i find this a little bit shrugworthy tbh. it’s not the best term, not sure i’d use it that much myself but i reckon in some contexts it’s more explanatory than just saying “crush”.
like, i don’t think it’s as simple as ‘describing a crush in a way that also suggests you’re not gay and don’t usually have crushes on the same gender is definitely internalised homophobia’. i mean, sure, it OFTEN is, but not really exclusively? i don’t particularly care if anyone thinks i’m gay and i don’t go to any particular lengths to make sure everyone knows, but at the same time i can understand peoples wishes to avoid an incorrect assumption in the same way you want to avoid someone pronouncing your name wrongly until you have to correct them.
as much as lots of us get the whole ‘sexuality is a spectrum’ idea, i still don’t think MOST people do. i think people talking openly about their ‘man-crush’ or ‘girl-crush’ is a step in the right direction for people who might otherwise just internalise and repress, and i dunno it just seems pretty harmless to me* in the grand scheme of things?
*admittedly someone not really in a position to be oppressed idk.
