Q: What is the gender binary?
A: A societal system that requires everyone to be raised and treated as a girl or boy. This treatment is dependent on the sex they are assigned at birth. This sex affects the way these individuals are communicated with, what education they receive, what jobs are available, how they are expected to behave, etc. In a gender binary, your sex = your gender.
Our society operates on a gender binary, but in reality...
Gender identity is a spectrum. An individual's identity, expression, or feelings about their gender may change from day to day.
And that's okay!
A: A societal system that requires everyone to be raised and treated as a girl or boy. This treatment is dependent on the sex they are assigned at birth. This sex affects the way these individuals are communicated with, what education they receive, what jobs are available, how they are expected to behave, etc. In a gender binary, your sex = your gender.
Our society operates on a gender binary, but in reality...
Gender identity is a spectrum. An individual's identity, expression, or feelings about their gender may change from day to day.
And that's okay!
Q: What's the big deal?
A: We live in a world that is becoming increasingly open to non-binary expressions of gender, but equality has not yet been achieved. The first step to fighting gender inequality is to understand it and to be respectful of all identities and expressions.
Some terms to be familiar with...
Gender expression: the way that an individual displays their gender. This may be through hair, clothes, makeup, etc.
Gender identity: a person's internal, deeply felt, sense of where they belong on the spectrum
Transgender: people whose gender identify, expression, or behavior is different from those typically associated with their sex at birth.
Genderqueer: a term used by some individuals who identify as neither entirely male or entirely female
Preferred gender pronouns (PGPs): the gender-specific pronouns an individual identifites with (i.e. he/him, she/her, they/them, etc.)
When in doubt, ask for a person's preferred terms/pronouns, etc.
A: We live in a world that is becoming increasingly open to non-binary expressions of gender, but equality has not yet been achieved. The first step to fighting gender inequality is to understand it and to be respectful of all identities and expressions.
Some terms to be familiar with...
Gender expression: the way that an individual displays their gender. This may be through hair, clothes, makeup, etc.
Gender identity: a person's internal, deeply felt, sense of where they belong on the spectrum
Transgender: people whose gender identify, expression, or behavior is different from those typically associated with their sex at birth.
Genderqueer: a term used by some individuals who identify as neither entirely male or entirely female
Preferred gender pronouns (PGPs): the gender-specific pronouns an individual identifites with (i.e. he/him, she/her, they/them, etc.)
When in doubt, ask for a person's preferred terms/pronouns, etc.