ABSTRACT
The relationship of the archetype of the androgyne to figures in myth and history has become a spiritual imperative for many Radical Faeries seeking a tradition to reclaim: The role of the fool, the trickster, the contrary one capable of turning a situation inside out, is one of the most enduring of all archetypes. These gender-variant men and women were found in tribal groups throughout North America, were well known for cross-dressing and participating in same-sex relationships, and often took on the mantle of shaman for the tribe. Drag queens precipitated and led the Stonewall Rebellion in Greenwich Village on twenty eight of June 1969, a key event in the movement towards gay and lesbian liberation. The use of 'radical' has two main implications. It suggests a state of being concerned with fundamental issues, indeed of things at the root level, but also of something or someone politically extreme.
