How does a lesbian have a baby anyway? 

This was one of the many questions that Dr. Karleen Pendleton Jiménez, professor in the Trent School of Education, had as a queer, mixed-race (white/Latinx) kid growing up in the 80s. 

Recently premiering on CBC Gem as part of the Canadian Reflections Collection, The Butch and the Baby Daddy – created with filmmaker Barb Taylor – is an animated short based on Professor Pendleton Jiménez’s life and memoir, How to Get a Girl Pregnant. 

“I was sure of two things by the time I was 18: I was a butch lesbian, and I wanted to have a baby,” Prof. Pendleton Jiménez recalls. “For me, trying to have a baby was a monumental endeavour that involved love, friendship, education, adventure, heartbreak, romance, sadness, humour, smarts, risk, money, dreaming.  I wanted to write a book, and now make a movie, that showed the depth of this experience.” 

The film, mirroring her deeply personal exploration of identity and parenthood, tells the story of a young trans/lesbian woman, Alex, as she considers potential fathers for her future child, including her gay Chicano friend Mateo. 

Blending her teaching philosophy and work as an arts-based researcher, The Butch and the Baby Daddy embodies Prof. Pendleton Jiménez’s commitment to fostering dialogue around difficult and often taboo topics in social justice education, including themes central to the film like fertility, race, queerness, and family structures.  

Through the film and the power of storytelling, she hopes to encourage more of these critical conversations, challenge societal norms and misconceptions, and bring this scholarship to a broader audience. 

“In order to challenge and transform institutional systems of discrimination, it is vital that we can speak from our experience and name the barriers,” said Prof. Pendleton Jiménez. “Ever since I began working on the film, many people have come to me with their desire to have children. I found that a lot of people want to talk about fertility, but it's a taboo topic that can be difficult, shameful, or even painful to discuss. I hope my film helps to open the conversation.”  

To continue the conversation, join Prof. Pendleton Jiménez on Wednesday, January 15 at 7:30 p.m. at Bagnani Hall at Traill College for a screening, along with performances from colleagues and friends to celebrate A Night of Nonlinear Fertility.  

The Butch and the Baby Daddy is available to stream for free on CBC Gem until December 2027.