LGBTQ+ – definitions

LGBT+ – lesbians, gays, bisexuals, transgenders and all other people not identifying with a heterosexual orientation. The abbreviation LGBTQ is also used, in which Q stands for queer, i.e., people who do not wish to specify their orientation. Nowadays, the word ‘Queer’ is also used as a synonym to describe the LGBT+ community.

Coming out – it refers to a situation in which an LGBT+ person talks openly about their psychosexual orientation for the first time. It doesn’t have to be a singular event – it’s one thing to tell loved ones about it, and another to talk about it at university or work. Coming out must not be forced. A person must not be outed without their consent.

Heteronormativity – it is a normative belief that the heterosexual orientation is the only one or the ideal, mature form – to the exclusion of all others. It manifests itself in the belief that every person encountered is heterosexual and cisgendered, and that everyone performs the gender roles traditionally assigned to men and women. Other sexual identities are perceived as deviant and marginal.

Gender identity – it signifies which gender you identify with. This is another issue that most do not think about because they identify with their assigned sex. “It’s a girl!” “It’s a boy!” – the assignment of a baby’s gender shortly after birth raises no doubts. It is a deep-rooted inner sense of belonging to social gender, which may or may not correspond to the sex assigned at birth. Gender identity reflects a personal perception of the body (which may include freely understood changes in appearance and body function carried out medically or in other ways) and how gender is expressed using clothes, speech or gestures. There are people who feel a deep incompatibility between how
they identify themselves and the sex they were assigned at birth. They often want to have their gender recognised so that the one they identify with corresponds to the sex they have been assigned. This may involve changing their name, dress and personal documentation. Sometimes it includes surgery and hormone therapy. Gender recognition and correction are not a whim or trend; quite the contrary – they stem from a very strong and pressing need.

Trans* people/Transgender people – individuals who do not identify with the sex assigned at birth.

Cisgender people – individuals who identify with the sex assigned at birth.

Non-binary people – individuals who identify neither as a woman nor as a man. They may be somewhere on the spectrum between femininity and masculinity, reject the concepts of gender altogether or combine them.

Preferred pronouns – the answer to the question “how should I address you?”. In the English language, if you are not sure how a person would like to be addressed and talked about – just say ‘they’. In the case of Polish, the easiest way is to simply ask politely. For example, you can ask everyone to introduce themselves by name, surname – and also by the preferred pronoun in situations such as the first class of the semester.