Butch-Femme For a New Millennium

Photographer Wendi Kali has launched the Butch/Femme Photo Project in an effort to document butch and femme identities as they exist in today's modern context.

BY Sunnivie Brydum

February 11 2013 5:00 AM ET

Frances and partner (and fur kids)
Punky, funky, high femme
37 years old
Portland, Ore.

"I hope that we never stop seeing femmes and butches in our big LGBTQ family. I hear folks talk about how great androgyny is, and I agree there is a wonderfulness about it. However, I love the nuances that a more dichotomized gender identity brings out. The way a butch with short hair smells, swaggers, and laughs. The way a femme smiles, dances, and creates mischief. We have to respect and understand people are far more than just their identity or perceived identity, but we must also hold on to the beauty of being queer and gender warriors."