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LGBTQ (also commonly seen as LGBT, [1] [2] LGBT+, [3] LGBTQ+, [4] and LGBTQIA+ [5] ) is an initialism for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer or questioning. [6] [7] It is an umbrella term, broadly referring to all sexualities, romantic orientations, and gender identities which are not heterosexual, heteroromantic, or cisgender. [8] [9] [10] [11]
In the 1990s, gay, lesbian, and bisexual activists adopted the term LGB, supplanting narrower terms such as "gay or lesbian". Terminology eventually shifted to LGBT, as transgender people became more accepted within the movement. Around that time, some activists began to reclaim the term queer , seeing it as a more radical and inclusive umbrella term, though others reject it, due to its history as a pejorative. [12] [13] [14] In recognition of this, the 2010s saw the adoption of LGBTQ, and other more inclusive variants. [15] [16]
Some versions of the term, such as LGBT+ and LGBTQ+ add a plus sign, to represent additional identities not captured within the acronym. [17] [18] Many further variants exist which add additional identities, such as LGBTQIA+ (for intersex, asexual, aromantic, and agender) [19] and 2SLGBTQ+ (for two-spirit), LGBTQQ (for queer and questioning), [20] or which order the letters differently, as in GLBT and GLBTQ. [21] [22]
The collective of all LGBTQ people is often called the LGBTQ community. These labels are not universally agreed upon by everyone that they are intended to include. [23] For example, some intersex people prefer to be included in this grouping, while others do not. [24] [25] Various alternative umbrella terms exist across various cultures, including queer; same gender loving (SGL); and Gender, Sexual and Romantic Minorities (GSRM).
The first widely used term, homosexual , now a term used primarily in scientific contexts, has at times carried negative connotations in the United States. [26] Gay became a popular term in the 1970s. [27]
As lesbians forged more public identities, the phrase gay and lesbian became more common. [28] A dispute as to whether the primary focus of their political aims should be feminism or gay rights led to the dissolution of some lesbian organizations, including Daughters of Bilitis, which was founded by Del Martin and Phyllis Lyon, [29] but disbanded in 1970 following disputes over which goal should take precedence. [30] As equality was a priority for lesbian feminists, disparity of roles between men and women or butch and femme were viewed as patriarchal. Lesbian feminists eschewed gender role play that had been pervasive in bars as well as the perceived chauvinism of gay men; many lesbian feminists refused to work with gay men or take up their causes. [31]
Lesbians who held the essentialist view that they had been born homosexual and used the descriptor lesbian to define sexual attraction often considered the separatist opinions of lesbian-feminists to be detrimental to the cause of gay rights. [32] Bisexual and transgender people also sought recognition as legitimate categories within the larger minority community. [28]
In the late 1970s and the early 1980s, after the elation of change following group action in the 1969 Stonewall riots in New York City, some gays and lesbians became less accepting of bisexual or transgender people. [33] [34] Critics[ like whom? ] said that transgender people were acting out stereotypes, and bisexuals were simply gay men or lesbian women who were afraid to come out and be honest about their identity. [33] Each community has struggled to develop its own identity including whether, and how, to align with other gender and sexuality-based communities, at times excluding other subgroups; these conflicts continue to this day. [34] LGBTQ activists and artists have created posters to raise consciousness about the issue since the movement began. [35]
From about 1988, activists began to use the initialism LGBT in the United States. [37] Not until the 1990s within the movement did gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people gain equal respect. [34] This spurred some organizations to adopt new names, as the GLBT Historical Society did in 1999. [38] Although the LGBT community has seen much controversy regarding universal acceptance of different member groups (bisexual and transgender individuals, in particular, have sometimes been marginalized by the larger LGBT community), the term LGBT has been a positive symbol of inclusion. [8] [34]
Beginning in the 1990s, the term queer was beginning to be adopted by the community to support gay-pride and reclaim the term from its earlier pejorative use as scholars have shown. The field of study of the LGBTQ community is called queer studies, in recognition of this reclamation and used as an umbrella term for the wider community as the academic response to the Stonewall riots. The acronym LGBT eventually evolved to LGBTQ in recognition of the community's reclamation of the term. [16] [12] [39] [40]
In 2016, GLAAD's Media Reference Guide states that LGBTQ is the preferred initialism, being more inclusive of younger members of the communities who embrace queer as a self-descriptor. [15] Some people consider queer to be a derogatory term originating in hate speech and reject it, especially among older members of the community. [41]
Many variants of the term LGBT exist, such as the more inclusive LGBT+ and variations that change the order of the letters or include additional letters. At least some of the components of sexuality (regarding hetero, bi, straight), and also gender are stated to be on different spectrums of sexuality. [43] [44] Other common variants also exist, such as LGBTQIA, [45] with the I standing for intersex and the A standing for asexual, aromantic, or agender, [46] [47] [19] and LGBTQIA+, where "the '+' represents those who are part of the community, but for whom LGBTQ does not accurately capture or reflect their identity". [48] Longer initialisms have been criticized as confusing or unwieldy, [49] [50] [51] sometimes being referred to as "alphabet soup", [52] and mocked with labels such as LGBTQWERTY , LGBTQXYZ , and alphabet mafia . [53] [54] [55] The implication that the initialism refers to a single community is also controversial. [23]
Although identical in meaning, LGBT may have a more feminist connotation than GLBT as it places the "L" (for "lesbian") first. [34] LGBT may also include additional Qs for "queer" or "questioning" (sometimes abbreviated with a question mark and sometimes used to mean anybody not literally L, G, B or T) producing the variants LGBTQ and LGBTQQ. [56] [57] [58] The order of the letters has not been standardized; in addition to the variations between the positions of the initial "L" or "G", the mentioned, less common letters, if used, may appear in almost any order. [34] In Hebrew and Peninsular Spanish, LGTB (להט"ב) is used, that is, reversing the letters "B" and "T". [59] [60] Variant terms do not typically represent political differences within the community, but arise simply from the preferences of individuals and groups. [61]
The terms pansexual , omnisexual, fluid and queer-identified are regarded as falling under the umbrella term bisexual (and therefore are considered a part of the bisexual community). Some use LGBT+ to mean "LGBT and related communities". [44] Other variants may have a "U" for "unsure"; a "C" for "curious"; another "T" for "transvestite"; a "TS", "2S", or "2" for "two-spirit" persons; or an "SA" for "straight allies". [62] [63] [64] [65] [66] The inclusion of straight allies in the LGBT initialism has proven controversial, as many straight allies have been accused of using LGBT advocacy to gain popularity and status in recent years, [67] and various LGBT activists have criticised the heteronormative worldview of certain straight allies. [68] Some may also add a "P" for "polyamorous" or "pangender", an "H" for "HIV-affected", or an "O" for "other". [34] [69] The initialism LGBTIH has seen use in India to encompass the hijra third gender identity and the related subculture. [70] [71]
Adding the term allies to the initialism has sparked controversy, [72] [73] with some seeing the inclusion of ally in place of asexual/aromantic/agender as a form of LGBT erasure. [46] [74] [75] There is also the acronym QUILTBAG (queer and questioning, unsure, intersex, lesbian, transgender and two-spirit, bisexual, asexual and aromantic, and gay and genderqueer). [76] Similarly LGBTIQA+ stands for "lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, queer/questioning, asexual and many other terms (such as non-binary and pansexual)". [77] [78]
In Canada, the community is sometimes identified as LGBTQ2 (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and two spirit). [79] Depending on which organization is using the abbreviation, the choice of initialism changes. Businesses and the CBC often simply employ LGBT as a proxy for any longer abbreviation, private activist groups often employ LGBTQ+, [80] whereas public health providers favour the more inclusive LGBT2Q+ to accommodate twin spirited indigenous peoples. [81] For a time, the Pride Toronto organization used the much lengthier initialism LGBTTIQQ2SA, but appears to have dropped this in favour of simpler wording. [82] Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was also criticized for using the 2SLGBTQQIA+ initialism. [83] [84] As of July 2023, the Government of Canada's official term is 2SLGBTQI+. [85] Trudeau's new acronym was criticized by some social media users. [86]
The term trans* has been adopted by some groups as a more inclusive alternative to "transgender", where trans (without the asterisk) has been used to describe trans men and trans women, while trans* covers all non-cisgender (genderqueer) identities, including transgender, transsexual, transvestite, genderqueer, genderfluid, non-binary, genderfuck, genderless, agender, non-gendered, third gender, two-spirit, bigender, and trans man and trans woman. [87] [88] Likewise, the term transsexual commonly falls under the umbrella term transgender, but some transsexual people object to this. [34]
Those who add intersex people to LGBT groups or organizations may use the extended initialism LGBTI, [89] [24] or LGBTIQ. [90]
The relationship of intersex to lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans, and queer communities is complex, [91] but intersex people are often added to the LGBT category to create an LGBTI community. Some intersex people prefer the initialism LGBTI, while others would rather that they not be included as part of the term. [24] [25] Emi Koyama describes how inclusion of intersex in LGBTI can fail to address intersex-specific human rights issues, including creating false impressions "that intersex people's rights are protected" by laws protecting LGBT people, and failing to acknowledge that many intersex people are not LGBT. [92] Organisation Intersex International Australia states that some intersex individuals are same-sex attracted, and some are heterosexual, but "LGBTI activism has fought for the rights of people who fall outside of expected binary sex and gender norms". [93] [94] Julius Kaggwa of SIPD Uganda has written that, while the gay community "offers us a place of relative safety, it is also oblivious to our specific needs". [95]
Numerous studies have shown higher rates of same-sex attraction in intersex people, [96] [97] with a recent Australian study of people born with atypical sex characteristics finding that 52% of respondents were non-heterosexual; [98] [99] thus, research on intersex subjects has been used to explore means of preventing homosexuality. [96] [97] As an experience of being born with sex characteristics that do not fit social norms, [100] intersex can be distinguished from transgender, [101] [102] [103] while some intersex people are both intersex and transgender. [104]
In the early 2010s, asexuality and aromanticism started gaining wider recognition. Around 2015, they were included in the expanded initialism LGBTQIA, with the A standing for asexual, aromantic, commonly grouped together as a-spec along with agender . [46] [47]
Asexual individuals experience minimal to no sexual attraction to others; asexuality may be considered a sexual orientation or a lack of a sexual orientation. [105] Aromantic individuals lack romantic attraction to others, yet they can still forge profound emotional connections and strong bonds with people without the romantic component. Agender individuals either have no gender identity or possess a neutral or genderless gender identity.
Some people have mistakenly claimed the A stands for ally, but allies are not a marginalized group and mentions of A for ally have regularly sparked controversy as a form of LGBT erasure. [72] [73]
The initialisms LGBT or GLBT are not agreed to by everyone that they encompass. [23] For example, some argue that transgender and transsexual causes are not the same as that of lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) people. [107] This argument centers on the idea that being transgender or transsexual has to do more with gender identity, or a person's understanding of being or not being a man or a woman irrespective of their sexual orientation. [34] LGB issues can be seen as a matter of sexual orientation or attraction. [34] These distinctions have been made in the context of political action in which LGB goals, such as same-sex marriage legislation and human rights work (which may not include transgender and intersex people), may be perceived to differ from transgender and transsexual goals. [34]
A belief in "lesbian and gay separatism" (not to be confused with the related "lesbian separatism") holds that lesbians and gay men form (or should form) a community distinct and separate from other groups normally included in the LGBTQ sphere. [108] While not always appearing in sufficient numbers or organization to be called a movement, separatists are a significant, vocal, and active element within many parts of the LGBT community. [109] [108] [110] In some cases separatists will deny the existence or right to equality of bisexual orientations and of transsexuality, [109] sometimes leading to public biphobia and transphobia. [109] [108] In contrasts to separatists, Peter Tatchell of the LGBT human rights group OutRage! argues that to separate the transgender movement from the LGB would be "political madness", stating that: [111]
Queers are, like transgender people, gender deviant. We don't conform to traditional heterosexist assumptions of male and female behaviour, in that we have sexual and emotional relationships with the same sex. We should celebrate our discordance with mainstream straight norms.
The portrayal of an all-encompassing "LGBT community" or "LGB community" is also disliked by some lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people. [112] [113] Some do not subscribe to or approve of the political and social solidarity, and visibility and human rights campaigning that normally goes with it, including LGBT pride marches and events. [112] [113] Some of them believe that grouping together people with non-heterosexual orientations perpetuates the myth that being gay/lesbian/bi/asexual/pansexual/etc. makes a person deficiently different from other people. [112] These people are often less visible compared to more mainstream gay or LGBT activists. [112] [113] Since this faction is difficult to distinguish from the heterosexual majority, it is common for people to assume all LGBT people support LGBT liberation and the visibility of LGBT people in society, including the right to live one's life differently from the majority. [112] [113] [114] In the 1996 book Anti-Gay, a collection of essays edited by Mark Simpson, the concept of a 'one-size-fits-all' identity based on LGBT stereotypes is criticized for suppressing the individuality of LGBT people. [115]
Writing in the BBC News Magazine in 2014, Julie Bindel questions whether the various gender groupings now, "bracketed together[,] ... share the same issues, values and goals?" Bindel refers to a number of possible new initialisms for differing combinations and concludes that it may be time for the alliances to either be reformed or go their "separate ways". [116] In 2015, the slogan "Drop the T" was coined to encourage LGBT organizations to stop support of transgender people as they say that sexual orientation, LGB, does not share similarity with gender identity, the T. The campaign has been condemned by many LGBT groups as transphobic. [117] [118] [119] [120]
Many have expressed desire for an umbrella term to replace existing initialisms. [109] Queer gained popularity as an umbrella-term for sexual and gender minorities in the 21st century. [121] The term remains controversial, particularly among older LGBT people, who perceive it as offensive due to its historical usage as a slur, [121] as well as those who wish to dissociate themselves from queer radicalism, [122] and those who see it as amorphous and trendy. [123] Some younger people feel queer is a more politically charged, more powerful term than LGBT. [124] [125] In a 2018 U.S. study, about 1 in 5 LGBTQ people identified as "queer". [121]
SGM, or GSM, [126] an abbreviation for sexual and gender minorities, has gained particular currency in government, academia, and medicine. GSRM is also used to include romantic minorities such as aromanticism. [127] [128]
In New Zealand, New Zealand Human Rights Commission uses "Rights of Sexual and Gender Minorities" to discuss LGBT rights. [129]
In India, the Constitutional Bench of the Supreme Court of India, when decriminalizing homosexuality in the case of Navtej Singh Johar v. Union of India(2018) , said: [130]
Individuals belonging to sexual and gender minorities experience discrimination, stigmatization, and, in some cases, denial of care on account of their sexual orientation and gender identity. However, it is important to note that 'sexual and gender minorities' do not constitute a homogenous group, and experiences of social exclusion, marginalization, and discrimination, as well as specific health needs, vary considerably. Nevertheless, these individuals are united by one factor - that their exclusion, discrimination and marginalization is rooted in societal heteronormativity and society's pervasive bias towards gender binary and opposite-gender relationships, which marginalizes and excludes all non-heteronormative sexual and gender identities. [131]
In the US, the term "Sexual and Gender Minority" has been adopted by the National Institutes of Health, [132] the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services [133] and the UCLA Williams Institute, which studies SGM law and policy. [134] Duke University and the University of California San Francisco both have prominent sexual and gender minority health programs. [135] [136] An NIH paper recommends the term SGM because it is inclusive of "those who may not self-identify as LGBT ... or those who have a specific medical condition affecting reproductive development". [137] A publication from the White House Office of Management and Budget states, "We believe that SGM is more inclusive, because it includes persons not specifically referenced by the identities listed in LGBT." [138]
A UK government paper favors SGM because initials like LGBTIQ+ stand for terms that, especially outside the Global North, are "not necessarily inclusive of local understandings and terms used to describe sexual and gender minorities". [139] An example of usage outside the Global North is the Constitution of Nepal, which identifies "gender and sexual minorities" as a protected class. [140]
In Canada especially, the term 2SLGBTQ+ is seen, with the first two characters standing for two-spirit; the whole term stands for two-spirit, lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, queer and questioning, and is intended as a term encompassing all sexual- and gender-minorities. For some indigenous people, two-spirit invokes a combination of identities, including sexual, gender, cultural, and spiritual. [141]
Some people advocate the term "minority sexual and gender identities" (MSGI, coined in 2000) for the purpose of explicitly including all people who are not cisgender and heterosexual or "gender, sexual, and romantic minorities" (GSRM), which is more explicitly inclusive of minority romantic orientations, but those have not been widely adopted either. [142] [143] [144] [145] Other rare umbrella terms are Gender and Sexual Diversities (GSD), [146] MOGII (Marginalized Orientations, Gender Identities, and Intersex) and MOGAI (Marginalized Orientations, Gender Alignments and Intersex). [147] [148]
SGL (same gender loving) is sometimes favored among gay male African Americans as a way of distinguishing themselves from what they regard as white-dominated LGBT communities. [149]
In public health settings, MSM ("men who have sex with men") is clinically used to describe men who have sex with other men without referring to their sexual orientation, with WSW ("women who have sex with women") also used as an analogous term. [150] [151]
MVPFAFF is an abbreviation for Māhū , Vakasalewa, Palopa , Fa'afafine, Akava'ine , Fakaleitī (Leiti), and Fakafifine. This term was developed by Phylesha Brown-Acton in 2010 at the Asia Pacific Games Human Rights Conference. [152] This refers to those in the rainbow Pacific Islander community, who may or may not identify with the LGBT initialism. [153]
Romantic orientation, also called affectional orientation, is the classification of the sex or gender which a person experiences romantic attraction towards or is likely to have a romantic relationship with. The term is used alongside the term "sexual orientation", as well as being used alternatively to it, based upon the perspective that sexual attraction is only a single component of a larger concept.
Queer is an umbrella term for people who are not heterosexual or are not cisgender. Originally meaning 'strange' or 'peculiar', queer came to be used pejoratively against LGBT people in the late 19th century. From the late 1980s, queer activists began to reclaim the word as a neutral or positive self-description.
Coming out of the closet, often shortened to coming out, is a metaphor used to describe LGBTQ people's self-disclosure of their sexual orientation, romantic orientation, or gender identity.
LGBTQ slang, LGBTQ speak, queer slang, or gay slang is a set of English slang lexicon used predominantly among LGBTQ+ people. It has been used in various languages since the early 20th century as a means by which members of the LGBTQ+ community identify themselves and speak in code with brevity and speed to others.
LGBTQ culture is a culture shared by lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer individuals. It is sometimes referred to as queer culture, LGBT culture, and LGBTQIA culture, while the term gay culture may be used to mean either "LGBT culture" or homosexual culture specifically.
A sexual minority is a demographic whose sexual identity, orientation or practices differ from the majority of the surrounding society. Primarily used to refer to lesbian, gay, bisexual, or non-heterosexual individuals, it can also refer to transgender, non-binary or intersex individuals.
A pride flag is any flag that represents a segment or part of the LGBTQ community. Pride in this case refers to the notion of LGBTQ pride. The terms LGBTQ flag and queer flag are often used interchangeably.
Over the course of its history, the LGBTQ community has adopted certain symbols for self-identification to demonstrate unity, pride, shared values, and allegiance to one another. These symbols communicate ideas, concepts, and identity both within their communities and to mainstream culture. The two symbols most recognized internationally are the pink triangle and the rainbow flag.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in Azerbaijan face significant challenges not experienced by non-LGBTQ residents. Same-sex sexual activity has been legal in Azerbaijan since 1 September 2000. Nonetheless, discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity are not banned in the country and same-sex marriage is not recognized.
Various issues in medicine relate to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) people. According to the US Gay and Lesbian Medical Association (GLMA), besides HIV/AIDS, issues related to LGBTQ health include breast and cervical cancer, hepatitis, mental health, substance use disorders, alcohol use, tobacco use, depression, access to care for transgender persons, issues surrounding marriage and family recognition, conversion therapy, refusal clause legislation, and laws that are intended to "immunize health care professionals from liability for discriminating against persons of whom they disapprove."
Historically, the portrayal of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) people in media has been largely negative if not altogether absent, reflecting a general cultural intolerance of LGBTQ individuals; however, from the 1990s to present day, there has been an increase in the positive depictions of LGBTQ people, issues, and concerns within mainstream media in North America. The LGBTQ communities have taken an increasingly proactive stand in defining their own culture, with a primary goal of achieving an affirmative visibility in mainstream media. The positive portrayal or increased presence of the LGBTQ communities in media has served to increase acceptance and support for LGBT communities, establish LGBTQ communities as a norm, and provide information on the topic.
The following outline offers an overview and guide to LGBTQ topics:
Intersex people are born with sex characteristics that "do not fit the typical definitions for male or female bodies". They are substantially more likely to identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (LGBT) than endosex people. According to a study done in Australia of Australian citizens with intersex conditions, participants labeled 'heterosexual' as the most popular single label with the rest being scattered among various other labels. According to another study, an estimated 8.5% to 20% experiencing gender dysphoria. Although many intersex people are heterosexual and cisgender, and not all of them identify as LGBTQ+, this overlap and "shared experiences of harm arising from dominant societal sex and gender norms" has led to intersex people often being included under the LGBT umbrella, with the acronym sometimes expanded to LGBTI. Some intersex activists and organisations have criticised this inclusion as distracting from intersex-specific issues such as involuntary medical interventions.
Sexual diversity or gender and sexual diversity (GSD), refers to all the diversities of sex characteristics, sexual orientations and gender identities, without the need to specify each of the identities, behaviors, or characteristics that form this plurality.
LGBTQ psychology is a field of psychology of surrounding the lives of LGBTQ+ individuals, in the particular the diverse range of psychological perspectives and experiences of these individuals. It covers different aspects such as identity development including the coming out process, parenting and family practices and support for LGBTQ+ individuals, as well as issues of prejudice and discrimination involving the LGBTQ community.
Queer erasure refers to the tendency to intentionally or unintentionally remove LGBT groups or people from record, or downplay their significance, which includes lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer people. This erasure can be found in a number of written and oral texts, including popular and scholarly texts.
LGBTQ+ is an abbreviation for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (or questioning), plus other sexual and gender identities.
LGBTQ (abbreviation): lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer/questioning (one's sexual or gender identity)
Definition of LGBTQIA: lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning (one's sexual or gender identity), intersex, and asexual/aromantic/agender
The A in LGBTQIA+ stands for asexual, aromantic, and agender ... .
One of the most dynamic cultural events of past year was not any of the LGBTQWERTY 're-imaginings' so beloved of Radio 4's fawning arts coverage...
"Just say no! The LGBTQXYZ agenda is aggressively trying to repurpose classic stories and films. How can a godmother be genderless? Satan is a liar!" Trussell posted in 2020 about actor Billy Porter playing a genderless fairy godmother.
The public confusion over acronyms and pronouns goes so far that people ironically label the LGBTQ+ community "alphabet mafia" on social media platforms
That "A" is not for allies[,] [t]hat "A" is for asexuals. [...] Much like bisexuality, asexuality suffers from erasure.
human studies of the effects of altering the prenatal hormonal milieu by the administration of exogenous hormones lend support to a prenatal hormone theory that implicates both androgens and estrogens in the development of gender preference ... it is likely that prenatal hormone variations may be only one among several factors influencing the development of sexual orientation
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: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)To try and separate the LGB from the T, and from women, is political madness. Queers are, like transgender people, gender deviant. We don't conform to traditional heterosexist assumptions of male and female behaviour, in that we have sexual and emotional relationships with the same sex. We should celebrate our discordance with mainstream straight norms. The right to be different is a fundamental human right. The idea that we should conform to straight expectations is demeaning and insulting.