LGBTQ 101 Part One
LGBTQ
101: an Introduction to the LGBTQ Community
Hello everyone, welcome to “LGBTQ 101.”
My name is Esperanza Habla and I will be your facilitator for today’s seminar.
The goal of today’s seminar is to give you an introduction to the LGBTQ
community, define the Three Orientations, share terms and vocabulary, and to
discuss larger issues that affect the LGBTQ community.
Please note that this seminar is quite literally an introduction. I cannot possibly discuss the vastness and richness of the entire LGBTQ community with one seminar. Still, for those who are not familiar with terms and concepts within the LGBTQ community, this seminar provides quite useful information.
Please note that this seminar is quite literally an introduction. I cannot possibly discuss the vastness and richness of the entire LGBTQ community with one seminar. Still, for those who are not familiar with terms and concepts within the LGBTQ community, this seminar provides quite useful information.
Before I begin, I want to take a moment to establish a
couple of ground rules of understanding:
1. My discussion today will not include
religion. I am not here to debate, to argue, to question or to chastise
anyone’s faith or system of beliefs. The discussion of the LGBTQ community and equal rights can be discussed in a secular context. Religion has no place in this conversation. I ask that you listen with an open mind, and maintain a secular perspective.
2. I will not be using the terms “choice” or
“lifestyle.” Being who you are, what you are, is not a choice or a lifestyle. People do not choose-nor can they change-their orientations.
Part
One: the Three Orientations
To begin, I’d like to focus on the
t-shirt I’m wearing today. I have a picture of it here, in case the smaller
words are too difficult to read:
"Cis-Het-Demi" by Esperanza Habla
These are what are known as orientations.
There are the Three Orientations:
1. Gender
Orientation: Male-Female
2. Romantic
Orientation
3. Sexual
Orientation
Every human being on the planet Earth has
these three orientations. Everyone has a gender orientation, a romantic orientation,
and a sexual orientation. Some will have more than one orientation within the
same category. To begin, let’s first explore the gender orientation.
I-Gender
Orientation
There is a gender spectrum, from male to
female, and more orientations in between. Here is a simplified spectrum chart
of gender orientation:
"Gender Spectrum" by Esperanza Habla
Shown in the middle of the spectrum chart
are the terms:
·
Genderqueer
·
Gender fluid
·
Non-gender Binary
Those who identify as gender queer, gender
fluid or non-gender binary do not exclusively identify as male or female. They
can feel they are male, female, or somewhere in the middle.
I am female, and identify as female. That
is my gender.
There is another spectrum
found within the gender orientation that deserves special mention:
·
Cisgender (Cis)
·
Transgender (Trans) or Other
"Cis-Trans Spectrum" by Esperanza Habla
Defined by Merriam-Webster Dictionary, a transgender person is:
“…a
person whose gender identity is opposite the sex the person had or was
identified as having at birth.”
In speaking about gender orientations, we
must think about the body and the soul. Our bodies have anatomies that are either
male or female, or somewhere in between. Likewise, our souls have a gender,
male, female, or somewhere in between. In transgender people, the gender of
their soul and the gender of their body does not always match.
Bruce Jenner once remarked:
“I have the soul of a woman.”
Bruce Jenner was born into a male body,
with a female soul. He has since transitioned into Caitlyn Jenner. He is a
transgender female.
Other examples of famous transgender
people include:
Jazz Jennings
Josie
Totah
Janet
Mock
Chas Bono, Laverne Cox, Alexandra
Billings
Conversely, a cisgender person is someone whose personal gender identity
corresponds with their birth sex.
For example, I am female. I was born
female, I identify as a female. My soul is female, my body is female.
Therefore, I am a cisgender female.
To simplify the distinctions,
people are either cisgender or transgender or other. The current statistics are that 99%
of the world population are cisgender, 1% are transgender or other.
"Cisgender/Transgender Graph" by Esperanza Habla
It is important to note that cisgender
and transgender are but two of the many gender orientations that exist. Here are more gender orientations:
To read that transgender and other gender
orientations are only 1% of the population, it might seem like an infinitesimal
number. However there are more in the 1% than you would think. In checking the
world population clock, it stands at 7.6 billion people. 1% of that number is
around 70 million people. To put that in more relatable terms,
1% of the population is:
·
Half of the population of
Russia
·
Just under the population of Turkey
·
Twice the population of
Uganda
·
Ten times the
population of Hong Kong
·
One hundred times
the population of Guyana
“Cisgender Flag” by Esperanza Habla
II-Romantic
Orientation
The second orientation is the romantic
orientation. Who you are romantically attracted to, who you get crushes on, who you fall in love with. This is your romantic orientation.
There are hundreds of romantic orientations, of which I will only define a few:
There are hundreds of romantic orientations, of which I will only define a few:
·
Homo-romantic: people who are romantically attracted
to people of their own gender
·
Hetero-romantic: people who are romantically attracted
to people of the opposite gender
·
Bi-romantic: people who are romantically attracted
to both genders
·
Demi-romantic: people who become romantically
attracted to a specific person, only
after a strong, close, emotional bond is
formed with that person
·
A-romantic: is not romantically attracted to anyone
of either gender
Again, these are but a few of the
hundreds of romantic orientations that exist.
For me, I am romantically attracted to
men. Therefore, I am hetero-romantic, sometimes abbreviated as “het” or “hetero.”
“Hetero
romantic flag” by Esperanza Habla
III-Sexual
Orientation
The third orientation is sexual
orientation. Here are but a few of the thousands of sexual orientations:
·
Homosexual-someone sexually attracted to their same
gender
·
Heterosexual-someone sexually attracted to the
opposite gender
·
Bisexual-someone sexually attracted to both
genders
·
Demisexual-someone who becomes sexually attracted
to a specific person, only after a
strong, close, emotional, loving bond is
formed with a person
·
Asexual-someone who does not experience sexual attraction
· Allosexual-someone who experiences sexual attraction
The sexual orientations on the above list
should look familiar to you-all of them have the same prefix in the word
–“hetero”, “homo”, “bi”, “demi”, “a.”
Again, there are thousands of sexual
orientations that exist. These are but a few.
*It is important to note that a person's sexual orientation is classified by attraction, not by behavior. Many asexuals have sex. Many allosexuals do not. Again, it's not what you do, it's who you're attracted to.
I personally identify as demisexual, which is sometimes
abbreviated as “demi.”
Again, demisexuality is when someone
becomes sexually attracted to a specific person, only after a strong, close,
emotional, loving bond is formed with that person.
The prefix of the word, “demi”, comes
from the French language, meaning “half.”
If one were to imagine a spectrum of
human sexuality, with “sexual”-or “allosexual”-at one end of the spectrum, and
“asexual” at the other, demisexuality would be in the middle of the spectrum.
"Allosexual-Asexual Spectrum" by Esperanza Habla
Demisexuality can be
towards someone of the same gender or opposite gender. Demisexuality can sometimes
be seen with a prefix on the word, either “hetero”, towards the opposite sex,
or “homo”, to the same sex.
The current statistic is that there are
99% sexual-or allosexual-people on the planet, and 1% asexual.
"Sexuality Graph" by Esperanza Habla
In the above graph, demisexuality would
fit into the “asexual” category. The word asexual
is an umbrella term, meaning that many orientations fit into the asexual
category.
In the asexual community, it is common
for a primary attraction to be felt,
and not a secondary attraction.
· A primary attraction is to find someone aesthetically attractive. Seeing a person and
thinking they’re cute, handsome, gorgeous, hot, fill in the blank.
· A secondary attraction is to find someone
sexually attractive.
To provide an example, I have a celebrity
crush on Robert Downey Jr., one of many celebrities I find attractive. This is a primary
attraction. I find him attractive, and more than that, devastatingly handsome.
However, there is no secondary attraction involved.
Like orientations, there are hundreds if
not thousands of types of attraction. The following graphic illustrates this
point (click to enlarge:)
"Demisexual flag"
Putting all four orientations together,
this is how I identify:
Female/Cisgender/Hetero-romantic/Demisexual
"Fem-Cis-Het-Demi" by Esperanza Habla
Identifiers are simply that, how an individual
identifies.
*Important notes:
·
Many in the LGBTQ community do not prefer
to use labels, to not label themselves as one thing or another, to pigeonhole
themselves into an identity.
·
If a person comes out to you, shares
their orientation(s) with you,
believe them. They know themselves better
than you do. If you have questions trying to understand how they identify, ask
questions. Be respectful. But above all, believe the
person that has just shared this information with you.
·
If a person shares their orientation(s)
with you, do not share that information with anyone else. That is their
personal, private information. It is up to them who they share it with,
when and to whom they so choose.
·
It is completely up to each individual to
determine-and label-how they self- identify
·
Never assume you know how someone
identifies unless they tell you
·
When addressing a person, try to not say “sir”
or “ma’am.” You might be wrong in your assumption of their gender, and accidentally
offend the person you are speaking with.
·
When addressing a crowd, steer clear of
greetings such as “Ladies and Gentlemen” or “Boys and Girls.” Many people do
not identify as those terms and could be offended by their usage. Instead, try
inclusive phrases such as “Welcome
everyone…”, or “Can I have everyone’s attention….”
·
Pronouns are an important part of how
some people identify. You may hear someone introduce themselves to you, and
then say, “I prefer the pronouns he/his..” Types of pronouns used are: “he/his”,
“She/her/hers” “They/their/theirs”
Now that we have examined the three
orientations, let’s go ahead and take a break.
When we come back, we’ll get
into the LGBTQ community, symbols, and issues facing the community today.
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