It's no secret that the internet is a scary place. It's home to bullies and scammers of every stripe. It may be slowly sucking the souls of America's children (just kidding, sort of). But there's one corner of the web, on Facebook, where Burlington "babes" have gathered to find solace, solidarity and safe access to resources of every variety. Sensi-Babeington was founded in early 2015 by Dana Heng, Claire Macon and Sarah Attridge, all University of Vermont alums. Since then, the closed group has accrued nearly 1,500 members and passed to two new co-moderators: musician, barista, community organizer and Seven Days contributing writer Amelia Devoid and bartender Oliv Hoover. Together they oversee the forum where babes — a gender-neutral term, according to the group's "About" page — convene to share everything from available housing information to stories of assault, or simply to inquire after Crock-Pots, financial literacy courses, cat sitters or femme-friendly soccer leagues. The group's format combines the attributes of Front Porch Forum, Craigslist, an emotional support group and a networking venue. And, while it's an entirely virtual forum, it's designed to promote real-world exchanges and interactions. Sensi was born from a dinner conversation among Heng, who no longer lives in Vermont, and her friends. "We thought it would be a good idea to start a forum for queers and femmes in the Burlington community," she writes in an email. "We wanted to create a space for folks to feel safe posting about housing and other queer/womyn/femme-sensitive recommendations, as well as a place to cultivate ideas and collaborate." ("Womyn" is a feminist spelling used by some to avoid the suffix "-man" or "-men.") The closed-group format, in which joining requires an invitation from a current member, was a deliberate choice. Burlington residents who identify as any gender are welcome, provided they support the needs of femme and queer people. "It was meant to be an open forum to combat the exclusive nature of communities," Heng says, "but technically remains a 'closed group' to make sure it centers [on] the people it was created for." The name references those people, as well. Heng says "sensi" is a slang term for "sensitive" that she uses with her friends and "refer[s] to vulnerability and the strength of being vulnerable.""Babeington" comes from splicing together the words "babe" and "Burlington." In its current form, all members can approve new members. Moderators Devoid…
It's no secret that the internet is a scary place. It's home to bullies and scammers of every stripe. It may be slowly sucking the souls of America's children (just kidding, sort of). But there's one corner of the web, on Facebook, where Burlington "babes" have gathered to find solace, solidarity and safe access to resources of every variety. Sensi-Babeington was founded in early 2015 by Dana Heng, Claire Macon and Sarah Attridge, all University of Vermont alums. Since then, the closed group has accrued nearly 1,500 members and passed to two new co-moderators: musician, barista, community organizer and Seven Days contributing writer Amelia Devoid and bartender Oliv Hoover. Together they oversee the forum where babes — a gender-neutral term, according to the group's "About" page — convene to share everything from available housing information to stories of assault, or simply to inquire after Crock-Pots, financial literacy courses, cat sitters or femme-friendly soccer leagues. The group's format combines the attributes of Front Porch Forum, Craigslist, an emotional support group and a networking venue. And, while it's an entirely virtual forum, it's designed to promote real-world exchanges and interactions. Sensi was born from a dinner conversation among Heng, who no longer lives in Vermont, and her friends. "We thought it would be a good idea to start a forum for queers and femmes in the Burlington community," she writes in an email. "We wanted to create a space for folks to feel safe posting about housing and other queer/womyn/femme-sensitive recommendations, as well as a place to cultivate ideas and collaborate." ("Womyn" is a feminist spelling used by some to avoid the suffix "-man" or "-men.") The closed-group format, in which joining requires an invitation from a current member, was a deliberate choice. Burlington residents who identify as any gender are welcome, provided they support the needs of femme and queer people. "It was meant to be an open forum to combat the exclusive nature of communities," Heng says, "but technically remains a 'closed group' to make sure it centers [on] the people it was created for." The name references those people, as well. Heng says "sensi" is a slang term for "sensitive" that she uses with her friends and "refer[s] to vulnerability and the strength of being vulnerable.""Babeington" comes from splicing together the words "babe" and "Burlington." In its current form, all members can approve new members. Moderators Devoid…