Homo Seat

The “homo seat” is that empty seat left between two men, generally acquainted with one another, in public places such as cinemas, commuter trains and inexpensive eating establishments. It acts as a bulwark against the appearance of excessive intimacy, and is a marker of personal space. Its use would also depend on the level of acquaintance between two men; a “homo stool” would not be used at the counter of a diner between two men who arrived together, but would be socially necessary in all but the most crowded conditions between two men who had not been previously introduced.