The ATA Chronicle - January/February 2023 - 14

Small Glossary of
LGBTQIA+ Terms
ACE: asexual
AFAB/AMAB: assigned female/male at birth
ARO: aromantic
Cisgender: A term used to describe a person whose
gender identity aligns with those typically associated with
the sex assigned to them at birth.
Gender Dysphoria: Discomfort or distress when the
sex assigned at birth differs from your gender identity.
Gender Identity: The gender you identify with, male,
female, or non-binary.
Graysexual: Having limited sexual attraction-can
vary with respect to time or intensity.
Neopronouns: Pronouns that are being incorporated
into the language to refer to newly recognized identities,
much like the honorific " Ms. " was adapted in the1970s
for a new reality.
Non-binary: Someone who doesn't identify solely as
male or female.
Polyamorous: Interested in intimate-physical or
emotional-relationships with multiple people.
Stealth: Flying under the radar in terms of being identified.
This could involve doing
nothing, wearing certain
clothes and/or accessories
or makeup, binding, or even
surgery. Everyone is free to
choose how much or how
little they wish to do. The
original definition, then,
of a trans person implied a
transition from one gender
to another. Today, there's
a recognition that gender
dysphoria-the discomfort
or distress a person feels
due to a mismatch between
their biological sex and
their gender identity-can
vary from person to person
from practically nothing
14 The ATA Chronicle | January/February 2023
to a debilitating state.
Accordingly, the definition
of the word " trans " is much
more nuanced as well:
someone who's gender
identity differs from the sex
they were assigned at birth.
Young people in ever
greater numbers are starting
to recognize that gender is
a much more fluid concept
than the binary system
most of us were taught.
Many young people who
now identify as trans simply
don't fit into the past binary
norm. In the past, someone
assigned male at birth
(AMAB) who identified as
female might transition fully
from one to the other. Such
a person would be defined
as trans and binary. Today,
many young people identify
as non-binary (i.e., either not
conforming to either male
or female, a combination of
male and female, or simply
not within that binary
structure at all).
In today's more-expansive
world, a person can be AFAB
(assigned female at birth)
and non-binary. They still
fit into the trans category
because they don't identify
as the gender they were
assigned at birth. But in
this case, they may also
not identify as male, thus
trans and non-binary (NB).
As you can see, there are
myriad permutations of this
identity and you would need
to ask to know how someone
identifies. It's not obvious by
someone's appearance.
Since many trans and
NB people also choose to
use neopronouns to reflect
their identity, it's much
more common to introduce
oneself with one's name
and pronouns and then ask
others what their names and
pronouns are. The intention
is not to put the onus on
trans or NB people to have to
single themselves out.
Similarly, people are
much more open about their
sexuality than in the past.
Therefore, more people
identify as polyamorous,
ACE/ARO, or even graysexual.
There are numerous identities
in this realm as well.
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The ATA Chronicle - January/February 2023

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