Meet the asexual lingerie model who’s not here to turn anybody on

Asexual_Lingerie_Model

Proud asexual Yasmin Benoit loves being a lingerie model and is tired of having to defend her sexuality against stereotypes that assume what asexuality looks like.

Asexuality activist Yasmin Benoit has been modelling lingerie for five years and recently walked the catwalk at the London Queer Fashion Show.

Her lingerie modelling confuses a lot of people because it “doesn’t fit people’s ideas of how an asexual person is supposed to be”, she tells PinkNews.

Benoit wants people to know that you can wear sexy lingerie and still have no sexual attraction towards others because modelling lingerie “isn’t about attracting people, it’s about feeling good about yourself.

“I’m not here to try and turn anybody on.”

Asexuality doesn’t come in one look and for Benoit, asexuality looks like being a proud, black, lingerie model. All asexuals are different and there is no one stereotype, she explains.

Watch Yasmin Benoit share what it’s like to be an asexual lingerie model:

Modelling lingerie when you are asexual.

Yasmin Benoit says she doesn’t model lingerie to turn people on but “I’m pretty good at modelling lingerie so that’s why I do it”.

The outfits which Benoit models often don’t consist of more than a latex bikini or a revealing swimsuit, styles she knows “[are] designed to have a sexy style”.

However, not having a sexual attraction doesn’t stop Benoit from modelling sexy clothes because for her “sexiness is more of a style than a physical trait – I only see it as a sexy look, not a sexy person.”

But she explains that when you’re a model you will put on whatever you’re asked to wear because that’s your job.

“It would seem weird to turn down a job because I’m asexual,” she says.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

KEEP SWIPING ➡️ The @londonqueerfashionshow was an absolute dream! I’m still on a high! Thanks @insatiablelust for letting me walk for you, and to the organisers, volunteers, models and designers for putting on an incredible show! I met and reunited with so many awesome, talented and inspiring people. And to be included and cheered as an asexual model in a queer space was really amazing. ?️‍? I have to give a special shoutout to @raindovemodel for helping me out when I got stranded in London. You saved my night! ? P.S. My vlog of the event is coming soon! ? . . . . . . . . . . . . . #yasminbenoit #insatiablelust #londonqueerfashionshow #lamoda #latex #asexual #aromantic #asexualgirl #thisiswhatasexuallookslike #model #alternativemodel #alternativegirl #latexmodel #alternativeblackgirl #raindove #tessholliday #saaraaalto #blackmodel #melanin #blackgirlmagic #metalgirl #catwalk #fashionshow #londonfashionweek

A post shared by Yasmin Benoit, MSc (@theyasminbenoit) on

Benoit has on a few occasions had negative experiences modelling lingerie as an asexual because photographers will assume that she enjoys flirting with boys and often ask her to “imagine the camera is you boyfriend”.

Moments like these isolate Benoit as she doesn’t model to please men.

“I’m not here to try and turn anybody on, I don’t even know how to do that,” she tells PinkNews.

She wants to promote the diversity of asexuality, so people don’t think that they only “wear polo necks”.

Ace diversity.

Being a black, asexual lingerie model, Benoit is striving to challenge people’s misconceptions of what asexual people look like.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

#AceOfClubs was a success! ♣️ Creating and hosting my own asexual space was never on my to-do list because I never thought it would be possible. Thanks Budweiser for being the first company to invest in the asexual community, and to everyone else who made the first ever asexual bar happen. I met so many amazing people and it’s incredible to know that what you’re doing is having a positive impact on others. Our community is so beautiful, diverse and we deserve to be seen. This is just the beginning. Until next time… ? #ThisIsWhatAsexualLooksLike ? . . . . . . . . . . . #yasminbenoit #asexual #asexualgirl #asexualawareness #alternativegirl #alternativefashion #alternativeblackgirl #alternativemodel #blackmodel #blackgirlmagic #blackexcellence #blackgoth #asexualpride #lgbt #londonpride #prideinlondon #pride

A post shared by Yasmin Benoit, MSc (@theyasminbenoit) on

She started the hashtag #ThisIsWhatAsexualLooksLike on Twitter, as a response to people telling her that she was ‘too pretty to be asexual’.

Tired of hearing asexual stereotypes, she adds: “There isn’t an asexual way to dress, we can wear whatever the hell we want to and just because you’re asexual doesn’t mean you don’t want to look good.”