Editor’s note: Ava Weinreb, one of the sources in this story, is a member of the Emerald’s digital team. She had no role in the writing or editing of this story.
Throughout our adolescence, popular culture sells college to us as a free-for-all cultural experience where we are finally at liberty to indulge in all things deemed previously taboo. This free-for-all includes everything from partying and drinking to no-strings-attached sex and one-night stands. And, while this newfound sexual liberation appears positive on the surface, the rules and realities of college hookup culture prove less than ideal for many students.
Hookup culture is the current acceptance and trend around casual sex minus relationships, commitment and emotional intimacy. This attitude dominates student life throughout most American college campuses, especially with the rise of apps such as Tinder and Grindr. However, Occidental University sociology studies have shown that hookup culture is more attainable for cisgender and heterosexual White students, while other groups are often left out.
At predominately White institutions, such as the University of Oregon, minority groups often face their own set of complicated issues regarding hookup culture. Lisa Wade, a professor of sociology at Occidental University who studies hookup culture, explained to NPR’s Hidden Brain podcast, “People of color are pushed out because of racism and an erotic hierarchy that privileges whiteness.”
Some groups, such as Black men and Asian women, are eroticized by popular culture and deemed more sexually desirable. Others, such as Black women and Asian men, are less embraced sexually by White culture and thus participate less in hookup culture. And, while being included in the culture seems better than being left out, both are equally damaging, as being racially fetishized can be dehumanizing.
Bella Guinto, an Asian American UO student, agrees with this sentiment. “While it is fun to be desired and able to participate in the culture, I often find it damaging to my mental health as I wonder if men are actually pursuing me for me, or because they want to explore and experiment outside of their race, and I’m simply another box on their checklist,” she said.
People of color aren’t the only ones who feel a disconnect from the typical campus hookup culture, as members of the LGBTQ+ community experience similar problems. While there are many spaces for members of the LQBTQ+ community to engage in hookup culture, college campuses remain a relatively unwelcoming space. Wade explained the college hookup scene is “hyper-heterosexualized,” and in order to hook up, LGBTQ+ students either “participate at their own risk, risking homophobia in either behavior or attitude, or they go off campus.”
Second-year student Ava Weinreb also often feels frustrated with the narrow definition of hookup culture, explaining, “as a gay woman, it is different than the average heterosexual experience. Typical spaces for hookup culture like fraternity parties or bars don’t always cater to the LGBTQ community. Personally, I have found my experience to be much more complex as many people still have internalized homophobia that is projected especially when drugs and alcohol are involved.”
This isn’t to say hookup culture doesn’t have its upsides; we are lucky to live in a day and age where sexual promiscuity is welcomed and accepted for all genders, and we are free to use our bodies for expression. However, we must also examine the exclusive nature when discussing the topic. Inclusivity and representation are becoming increasingly important in all aspects of life, and we must reflect on how this manifests in the hookup culture on our campus.
