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Girl Kissers
" I never thought that some lesbian women would look down on me just because, as a straight woman, I might also be attracted to the ladies."
By Sophia Chakos-Leiby
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"Girl kissers" is a term that refers to the phenomenom of women who enjoy kissing other women, but don't consider themselves lesbians. Youth Radio's Sophia Chakos-Leiby discusses how television exploits girls kissing other girls and what is really at stake with the trendy girl kissing bandwagon. "All that Hollywood hype around girl kissing devalues the true love and attraction that women can feel for each other."
I recently found out that I might be a “girl kisser”… a woman who experiments sexually with other women, but doesn’t enter into full-blown relationships. But I’m definitely not the only one.
Now more than ever, it seems stylish for women to make out at parties, at the bar, and especially on TV. Hollywood producers realize that girls making out on their shows…equals big money. They’ve done it on “The Gilmore Girls” and “One Tree Hill”. And is it just a coincidence that FOX’s hit show “The O.C.,” about life in Orange County, featured a kiss between Marissa and Alexandria during sweeps week? I’m not so sure.
I also don’t think this infatuation with girl kissers reflects an open-minded society ready to embrace the LGBT community. To me, it’s more about the power structure controlled by the superficial desires of straight men. Already, most guys love to watch women kiss.
Even though pop culture may portray “girl kissing” as just a sexy trend, it has a derogatory connotation in the lesbian community. I never thought that some lesbian women would look down on me just because, as a straight woman, I might also be attracted to the ladies.
At the same time, I understand why they might be suspicious. From a social perspective, “girl kissers” get the best of both worlds: we sexually experiment with women, but still keep the privilege of the heterosexual status quo.
Bottom line for me? No one’s sexual choices are wrong. It’s cool if you want to be a girl-kisser. But in the end, I realize that my choices could contribute to the media hype that trivializes someone else’s identity and lifestyle.
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