Glossary of Queer Terms

This post comes as a request. It is an attempt to educate people about queer theory. Please add other definitions and terms in the comments if you find any lacking. Many of these words were new to me when I went to QC.

Words in green (a happy non-gender specific colour) relate to sexuality and gender identities. These is taken from the glossary of the "welcome book" I received @ QC this year:

Ally: In its verb form, ally means to unite or form a connection between. In the gender community, allies are all those wonderful folks who have attempted to educate themselves about gender issues, who work to reduce transphobia in themselves, families and communities, and who try their best to support Transpeople in the political, social and cultural arenas.

Ambiguous genitalia: Many intersex activists contest the use of this phrase to describe their bodies because the ambiguity is with society's definition of male and female rather than their bodies.

Asexual: Lacking interest in or desire for sex. (http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/asexuality)

Assigned Sex of Gender: The sex/gender one is considered to be at birth based on a cursory examination of external genitalia

Bi-Gendered An individual who feels that they have both a "male" and "female" side to their personalities.

Biphobia: The fear, hatred or intolerance of bisexual men and women.

Bisexual: A person who is attracted to people regardless of gender (a person does not have to have a relationship to be bisexual)

Closeted/In the Closet: Hiding one's sexual orientation

Coming Out: The process by which lesbians, gay men and bisexuals recognize, acknowledge, accept and typically appreciate their sexual identities.

Cross-dresser: an individual who dresses in clothing that is culturally associated with members of the "other" sex. Most cross-dressers are heterosexual and conduct their cross-dressing on a part-time basis. Cross-dressers cross-dress for a variety of reasons, including pleasure, a relief from stress and desire to express "opposite" sex feelings to the larger society. cross-dressing might also be termed gender non-conforming behaviour.

Discrimination: Differential treatment that favours one individual over another based on prejudice

Drag/In Drag: Wearing clothes considered appropriate for someone of another gender. Originally used in Shakespeare's Globe Theatre to mean Dressed As Girl (or Dress Resembling A Girl) referring to male actors who played female roles.

Drag King: A biological female who dresses in "masculine" or male-designated clothing; a female-to-male cross-dresser. Drag Kings often identify as lesbians and many cross-dress for pay and entertainment purposes in GLBT or straight nightclubs. A drag King's cross-dressing is usually on a part-time basis.

Drag Queen: A biological male, usually gay-identified, who wears female-designated or "feminine" clothing. Many drag queens may perform in bars by singing, dancing or lip-synching, often for tips or pay. A drag-queen's cross-dressing is usually on a part-time basis. some prefer the term of "Female Impersonator"

Dyke: a barrier constructed to control or confine water; also: slang, sometimes offensive (depending on who's using it) word for lesbian.

FAGGOT: A bundle of twigs, sticks, or branches bound together.
This is a particularly nasty word given it's historical significance.
In England, when people were burnt alive, the bodies of homosexual men were used as "faggots" to burn women who were charged with sexual/sexuality related 'crimes'.
During the Spanish inquisitions homosexual men were made to go and collect the faggots which were then used to burn them.
The homophobic 'F' word is at least as bad if not worse than the racist 'N' word. (This is my own deffinition, provided on request)

FTM: an acronym which stand for Female to Male. This term reflects the direction of gender transition. Some prefer the term MTM (male-to-male) to underscore the fact that though they were biologically female, they never had a female gender-identity.

GLBT: An acronym, which stands for "Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender" Other versions may add Q for Queer or Questioning, "I" for Intersex, and "A" for Allied. Some may prefer to list the acronym as TBLG to place Transpeople in position of importance and to rectify the way trans has historically been omitted, devalued or excluded.

Gender: A complicated set of socio-cultural practices whereby human bodies are transformed into "men" and "women." Gender Identity refers to an individual's self-identification as a man, woman, transgender or other identity category. Many tomes have been written on gender, and there are countless definitions But most contemporary definitions stress how gender is socially and culturally produced and constructed, as opposed to being fixed static coherent essence. Gender Bender: An individual who brazenly and flamboyantly flaunts society's gender conventions by mixing elements of "masculinity" and "femininity." The gender bender is often an enigma to the uninitiated viewer, who struggles to comprehend sartorial codes, which challenge gender bipolarity. Boy George, a popular culture icon, was often referred to as a gender bender.

Gender Dysphoria: A term of the psychiatric establishment which refers to a radical incongruence between an individual's birth sex and their gender identity. A "gender dysphoric" feels an irrevocable disconnect between their physical bodies and their mental sense of gender. Many in the trans community find this term offensive or insulting as it often pathologies the transgender individuals due to its association with the Diagnostic and Statistic Manual (DSM)

Gender Identity: Refers to an individual's innate sense of self as a man, woman, transgender or other gender category. Gender identity may change over time and may not accord to dichotomous gender categories.

Gender Illusionist: An individual who cross-dresses in a glamorous manner, in order to perform for money in a night club or other entertainment venue.

Genderqueer: A term which refers to individuals or groups who "queer" or problematize the hegemonic notions of sex, gender and desire in a given society. Genderqueers possess identities, which fall outside of the widely accepted sexual binary. Genderqueer may also refer to people who identify as both transgender AND queer, i.e. individuals who challenge both gender and sexuality regimes and see gender identity and sexual orientation as overlapping and interconnected.

Gender Outlaw: A term popularized by trans activists such as Kate Bornstein and Leslie Feinberg, a gender outlaw refers to an individual who transgresses or violates the "law" of gender (i.e.: one who challenges the rigidly enforced gender roles) in a transphobic, heterosexist and patriarchal society.

Gender Phobia: Hatred and fear of differing gender identities and expressions.

Gender Role: The clothing, characteristics, traits and behaviours of an individual which are culturally associated with masculinity and/or femininity.

Gender Transition: The period of time in which a person begins to live in a gender role which is in accordance with their internal gender identity. This could include, for instance, the period of time when a person assigned "female" at birth who has a male gender identity begins to live "in role" by dressing as a man, taking testosterone therapy or getting surgery.

Gender Variant: A term that refers to individuals who stray from socially-accepted gender roles in a given culture. May be used in tandem with other groups, such as gender-variant gay men and lesbians.

Hermaphrodite: An old medical term describing intersex people. Many intersex activists reject this word due to the stigmatization arising from its mythical roots and the abuse that medical professionals inflicted on them under this label. Some intersex people use this word as a "pride word" like "queer" and "dyke," but non-intersex people should avoid this term.

Hetrosexism: The societal/cultural, institutional and individual beliefs and practices that privilege heterosexuals and subordinate and denigrate LGB people. The critical element that differentiates hetrosexism (or any other "ism") from prejudice and discrimination is the use of institutional power and authority to support prejudices and enforce discriminatory behaviours in systematic ways with far reaching outcomes and effects.

Heterosexual ally: Heterosexual people who confront hetrosexism in themselves and others out of self-interest, a concern for the well-being of lesbians, gay men and bisexuals, and a belief that hetrosexism is a social injustice.

Heterosexual Privilege: The benefits and advantages that heterosexuals receive in a heterosexist culture. Also, the benefits that lesbians, gay men and bisexuals receive as a result of claiming a heterosexual identity and denying their lesbian, gay or bisexual identity.

Homophobe: One who fears homosexuals and homosexuality (this is a literal definition); however this term is generally applied to anyone who dislikes LGBTIQ people, who uses and derogatory sexuality or gender based terms, who feels that LGBTI people want "special rights" and not "equal rights."

Homophobia: The fear, hatred or intolerance of people who identify or are perceived as lesbian or gay men, including the fear of being seen as lesbian or gay yourself. Homophobic behaviour can range from telling jokes about lesbians and gay men, to verbal abuse, to acts of physical violence. (Some people choose not to use the word "Homophobia," preferring instead to include anti-GLBT attitudes and behaviours in how they define "hetrosexism.")

Intersex: Formally termed hermaphrodites, Intersex people are born with the condition of having physical sex markers (genitals, hormones, gonads or chromosomes) that are neither clearly male or female. Intersexed people are sometimes defined as having some combinations of "ambiguous" genitalia. Dr Anne Fausto-Sterling estimates that 1.7% of births are to intersex infants. The Intersex Movement seeks to halt medically unnecessary paediatric surgeries and hormone treatments which attempt to normalize infants into dominant "male" and "female" system. Surgeons often assign the infant as a sex which does not match their gender identity. In addition, many surgeries affect the sexual functioning of intersex adults, which may include causing the inability to receive pleasure or reach orgasm.

Intersex Genital Mutilation: The home-grown version of Female Genital Mutilation. The Intersex Society of North America estimates that about five intersex infants have their genitals cut into in the U.S hospitals every day for cosmetic reasons, a procedure preformed by accredited surgeons and covered by all major insurance plans.

MTF: A male-to-female transsexual, or a transsexual woman. Some transsexuals reject this terminology, arguing that they have always been male or female and are only making that identity visible. Others feel that such language reinforces an either/or gender system.

Oppression: The systematic exploitation of one social group by another for its own benefits. It involves institutional control, ideological domination, and the promulgation of the dominant groups cultured on the oppressed. Oppression = Prejudice + Power (the "isms")

Outing: when someone discloses information about another’s sexual orientation or gender identity without their knowledge and/or consent.

Pass: Gendered passing refers to an individual's ability to be regarded by others in accordance with one's preferred gender role in a socio-cultural context. For instance a biological male who has a female gender identity and lives in a female gender role is able to "pass" as a woman to the people who surround her. Passing generally refers to the effort made by members of subordinate groups to be accepted as members of dominant groups, e.g. light skinned black people being perceived as whites, or traditionally-gendered gay men being perceived as heterosexuals.

Prejudice: A set of negative beliefs or feelings that are generalized to apply to a whole group of people and any member of that group. Anyone can be prejudiced towards another individual or group.

Pride (or Rainbow) Flag: The colours red, orange, yellow, green, blue and purple are used to symbolize equality and diversity among all people. Sometimes with a black stripe along the bottom in honour and memoriam of those who have died of AIDS.

Queer: is a terms which has been reclaimed by the GLBTAIQ community to refer to people who transgress culturally imposed norms of heterosexuality and gender traditionalism. Queer might be broadly defined as resistance to regimes of the "normal." Although still often an abusive epithet when used by bigoted heterosexuals, many queer-identified people have taken back the word to use it as a symbol of pride and affirmation of difference and diversity.

Racism: The societal/ cultural, institutional and individual beliefs and practices that privilege white people and subordinate and denigrate people of colour.

Sex: Sperate from gender, this term refers to the cluster of biological, chromosomal, and anatomical features associated with maleness and femaleness in the human body. Sexual dimorphism is often thought to be a concrete reality, whereas in reality the existence of Intersex point to a multiplicity of sexes in the human population. Sex is often used synonymously with gender in this culture. Although the two terms are related, they should be defined separately to differentiate the biological ("sex") from the socio-cultural ("gender")

Sex Reassignment Surgery (SRS): The term given to an operation and procedure which physically transforms the genitals using plastic surgery, of called a "sex change operation" in popular culture. MTF SRS is called a 'vaginoplasty' while FTM SRS is termed either a genitoplasty or a phalloplasty. GRS (Gender Reassignment Surgery)is coming to be a preferred term among many in the TG community.

Sexism: The societal/cultural, institutional, and individual beliefs and practices that privilege men and subordinate and denigrate women.

Sexual Prejudice: a more comprehensive term than "homophobia", "transphobia" or "hetrosexism." a term which covers all of these.

Sexuality: An imprecise word which is often use in tandem with other social categories, as an: race, gender and sexuality. Sexuality is a broad term which refers to a cluster of behaviours, practices and identities in the social world.

Sexual Orientation: This term refers to gender(s) which a person is emotionally, physically, romantically and erotically attracted to. Examples of sexual orientation may include homosexual, bisexual, heterosexual and asexual. Trans and gender-variant people may identify with any sexual orientation, and their sexual orientation may or may not change before, during or after gender-transition.

Sister-girl: The acceptance and visibility of sistergirls is often considered far greater than gay men or lesbians in aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. Sistergirls are biological men who are effeminate or live their lives as women. Communities will often accept and recognise sister girls as women. Sistergirls undertake the roles and responsibilities of women having relationships with straight men. However sistergirls do not generally identify as transgender.

Stealth: Also termed “wood working,” this term refers to (usually) post-operative transsexuals who blend into the dominant society, erasing their transsexual past.

Stonewall: On June 28th 1969, New York City Police attempted a routine raid on the Stonewall Inn, a working-class gay and lesbian bar in New York’s Greenwich Village. Unexpectedly, the patrons resisted, and the incident escalated into a riot that continued for several days. Most people look to the event (and similar events in San Francisco and other major cities in the days and weeks that followed) as the beginning of the American Gay Liberation Movement and other “pride” movements around the world. It is too often forgotten that the people on the frontline of the resistance were transgender women, drag queens and lesbians.

Trans: An umbrella term which refers to cross-dressers, transgenderists, transsexuals and others who are permanently or periodically dis-identified with the sex they were assigned at birth. Trans is preferable to “transgender” to some in the community because it does not minimize the experiential specificities of transsexuals.

Trans-Friendly: Sometimes abbreviated as simply “T-friendly,” trans-friendly means an organization or institution which is open, affirming and accepting of transpeople and their social, political and cultural needs.

Transgender: A range of behaviours, expressions and identifications which challenge the pervasive bipolar gender system in a given culture. This, like trans, is an umbrella term which includes a vast array of differing identity categories such as transsexual, drag queen, drag king, cross-dresser, transgenderist, bi-gendered and a myriad of other identities.

Transgendered Lesbian: An individual, regardless of biological sex, who identifies as both transgendered and lesbian. This could include MTF transgenders who are sexually attracted to women or to biological females who identify as lesbians and who “pass” as men or who identify to some degree with masculinity or with “butch.” Sometimes referred to as “tranbians” or “trykes”

Transphobia: The irrational fear and hatred of all those individuals who transgress, violate or blur the dominant gender categories in a given society. Transphobic attitudes lead to massive discrimination, violence and oppression against the trans, drag and intersex communities.

Transsexual (TS): An individual who strongly dis-identifies with their birth sex and wishes to utilize hormones and sex reassignment surgery (or gender confirmation surgery) as a way to align their physical body with their internal gender identity. Some persons prefer the alternate spelling of transsexual (one s instead of 2) A TS can be MTF of FTM. He or she can also be pre-op, post-op or non-op.

Transvestite: An older term, synonymous with the more politically correct term cross-dresser, which refers to individuals who have an internal drive to wear clothing associated with a gender other than the one which they were assigned at birth. Transvestite has fallen out of favour due to its psychiatric, clinical and fetishistic connotations.

Triangle: The upside down triangle is a symbol used by the GLBTAIQ community as one of pride, despite its use by Hitler during the holocaust. Women accused of being “antisocial (not specifically lesbian) were forced to wear an inverted black triangle, while gay men were forced to wear an inverted pink triangle.

True hermaphrodite and Male-or Female-Pseudo-Hermaphrodite: Medical taxonomy of intersex people, also known as “herm, merm and ferm” Aside from the fact that these distinctions are virtually meaningless in the lives of intersex people, the terms imply authenticity and ranking of intersex people and thus are disempowering.

Two Spirit: A native American/ First Nation term for people who blend the masculine and the feminine. It is commonly used to describe individuals who historically crossed gender boundaries and were accepted by Native American/First Nation cultures (preferred term to “berache”). It is also often used by contemporary GLBT Native American and First Nation people to describe themselves.