CAKE is dedicated to promoting female sexuality as part of mainstream culture and media, but when we refer to the makings of a female sexual culture what exactly do we mean? In other words, in this post-millennial era what defines female sexual lifestyle? Rather than what are we reacting to, falling victim to, or defending against, when it comes to our sexuality, what are we - as women - in favor of?

From the days of Thomas Jefferson, Americans have been trying to throw off the puritanical influences of our culture to pursue happiness or rather — to pursue pleasure. And yet, as sex continues to sell and sell big, and as women progress socially and economically, there is precious little candid dialogue about what women want sexually, how women experience pleasure, and what makes up our sexual lifestyles. There are still frighteningly few opportunities to push the social boundaries of female sexuality in the mainstream in a way that is related to our real lives, in a way that addresses our complete sexual identity, as women, with our girlfriends, in our daily lives, with our male partners, and in terms of our personal styles and attitudes. It seems as if our entire generation of women moves forward in an environment set on upholding assumptions about sexuality that were made in the 1960’s and 70’s.

The women’s fashion and lifestyle industry is a multi-billion dollar business through which women are encouraged to find sexualized satisfaction not in our own sexual pleasure, but in shopping, eating, doing our hair and makeup and, the pleasure of "pleasing your man in ten easy steps." As a whole, there exists a decided lack of magazines, films, literature, and public discourse focused on women’s sexual pleasure — a slap in the face to a whole generation of women (and men) who demand more. Standard sexual clichés dominate mainstream sexual culture - meanwhile, the importance of a fulfilling sexual lifestyle is left largely ignored. The choices for sexual entertainment for women are seriously limited and at odds with of the sexual lives we are living.

Female sexual culture represents the untapped reality of women’s sexual power. There is nothing more appealing, and intimidating to the status quo for that matter, than a powerful woman who understands that sex can be a pleasurable diversion as well as an outlet for creativity, experimentation and fun. Not since Hugh Hefner and his Playboy phenomena of the 1960’s has the world seen a shift in sexual attitudes. It is up to our generation to create, define and make female sexual culture. CAKE is at the forefront of a new paradigm — where women control the environment, set the agenda and are empowered.

By creating a forum where women and men talk candidly about their sexual lifestyles and interact in a sexually charged and safe environment, CAKE is demonstrating and documenting the ways in which sexuality is an integral part of women’s daily lives, and reshaping conventional perceptions of women’s sexuality. Over the past year, we have organized a community of thousands of like-minded women and men who regularly attend CAKE events and give ongoing substance to CAKE as an international movement to advance female sexual culture. Together, our goal is for CAKE to document the articulation and promotion of an active sexual agenda and thus become synonymous with female sexual culture.

Women should have the choice to explore our sexuality at every moment of our daily life. CAKE empowers women by giving them a space to release their inhibitions and embrace their sexuality. We are fighting for a 21^st century sexual revolution - one in which women can be a friend, lover, mother, sister, feminist and always a sexual being.

Love,
Melinda