UMKC students put on a Performative Lesbian Contest at Roo Plaza on Sept. 30, drawing in dozens of spectators. The contestants lined up and, one at a time, shared why they deserved to be deemed the most performative lesbian. Between carabiners, flannels and Labubus, the contest stopped bypassers in their tracks.
Lana Peregrina, a sophomore studying sociology, led the organization of the event as a fun activity to bring students closer together.
“I think a lot of people are scared to go out and do things, especially if they’re little things that a lot of people go to,” Peregrina said. “A lot of people think they’re weirder than they actually are. So I just wanted to be like ‘hey, it’s OK to just casually go to an event’ because I feel like people only go to events if there’s food. They don’t actually stay to participate in things.”
Peregrina took to social media to help spread the word about the upcoming event. While she has a private Instagram account, the event was able to gain lots of traction on the UMKC YikYak page. This page helped spread the word to students who may not have known about the competition otherwise.
Elena Villaflores, a freshman in the B.A./M.D. program was initially planning on going to the event to watch from the sidelines, but after encouragement from a friend, decided to join in on the contest.
“I think that this was a really good event for UMKC,” Villaflores said. “I feel like we lack a lot of school spirit. I think that the fact that it was all student-led was definitely a good thing.”
After a lively competition, Villaflores was crowned UMKC’s most performative lesbian and received a personalized certificate, UNO playing cards and of course bragging rights.
“I did not think I was going to win at all, I was just there for the bit,” Villaflores said. “But I think it’s great, I’m a B.A./M.D. major and I feel like there’s a kind of connotation about what ‘type’ of student that is supposed to be. So for me to win that as someone who doesn’t have a ‘lesbian major’ was really cool.”
With the event being a lighthearted get-together, it allowed students that were a part of the LGBTQ+ community to unite in a safe and fun environment.
“A lot of people had fun,” Peregrina said. “A lot of my straight friends came to support and a lot of my queer friends also came to support.”
Through smiles and laughs, the students recounted experiences that shaped their lives which brought the group closer together.
“Whenever people were explaining why they’re the most performative lesbian and telling all of these horror stories, everyone was just clapping and cheering and stuff like that because everyone knows that there’s just a shared experience there,” Villaflores said.
Similar to the performative lesbian contest, a Performative Man Contest will be held at the Roo Plaza on Oct. 7 at 4 p.m.
