Human Sexuality
Chances are a lot of people have struggled to support those who question their sexual identity or don’t fit neatly into social expectations of what it means to be a man or a woman. Often times there lies confusion about the nature of gender, sex and sexual orientation. When people don’t understand the complexity of these concepts, LGBTI people must navigate these and other challenging situations by themselves.
Sadly it has become a recurrence to hear stories of people committing suicide because they are bombarded with verbal or physical abuse about their perceived sexual orientation or gender identity. A significant barrier to creating fully inclusive communities is the presumption that sex, gender and sexual orientation fit neatly into a binary model. However, if we truly want to be inclusive, we need to look beyond binaries to create practices that include communities’ diverse representation of biological sex, gender identity, gender expression and sexual orientation.
Biological Sex
Sex refers to a person’s anatomy, physical attributes...
Gender Identity
Gender identity is an individual’s deeply held...
Sexual Orientation
Sexual orientation is about our physical...
Sexual Practices
Sexual practice or sexual behavior is the manner...
Binary notions of gender, biology and sexual orientation exclude a large amount of human diversity. This diversity can be better understood by using spectrum-based models. Spectra make room for anyone whose experiences do not narrowly fit into binary choices such as man/woman, feminine/masculine or straight/gay.
Gender-expansive and gender-queer are two of many terms used by people to describe themselves as somewhere on a gender spectrum—outside of the either/or choices relating to sex and gender.
A spectrum model not only makes room for people who are gender-expansive but for those who are perceived to be more typical as well. A spectrum provides an avenue to a deeper understanding of the separate yet interrelated concepts of biological sex, gender identity, gender expression and sexual orientation.
