Sporting low rise blue jeans, bandannas and cargo shorts, the lesbian community at Florida State gathered to host a “performative masc lesbian contest” at Landis Green on Aug. 29, 2025.
“Masc,” short for “masculine,” gender presentations have been a staple of queer culture for years. The contest both celebrated the history and poked fun at stereotypes within the community.
Word about the contest quickly spread throughout FSU’s tight knit community of sapphics. On the overcast Friday evening, about 20 masculine-presenting lesbians assembled in front of a very enthused audience.
This comedic display of gender performance may remind one of colorful birds seductively dancing or monkeys aggressively thumping their chests. One contestant drew audience members in with a Labubu dangling from a fishing pole.
The absurdity of this contest left many attendees to question: What does it mean to be a performative masc?
The idea of “performative masculinity” has become a popular subject of satire and humor, and the concept of gender and sexuality as a performance is something that interests many scholars.
“If members of one group portray members of another group, it needs to be done in an informed and respectful way and in dialogue with the group being represented,” FSU history professor Charles Upchurch said to the FSView.
On social media, memes about men drinking matcha and reading feminist literature solely to attract women have spread like wildfire.
“A performative masc is someone who doesn’t have enough masculinity in their bones, so they have to compensate with niche hobbies that don’t really apply to them and they’re not very good at,” Riley Crestwell, an event attendee, said. “But they do it anyway to get ‘femmes,’ which are feminine lesbians.”
An Instagram post made by 324 Central Market poked fun at the trend by outlining “performative male essentials” with images of wired headphones, a digital camera and the book “Atomic Habits” by James Clear.
The trend has circulated so far that masculine-presenting lesbians are now wearing the satirical label as a badge of honor. Contestants proudly presented their poetic skills and flexed their muscles. At the end of the competition, the winner of “Most Performative Masc” was environmental science and policy major Lee Klodner.
“Eight people texted me, thinking that I could win,” Klodner said. “I think a performative masc is anyone who puts on a show that maybe isn’t entirely true of their inner character. That’s why I showed up, because I’m a butch he/they lesbian, so I outperform every masc.”
Klodner is a participant in many lesbian-centric organizations at FSU such as the all-lesbian soccer league “Dyke” Soccer.
The competition, despite being extremely unserious, provided a strong sense of community among the attendees. Groups of queer women gathered together to cheer on their friends and to meet new ones.
“We’re in it to win: we’re here, we’re queer, we’re proud,” Klodner said.
Since the law prohibiting funding for DEI initiatives was signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis in 2023, there has been a forced removal of many courses surrounding gender and queer studies. The masc lesbian contest exemplified that these areas of study are still interesting to FSU students.
“I think it’s so important, especially for groups who are minorities or who have less of a community elsewhere, to have their own communities on campus where they can come together and meet other sapphic individuals,” behavioral neuroscience major Julia Lombardi said.
The overarching comedic nature of this event was not lost on those in attendance. The event revealed that, despite efforts across the country to silence LGBTQ+ voices, queer women still come together in droves to laugh.
“Of course it is [important], because it’s inclusivity and people need to be more lesbian because men are terrible,” Kelley Martinez, an event attendee, said.
Grace Myatt is a Senior Staff Writer for the FSView & Florida Flambeau, the student-run, independent online news service for the FSU community.
This article originally appeared on FSU News: ‘In it to win’: Performative masc lesbian contest at FSU brings queer women together
Reporting by Grace Myatt, Senior Staff Writer / FSU News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
