"Lesbian" is not a dirty word.

[lesbotronic]

According to the New York Times,** Kate McKinnon said "the only thing that made being a lesbian less scary when she was younger was seeing Ellen DeGeneres on TV."

Kate McKinnon went on to attend an Ivy League university, do groundbreaking and award winning work on a number of sketch shows and movies including Ghostbusters and Saturday Night Live and . . . is now a multimillionaire?

Lesbians are all over the arts, but our hearts always beat faster for performers who can command the stage with something autobiographical, tell you something real about their actual lives.

Great stand-up has always been a pie in the face of any stereotype negatively afflicting any marginalized group, lesbians most definitely included. 

Am I dour, depressed, dejected, and despondent? 

Nah.  Listen to the jokes.

Am I just a pornographic projection, just an exotic fetish, not a whole entire human after all? 

Nah.  Listen to the jokes.

And Kate seems special, that's for sure.  But is she exceptional?

Happily for lesbians everywhere, not entirely.  Comedy by lesbians has always been with us, but it's now more mainstream than ever?

We came up with both lists pretty quick, but more or less off the top of our heads, here's some more established lesbian comics:

Cameron Esposito, Ellen DeGeneres, Elvira Kurt, Fortune Feimster, Fran Lebowitz , Gina Yashere, Hannah Gadsby, Jane Lynch, Judy Gold, Karen Williams, Kate Clinton, Kate McKinnon, Lea Delaria, Lena Waithe, Lily Tomlin, Marga Gomez, Rosie O'Donnell, Sabrina Jalees, Sam Jay, Sue Perkins, Suzanne Westenhoefer, Tig Notaro, and Wanda Sykes

And here's some newer lesbian comics:

Ashley Gavin, Jen Brister, Punkie Johnson, Sandi Toksvig, Sandra Valls, Sarah Schauer, Suzi Ruffell, Zoe Lyons

. . .

Can we keep taking back the power from those determined to punch down on us with . . . punchlines?

. . .

(And if anyone wants to reply with more lesbians we left out, please feel free!)

 

** We wish it didn't need to be said but still probably does that just because we quoted someone isn't a promise we're on their "team" and thus promise to agree with everything else they said before or will say later.  We can't even agree with our own wives 100% of the time.  We're just saying whatever we said about whatever we quoted, nothing regarding everything else they've ever said or ever will say forevermore . . .