EXAM 2: Sex, gender, sexuality

How many people in the US identify as transgender? 

1.6 million 

Agender

Identifying as having no gender, often erased in U.S. culture

Non-binary

Not exclusively male or female; may be both, neither, or outside the binary.

Gender non-conforming (GNC)

Gender expression (clothing/hair/mannerisms) do not match traditional expectations

Gender fluid

Gender shifts or changes over time or by context

Demi-identities

Identify partially with a gender but not fully

Bigender

Identify as two genders, either simultaneously or shifting between them

Sexuality

Refers to sexual/romantic attraction and behavior

Gender

Refers to identity, role, expression

How are sexuality and gender identity socially constructed?

Reinforced by media, laws, and institutions (legal restrictions, media erasure, workplace discrimination, violence, social stigma) 

How many gender identities are there today?

72 different gender identities are recognized today

Medical/psychiatric institutions and gender/sexuality in 19th and 20th century

• Non-cisgender individuals were often described as “inverts” or “deviants” and labeled pathological.

• There was legal criminalization for cross-dressing and gender nonconformity

• People often had to express themselves in secrecy 

Who is Christine Jorgensen? 

One of the first trans women to gain widespread public attention 

How did WW2 change sexuality?

Created opportunities for same-sex relationships due to gender separation, led to growth of queer communities and increased policing afterward

Obergefell v. Hodges (2015)

Legalized same-sex marriage nationwide, establishing marriage equality as a constitutional right

Bowers v. Hardwick (1986)

Upheld criminalization of same-sex acts

Lawrence v. Texas (2003)

Overturned Bowers, affirming sexual privacy

How did HIV/AIDS crisis influence activism and visibility

Exposed government inaction, led to activism, new sex ed programs, and increased empathy

Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy (DADT) (1993)

Banned openly gay people from military service

Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) (1996)

Defined federal marriage as between one man and woman, denying federal recognition of gay marriages and allowing states not to recognize other states’ same-sex marriage

Amount of transgender people reporting attempted suicide

40%

Amount of transgender youth who’ve seriously considered suicide in the past year

45%

Gender affirming care laws

Legal in all states for adults, over 25 states have restricted or banned some form of care for minors 

Significant barriers faced by queer community

Healthcare barriers, mental health disparities, workplace discrimination, violence, social stigma and exclusion, family rejection

When were same-sex couples able to adopt children? 

After Obergefell v. Hodges (2015) 

Are there differences in outcomes between children raised by gay parents vs. heterosexual?

No, they show equal emotional, academic, and social outcomes

Pansexual

Attraction to people regardless of gender

Aromatic

Little or no romantic attraction to others

Demisexual

Sexual attraction only after forming a strong emotional bond

Polyamorous

Desire for multiple consensual romantic or sexual relationships

Asexual

Little or no sexual attraction to others

DSM-I (1952)

Homosexuality listed as a sociopathic personality disturbance

DSM (1973)

Homosexuality removed, marking a shift toward depathologization

What were the Stonewall Riots in New York city?

1969 uprising that ignited the modern LGBTQ+ rights movement

What was the first state to repeal its criminalization of same-sex sexual acts?

Illinois in 1961