The Supreme Court has finally done away with Section 377 and India as a country is rejoicing! In a bid to celebrate this huge step for us, I sat down to put together the definitions of a few words I come across often and what they really mean in the LGBTQ community. Before you dive into the hardcore stuff, here are some basic terms:
Sex – Decided on the biological basis of the reproductive organ you are born with.
Gender – Depends on the gender you identify with culturally or socially.
And here are a few others you should definitely know about!
1. Homosexual
2. Gay
3. Lesbian
4. Heterosexual
Basically a ‘straight’ person.
5. Bisexual
6. Pansexual
Pansexuals are attracted to transgenders, homosexuals, straight people, etc regardless of the other person’s gender identity.
7. Bicurious
A person who is interested in exploring a sexual relationship with a person of the same sex but hasn’t decided if he/she is bisexual yet.
8. Polysexual
Unlike Pansexuals, Polysexuals have limits as to the gender identities they are sexually attracted to.
9. Androsexual
A person who is attracted to men. It could include transgenders, homosexual men, straight women and other gender identities.
10. Gynosexual
A person who is attracted to women. It could include transgenders, homosexual women, straight men and other gender identities.
11. Asexual
12. Demisexual
13. Polyamorous
Many couples actually enjoy ‘open’ relationships with more than a single partner. Consent plays a key role in this kind of a relationship.
14. Transgender
A man who identifies as a woman or a woman who identifies as a man, regardless of which gender they are sexually attracted to.
15. Transsexual
A trans person who has successfully transitioned from their birth-sex to the sex they want to belong to.
16. Intersex
You might be born with a female body form but your sexual organs do not correspond.
17. Queer
Includes any and everyone who is not straight. It could be homosexuals, bisexuals, transgenders and genderqueer people in general.
18. Ally
Stay woke, ladies!
