Early Sunday night, over a hundred Wellesley students gathered to witness Wellesley’s performative masc contest. Nearly 50 masc contestants came ready to compete, flaunting their carabiners and acoustic guitars. These contestants were put through several trials, including answering feminist trivia after racing to save the “pillow” princess. While somewhat disorganized and chaotic, the event was all around a good time. The University of Florida put on one of the first performative masc contests, but it was quickly picked up by many other colleges including fellow historically women’s colleges Smith and Mount Holyoke.
The performative masc contest is a queer twist on the performative male contests that gained popularity over the summer. These contests gathered hundreds of “performative” men carrying matcha lattes and tote bags stuffed with literary classics. The performative male is a man who caters his appearance and public actions to liberal women while remaining privately manipulative and misogynistic. The online popularity of these contests grew rapidly, resulting in hundreds of contests across the country.
With the growing influence of these performative male contests, social critics have questioned the consequences of framing behaviors such as reading feminist literature or donning more feminine accessories as “performative.” In a time when more and more young men are becoming involved in ultra-right conservative politics, it seems somewhat ill-advised to tease men for breaking from traditional gender roles. It seems we only recognize it as performative because the identity these men choose to perform breaks from traditional images of masculinity.
This, in large part, contributes to why “performative masc” contests, such as the one that took place on Sev Green, feel fundamentally different from their male counterparts. Queer people’s very identities place them in conflict with dominant narratives about gender. Trans mascs and masc lesbians in particular have always performed their gender outside of normative gender roles and binaries, embodying the choice to perform their authentic identities. While those who participated in this contest might have engaged in stereotypes, in doing so, they also celebrated queer history and identity. For many of these contestants, although they exaggerated their demeanor for the sake of this contest, they still presented themselves in a way that was at least somewhat reflective of their genuine appearance. As much as this was an opportunity to poke fun at the stereotypical masculine lesbian, this contest also acted as a genuine celebration of queer culture. Additionally, there has been discourse around the potential idolization of white mascs in a way that is uncomfortable, while also disregarding many masc students of color. However, to my delighted shock, this contest elevated many students of color and celebrated a greater range of queer community in the process.
The performative masc contest can succeed where the performative male contest fails because it recognizes the ways in which gender has always been a performance. And on all accounts, it celebrates these queer identities as much as it criticizes them. As one masc contestant put it, “Why would I not perform for a bunch of beautiful women like you?”
Contact the editors responsible for this story: Caitlin Donovan, Avery Finley
