Studs Don’t Notice Me

For some time now, I have felt unseen by studs.

First of all, I’d like to clarify that I often use the word ‘stud’ as a catch-all phrase for black lesbians who are energetically and aesthetically more on the masculine end of the spectrum. I know that some black women have an idea of a stud as being one very specific thing (i.e. a female Lil’ Bow-Wow incarnate). While those women are certainly included, I tend to use the term a little more broadly. 

So yes, I have felt unseen by studs. And by ‘unseen’ I don’t just mean that I am not receiving romantic or sexual attention from them. I mean, when I pass these women in public spaces, there is often no human acknowledgement exchanged between us, whatsoever.