, which subverts society's demand of forced femininity. [ 9 ] [ 10 ] [ 11 ]  They commonly modify a typical feminine style to make it less  heteronormative ; Inge Blackman and Kathryn Perry gave the example of "twinning short skirts with  Doctor Martens  (DMs) or lacy underwear with men's trousers". [ 9 ]


Author M. Paz Galupo stated, "Young women exposed to mainstream media outlets are seeing expressions of the same-sex desire between women much more frequently than ever before. However, mainstream images of same-sex desire between women are very specific, meaning they are often of hyper-feminine women ('lipstick lesbians')." [ 3 ]  The prominence of lipstick lesbians in the media is echoed by  Rosalind Gill , who stated, "The figure of the 'luscious lesbian' [lipstick lesbian] within advertising is notable for her extraordinarily attractive, conventionally feminine appearance." [ 12 ]  Although some authors have said that the existence of lipstick lesbians is a destabilization of heterosexual ideals, by breaking the assumption that a feminine person will always desire a masculine person, and vice versa, others have said that the lipstick lesbian emergence simply fails in this regard, [ 10 ] [ 13 ]  as lipstick lesbians are still subject to the  male gaze , and still found acceptable due to their femininity. [ 10 ] [ 14 ]


The term is thought to have reached wide usage in the 1990s. A 1997 episode of the television show  Ellen  widely publicized the phrase. In the show,  Ellen DeGeneres 's character, asked by her parents whether a certain woman is a " dipstick  lesbian", explains that the term is  lipstick lesbian , and comments, "I would be a  ChapStick  lesbian." In the 1999 film  But I'm a Cheerleader , the character played by  Julie Delpy  is identified as "Lipstick Lesbian" in the film credits. [ 15 ]


The lipstick  lesbian flag  was introduced by Natalie McCray in 2010 in the  weblog   This Lesbian Life . [ 16 ] [ 17 ]  The design contains a red kiss in the left corner, superimposed on seven stripes consisting of six shades of red and pink colors and a white bar in the center. [ 18 ] [ 19 ]  The flag has not been widely adopted [ 20 ]  due to some lesbians asserting that it is not inclusive of  butch lesbians , while others have argued that McCray wrote  biphobic ,  racist , and  transphobic  comments on her now-defunct blog. [ 21 ]


The colors of the "pink" lesbian flag were copied from the lipstick lesbian flag (with the kiss mark excluded). [ 19 ]  The maker of the "pink" flag remains unknown. The pink flag attracted more use as a general lesbian pride flag. [ 22 ]


Vaginal tumors  are  neoplasms  (tumors) found in the  vagina . They can be  benign  or  malignant . [ 1 ] [ a ]  A neoplasm is an abnormal growth of tissue that usually forms a tissue mass. [ 2 ] [ 3 ] [ 4 ]
Vaginal neoplasms may be solid, cystic or of mixed type. [ 5 ]


Vaginal cancers  arise from vaginal tissue, with vaginal  sarcomas  develop from  bone ,  cartilage ,  fat ,  muscle ,  blood vessels  or other  connective  or supportive tissue. [ 6 ] [ 7 ]  Tumors in the vagina may also be  metastases  (malignant tissue that has spread to the vagina from other parts of the body).
 [ 8 ] [ 7 ]  Cancer that has spread from the  colon ,  bladder , and  stomach  is far more common than cancer that originates in the vagina itself. [ 9 ]  Some  benign tumors  may later progress to become malignant tumors, such as vaginal cancers. [ 10 ] [ 11 ]
Some neoplastic growths of the vagina are sufficiently rare as to be only described in  case studies . [ 3 ]


Signs and  symptoms  may include a feeling of pressure, painful intercourse or bleeding. [ 12 ]  Most vaginal tumors are located during a  pelvic exam . Ultrasonography, CT and  MRI  imaging is used to establish the location and presence or absence of fluid in a tumor. [ 13 ] [ 14 ]   Biopsy  provides a more definitive  diagnosis . [ 15 ]


melancytic nevus


metaplastic carcinoma


subtype of  embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma


Verrucous, Warty


Vaginal tumors also can be found in domesticated animals: