LGBTQ: Gender & Sexuality Resources: Gender Identity Resources

Understanding gender, sex & sexuality.

Learning about gender. How is gender different from sexuality? How does gender exist outside the binary (male & female)? The Gender Unicorn provides a breakdown of the differences between gender identity, gender expression, biological sex, and physical & emotional attraction. 

 [The image above is a purple unicorn with graphics representing the concepts of identity, expression, sex & attraction] 

Explore more. TSER has an interactive Gender Unicorn on their website. Use this tool to find yourself on the gender spectrum-- an exercise that reiterates the concept that we all have a gender and sexual identity! Available in multiple languages.

Gender identity & expression defined.

• Gender Identity: One’s internal sense of being male, female, neither of these, both, or another gender(s). Everyone has a gender identity, including you. For transgender people, their sex assigned at birth and their own internal sense of gender identity are not the same. Female, woman, and girl and male, man, and boy are also NOT necessarily linked to each other but are just six common gender identities.
• Gender Expression/Presentation: The physical manifestation of one’s gender identity through clothing, hairstyle, voice, body shape, etc. Most transgender people seek to make their gender expression (how they look) match their gender identity (who they are), rather than their sex assigned at birth.
• Sex Assigned at Birth: The assignment and classification of people as male, female, intersex, or another sex based on a combination of anatomy, hormones, chromosomes. It is important we don’t simply use “sex” because of the vagueness of the definition of sex and its place in transphobia.
• Sexually Attracted To: Sexual Orientation. It is important to note that sexual and romantic/emotional attraction can be from a variety of factors including but not limited to gender identity, gender expression/presentation, and sex assigned at birth.
• Romantically/Emotionally Attracted To: Romantic/emotional orientation. It is important to note that sexual and romantic/emotional attraction can be from a variety of factors including but not limited to gender identity, gender expression/presentation, and sex assigned at birth.

Let's talk about pronouns.

Not everyone identifies with, nor uses, binary pronouns (she/her/hers, he/him/his). When addressing someone whose pronouns you don't know, it's always good practice to default to gender-neutral language (they/them/thiers). Or if you know their name-- use it until you know more about their pronouns.

Some example pronoun usage:

"Madison got a new sweater, they look great in the color green, don't they? I think green is their favorite color!"

"The person on stage has a wonderful singing voice; I wonder if they take singing lessons? I will ask them after the show."

Practice. It's totally possible to become awesome at incorporating non-binary and/or gender-neutral pronouns into your daily vocab-- and doing so is an affirming act of support for people who identify as such. A simple way to practice is to use a persons chosen pronouns in day-to-day conversation (whether or not they are present). 

Want more practice? You can also use online learning games, like the Pronouns Practice App-- a tool from Minus 18, a network for LGBT youth in Australia.