Definitions: LGBTQ... and more

I just want to spend a bit of time defining some words that have to do with LGBTQ - Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer.

Why is this important? If we're going to be having open discussions on this blog I don't want people misinterpreting or misunderstanding what someone else is saying because they don't understand what the word means. These are unbiased definitions, I'm just stating facts here!

Definitions

Sexual Orientation: The American Psychology Association defines sexual orientation in the following way: “Sexual orientation is an enduring emotional, romantic, sexual, or affectionate attraction toward others”.  There are three main orientations: Homosexuality, Heterosexuality, and Bisexuality.

Homosexuality: sexual and romantic desire between members of the same sex or gender (see below for "Lesbian" and "Gay").

Heterosexuality: sexual and romantic desire between members of the same sex or gender (often referred to as "Straight").

Bisexuality: sexual and romantic desire for both male and females (often referred to as "Bi").

Lesbian: sexual and romantic desire between females. Also used to refer to women who identify themselves as homosexuals.

Lesbos is an island in Greece, people from there are Lesbians just like I am a Canadian. Lesbian was also an ancient Greek language they spoke.

Gay: sexual and romantic desire between males. Also used to refer to men who identify themselves as homosexuals. This word is sometimes also used to replace "lesbian" when referring to the person.

Gay is also an adjective means "joyful"or "carefree."

As a pejorative (an abusive, derogatory term) "gay" is used in phrases like "that's so gay." Generally this use is meaning to say stupid or lame, but using the word gay has a negative connotation... making it seem like gay = lame.

Bi: a person who refers to themselves as "bi" identify themselves as having sexual and romantic desires for both male and females.

Questioning: the exploration of gender, sex, sexual orientation, or all three.

Queer: a term that refers to any sexual orientation other than heterosexual. Politically, it refers to lifestyles and ideologies for LGBT communities.

Sex: distinction between male and female based on genetics and reproductive organs. Identification by others as male, female, or intersex. As a verb, it means sexual intercourse.

Intersex: biological sex cannot be completely classified as male or female. 

Gender: distinction between male and female based on the traits assigned to them. Self-identification as a woman, man, neither, or both.

Transsexual: the state of one's gender not matching one's sex. Applied to a variety of individuals, behaviors, and groups involving tendencies to vary from culturally conventional gender roles.

Transgender: often used instead of transsexual, transgender is the political component: working to create a world where greater fluidity of gender expression is welcomed and valued. Both terms describe a section of the sexual minority population seeking only to feel comfortable in their own skin. (Sarah Wilcox, University of Kent)

I hope this has helped to clear some things up. Looking these up really helped me to have a better understanding in some subjects that were a little fuzzy to me before. This is just the tip of the iceberg of words used in LGBT communities to differentiate sexual orientation, gender, and sex.

  

What do you think?

Am I missing anything? Unclear? Is there anther topic that you would like to have defined in detail that affects children and youth?

 

Stay Beautiful,

Lisa