On Our Backs
 | |
 Spring 1985 cover of On Our Backs | |
| Editor | Susie Bright (1985–1990), Tristan Taormino (1998-2002) |
|---|---|
| Categories | Human sexuality, Lesbian |
| Publisher | Blush Productions |
| Founded | 1984 |
| Final issue | 2006[1] |
| Country | United States |
| Based in | San Francisco, California |
| ISSN | 0890-2224 |
| OCLC | 14191920 |
On Our Backs was the first women-run erotica magazine and the first magazine to feature lesbian erotica for a lesbian audience in the United States. It ran from 1984 to 2006.
Origin
[edit]The magazine was first published in 1984 by Debi Sundahl and Myrna Elana, with the contributions of Susie Bright, Nan Kinney, Leon Mostovoy, Honey Lee Cottrell, Dawn Lewis, Shelby Sharie Cohen, Happy Hyder, Tee Corinne, Jewelle Gomez, Judith Stein, Joan Nestle, Patrick Califia,[2] Morgan Gwenwald, Katie Niles, Noreen Scully, Sarita Johnson, and others. Susie Bright became editor-in-chief for the next six years. Later editors included Diane Anderson-Minshall, Shar Rednour, Tristan Taormino, and Diana Cage. On Our Backs defined the look and politics of lesbian culture in the 1980s, as well as playing a definitive role in the feminist sex wars of the period, taking the side of sex-positive feminism.
The title of the magazine was a satirical reference to off our backs, a long-running feminist newspaper that published the work of many anti-pornography feminists during the 1980s, and which the founders of On Our Backs considered prudish about sexuality.[3] off our backs regarded the new magazine as "pseudo-feminist" and threatened legal action over the logo OOB.[4]
Operations
[edit]In 1985, Sundahl and Kinney began a spinoff of a series of lesbian erotic videos, called Fatale Video. Distribution of On Our Backs in Australia began in 1986.[5] By the late 1980s, Fatale Media was the largest producer of lesbian pornography in the world.[4]
In 1994, the magazine experienced financial problems[citation needed], and filed for bankruptcy in May 1996.[6] After being bought out by a new publisher, Melissa Murphy (who released only one issue),[7] it was acquired by HAF Enterprises (publisher of Girlfriends).[6] The original creators moved on to other projects.[citation needed]
Background
[edit]On Our Backs was one of the few sex-positive lesbian magazines that were being published at the time; the others being Bad Attitude, which lasted from 1984 to 2006; and Lesbian Contradiction, which lasted from 1982 to 1994.[3]
On Our Backs was known for its "fleshy photos," according to gender studies philosopher Judith Butler. It was meant to represent the perceived lesbian experience and the political atmosphere in mainstream culture. It was situated within the lesbian sex wars.[8]
End of publication and availability online
[edit]HAF.'s publications of On Our Backs and its sister publication, Girlfriends, both ceased in March 2006[9] after being bought out by the publishers of Velvetpark Magazine. Reveal Digital, a JSTOR-hosted digital collection, digitizated issues of On Our Backs from July 1984 to December 2004; however, due to concerns regarding access by minors and contributor privacy, the scans were removed from Reveal Digital's Independent Voices collection.[10]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ Riese Bernard. "NSFW Sunday: What Does a Lesbian Sex Magazine Look Like?". Autostraddle. Retrieved March 6, 2014.
- ^ Califia, Patrick (August 1999). "Raising Cane". Out. 8 (2): 32.
- ^ a b Cornog, Martha; Perper, Timothy (1996). For sex education, see librarian: a guide to issues and resources. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 97. ISBN 0-313-29022-9.
- ^ a b Sides, Josh (2009). Erotic City: Sexual Revolutions and the Making of Modern San Francisco. Oxford University Press US. p. 219. ISBN 0-19-537781-8.
- ^ Matthews, Jill Julius (1997). Sex in public: Australian sexual cultures. Allen & Unwin. pp. 121–122. ISBN 1-86448-049-1.
- ^ a b Pogrebin, Robin (December 23, 1996). "Lesbian publications struggle for survival in a market dominated by gay males". The New York Times. Retrieved March 23, 2018.
- ^ Mondin, Alessandra. "ON OUR BACKS: AN ARCHIVE". The NewBridge Project. Retrieved March 17, 2025.
- ^ Guy, Laura (July 3, 2019). "Wanting Pictures After Feminism: Re-reading On Our Backs". Women: A Cultural Review. 30 (3): 319–341. doi:10.1080/09574042.2019.1655328. ISSN 0957-4042.
- ^ Buchanan, Wyatt (September 7, 2006). "BAY AREA / Marketplace finds lesbians an attractive, but elusive, niche / Still, target group seems ripe for growth". SFGATE. Hearst Communications.
- ^ "Statement about On Our Backs" (PDF). Reveal Digital. August 24, 2016. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 24, 2018.
Further reading
[edit]- Stark, Christine (2004), "Resisting the sexual new world order: Girls to boyz: sex radical women, promoting prostitution, pornography, and sadomasochism", in Whisnant, Rebecca; Stark, Christine (eds.), Not for sale: feminists resisting prostitution and pornography, North Melbourne, Victoria: Spinifex Press, pp. 287–288, ISBN 9781876756499.
- Garber, Linda (2000), "Periodicals: The 1980s (On Our Backs)", in Zimmerman, Bonnie (ed.), Lesbian histories and cultures: encyclopedia of lesbian and gay histories and cultures, volume 1, Encyclopedias of Contemporary Culture Series, New York: Routledge, p. 582, ISBN 9780815319207.
- Guy, Laura (February 28, 2017). "Sex Wars Revisited". Aperture. No. 225. Retrieved March 17, 2025.
- 1980s LGBTQ literature
- 1990s LGBTQ literature
- 2000s LGBTQ literature
- Bimonthly magazines published in the United States
- Defunct lesbian-related magazines published in the United States
- Erotica magazines published in the United States
- Lesbian culture in California
- Lesbian erotica
- Lesbian pornographic magazines
- Magazines established in 1984
- Magazines disestablished in 2006
- Magazines published in San Francisco
- Pornographic magazines published in the United States
- Pornographic women's magazines