Radical Faery Essence by Alwyn de Wally
We can say many things about Radical Faeries, but what can we say that gets to the heart of our nature? In the spirit of the trickster gods (Coyote, Eshu, Hermes, Krishna and others) we are comfortable with contradiction and rather dislike being pinned down, even in a definition. Still, I believe we do have certain essential qualities:
We are radical. (We are not Republicans.)
We are faeries. (We are queer or very, very queer friendly.)
We tend to be flamboyant. (In any event, we are not assimilationists.)
We are flexible. (We can dance with the unexpected.)
We are sex-positive (if not downright lusty).
We are fun-loving.
We are creative.
We dislike dogma.
We take coincidence seriously.
We like to create magic cooperatively.
We like to nurture each other at our gatherings.
We dislike standing still (although we will circle while standing, occasionally).
We like to get high (via spiritual practice and/or entheogens).
We like to inhabit the present moment more than most.
We like to ritualize important events, passages, decisions, etc.
We try to respect each other, maintaining subject-subject consciousness, rather than objectifying others or dismissing their perspective as unimportant.
We try to take good care of our mother earth, living our lives in ways that will not do her harm.
We stand against oppression of queer people and other minorities.
We think two-spirit people have important roles to play in teaching less spirited people how to get along.
What would you add to (or subtract from) this list? What qualities do you think distinguish Radical Faeries from others? What makes you a Faery? Please contribute to this discussion by adding a comment.
