Why do people always think that camp men are gay?

This is a stereotype that puzzles me to no end. I think this is an example of low-level homophobia.

If a man wears makeup, has long hair, earring, skinny jeans etc... then a fair amount of people will think "This guy is gay".

What's funny is that the reverse generally isn't true. A woman who doesn't wear makeup or has short hair will rarely be called a lesbian unless she really goes out of her way to look more masculine.

As a bisexual man, who is neither masculine or feminine, I find most gay guys are actually turned off by feminine behaving guys and are in fact what you would call 'straight acting' yet this stereotype persists.

Why do you think that is?

Reply 1

LegsEleven17

13

Original post by hijackedbrother

This is a stereotype that puzzles me to no end. I think this is an example of low-level homophobia.

If a man wears makeup, has long hair, earring, skinny jeans etc... then a fair amount of people will think "This guy is gay".

What's funny is that the reverse generally isn't true. A woman who doesn't wear makeup or has short hair will rarely be called a lesbian unless she really goes out of her way to look more masculine.

As a bisexual man, who is neither masculine or feminine, I find most gay guys are actually turned off by feminine behaving guys and are in fact what you would call 'straight acting' yet this stereotype persists.

Why do you think that is?

The media most likely.

Reply 2

lizardwizard

Unfortunatly, paticularly in younger guys, a lot of men like to comment on other mens sexual orientation due to the stigma that is sadly still attached to being homosexual/bisexual. Wether this be to further there social status with others or simply to comment for comments sake.

i believe a lot of these types of issues could be fixed by simply abolishing gender itself.

Reply 3

Pseudunon

2

When have you ever met a camp man who wasn't gay? Wearing makeup as a man is going out of their way to appear feminine, although makeup alone isn't enough to determine if they are gay - usually they have a certain demeanour alongside it - the "campness". I am not saying that all homosexuals are camp, but that almost all camp men are homosexual.

I think it's much harder to tell if a woman is a lesbian as there are many "tomboys" who are not lesbians. I think this has to do with the fact that it is easier to dress and behave in a masculine way, as opposed to the other way round. For example, not wearing makeup as a woman is a lot easier than deciding to wear makeup as a man.

Reply 4

stereotypeasian

21

someone made up a stereotype then everyone else just followed along with it until it became popular and they could profit off it through the media

Reply 5

sadboidom

6

stereotypes. i'm bisexual and i am feminine. most people assume that i'm gay. most gay guys are femme but that doesn't mean that all are.

Reply 6

Old Skool Freak

20

Original post by hijackedbrother

This is a stereotype that puzzles me to no end. I think this is an example of low-level homophobia.

1) If a man wears makeup, has long hair, earring, skinny jeans etc... then a fair amount of people will think "This guy is gay".

2) What's funny is that the reverse generally isn't true. A woman who doesn't wear makeup or has short hair will rarely be called a lesbian unless she really goes out of her way to look more masculine.

3) As a bisexual man, who is neither masculine or feminine, I find most gay guys are actually turned off by feminine behaving guys and are in fact what you would call 'straight acting' yet this stereotype persists.

Why do you think that is?

Here are my thoughts (I've numbered your original post to make it easier to follow)

1) I think this stereotype is less true these days than it was, say 20-30 years ago... with the rise of the so-called Metrosexual man, it's a lot more acceptable / common for guys to adopt several different "styles"

2) I think that lesbians will (generally) attract less scrutiny / judgment from society, due to the straight male fantasy of lesbian sex (research the Internet for examples lol).

3) Doesn't that depend on the type of gay? I mean, you have the ripped gym rats; the twinks & the bears... would they all think alike? That's a genuine question BTW, I'm straight so I wouldn't necessarily know one way or the other .

Original post by Pseudunon

When have you ever met a camp man who wasn't gay? Wearing makeup as a man is going out of their way to appear feminine, although makeup alone isn't enough to determine if they are gay - usually they have a certain demeanour alongside it - the "campness". I am not saying that all homosexuals are camp, but that almost all camp men are homosexual.

Not true IMHO,

For example the late singer / songwriter Prince, and the rapper / personality Snoop Dogg, are two examples of males whom I consider both to be very camp, but neither have ever struck me as "Gay". Even David Beckham has been described as camp on occasions, but I don't think anyone has questioned his sexuality.

Reply 7

Joleee

19

camp has to do with behaviour and mannerisms. i would never think a man was camp because they wore makeup, had long hair, earrings, wore skinny jeans. :nah:

they’re either a rocker, biker or surfer.

but i get what you’re saying. it’s because ‘camp’ is regarded as effeminate due to gender and sexuality stereotyping; so if a male is behaving ‘feminine’, to some people and especially if they aren’t familiar with actual gay people, they think that male must be gay. it’s unfair in my view.