Gender is a complicated issue that people often try to uncomplicated. However simplifying the issue is not the answer. Society believes we exists in a binary: there is male and there is female. But this is not the always the case. The majority of people are cisgender, which oxford dictionaries defines as ‘someone whose sense of personal identity corresponds with the gender assigned to them at birth’. Transgendered individuals, on the other hand, ‘whose identities do not correspond with the gender assigned to them at birth’. This disconnect can cause distress when that identity is not affirmed from friends, family, or wider society.
It is important to note that sex is not equal to gender and that the terms can not be used interchangeably.
What is a non-binary gender?
A non-binary gender can be defined as any gender that is not exclusively male or female. That is, someone who is both male and female (bigender, androgyne), neither male or female (agender, neutrois), moving between two or more genders (genderfluid), having an overlap of genders or sex (demigender, intersex), or otherwise other-gendered (genderqueer, non-binary).
It is important to note that non-binary genders may not have a connection with physical sex.
How does sex differ from gender?
Sex refers to ones assigned-at-birth sex. That is, biological characteristics such as sex chromosomes or physical appearance. Generally babies are assigned male, female, or in rare cases intersex (features from multiple sexes).
Gender refers to the attitudes, behaviours and cultural expectations that society associates with a particular biological sex. Behaviour and physical presentation that conforms (or does not conform) to these cultural expectations is known as gender expression.
What about pronouns?
In its most basic form a pronoun takes the place of a proper noun; in this case, a name. Most people are comfortable with the pronouns they are assigned-at-birth (she/her, he/him) but for a section of the population these pronouns feel wrong. Sometimes it’s as simple as switching from ‘her’ to ‘him’, for example, but for some non-binary individuals these pronouns feel wrong, just as much as being viewed as their assigned-at-birth gender does. Luckily there already exists a gender neutral pronoun in the English language, ‘they/them’. The non-binary community has also collaborated to create some new gender neutral pronouns such as ‘Xe/Xem’ or ‘Ze/Hir’.
It is important to use someone’s correct pronouns. These pronouns are designed to make non-binary individuals more comfortable with their identity and as an ally you can help affirm that identity by respecting their gender identity and pronoun choice.