Masculinities
On Butchness
Masculinity is a social construct of behaviors, attire, codes, and conventions that cisgender women or non-binary individuals can participate in just as well. There are words for a woman or non-binary person who is “more masculine”: butch, stud, tomboy...
“I do think “butch” was actually something other people said about you. Or how you label someone else. Throughout the years, it has become a word of pride. And especially the people who identify as butch are really proud of it, as they should be. They have fought for that.
Together with @vicebelgie, FOMU talks with four women about masculinity. All four identify in some way with butchness. But what does butchness exactly mean to them? Is there sufficient representation? What's it like dating as a butch person? And what needs to change before butch people feel free to be their authentic selves in our society?
Johanna Pas (poet and bookseller), Nyiragasigwa Hens (creative community builder), Mary (bartender) & Pauline Soete (security officer) talk about their experiences as butch, stud, tomboy and everything in between.
This video was made as part of the exhibition Masculinities: Liberation through Photography. Until 13.03.2022 in FOMU.
