The time has come for Asexuals/Intersexuals to be represented...

[hippie4lyfe]

*stands on soapbox*

I think gays, lesbians, bisexuals, and transgender people need to be more inclusive of others as well. We often leave out people who are Asexual and people who are Intersexual. 1% of the population is purported to be Asexual and 1 out of 2,000 people are Intersexual. Why aren't they at the pride parades? Why aren't LGBT sites more inclusive of these minorities?

Resources:
http://www.asexuality.org

http://www.isna.org/

http://www.intersexualite.org/oii-usa-index.html

[Alecto]

A lot of times, people move away from the alphabet soup (GLBTQQA etc; I'm sure I've even left some fairly common ones out of that) and towards things like "pride alliance" etc so that they can be more included. I don't know / think that most groups are really reaching out to those groups mentioned, but I would like to think that they would be welcoming and affirming safe spaces.

[TigerXero]

*Stands on soap box too*

We should eliminate ALL bias in society!



Perhaps the reason why there aren't events for asexuals or intersexuals is because they have a much smaller population.

Plus, the Internet provides a way for them to network and form communities without having to meet in the real world! It's kind of like how we hear news about parts of the gay subculture (like historic clubs, etc.) are changing because of the Internet.

Perhaps this is why there are no asexual 'pride' events, so maybe we should turn pride eventings into 'anti-bias' events in order to be inclusive of everyone?

Thoughts?

[hippie4lyfe]

Well it is true that they are a smaller population but I would venture to say that there are likely more asexuals than transgender people, and intersexuals are probably closely numbered with trans people. There are many trans events at pride parades, etc so I am not sure why other smaller minorities haven't been heard.

[RedneckDyke]

What are intersexuals?

Correct me if I'm wrong but I think asexuals are people who aren't sexually attracted to anyone. Or who don't have sex. I don't see the gay community as being intolerant of asexuals, but maybe I just haven't seen any examples.

[RedneckDyke]

Ok, read the info that was linked to in the original post, duh.(-:

Now I know what intersexuals are. I just never heard that term before. I suppose you could say my son is an intersexual because he has Klinefelter's, which is XXY. He doesn't need any special invite to Pride though as he is fabulously gay. (-: He's the only gay one out of our 3 kids. Sigh, you try to raise em right and they end up straight. (-:

[Vanessa White]

I absolutely do not agree that, as a community, we are not embracing of intersexual or asexual persons. I do believe that we can get focused on what it is that we face in terms of oppression and stereotypes, prejudiced and hatred, without necessarily excluding other groups by not naming them specifically. I think what we do in terms of being open to dialogue and information about ALL persons is what keeps us from excluding any person or groups of persons. I agree with Tiger, my dream for the world is to do away with all bias in our world; that it wouldn't matter how many letters that we have in our grouping, it is all inclusive in terms of treating other persons fairly, equally, nonjudgmentally. We have some issues and needs that may be specific to us rather than some other groups that are oppressed, but I always think it is about keeping ourselves informed and open.

Make sense?

[hippie4lyfe]

I mostly do not see asexuality listed as a possible orientation on most dating sites or intersexual listed for gender on most sites.

The shame is that intersexuals usually are mutilated from a young age, the doctors pressure the family to choose either male or female. This leads to lots of depression, and later on transgender feelings among intersex youth. Studies show intersex youth should just be left alone, they can lead healthy and happy lives being a bit of both sex, and ultimately if they choose to undergo surgery that is their perogative.

[Alecto]

Some people consider intersex to fall under an umbrella of "transgender", which might be why it's not usually a seperate listing. Also, there's a difference between "sex" and "gender", so that intersex would describe someone's physical makeup. I would think especially a dating site that would be thoughtful enough to include a trans box would probably be far less interested in the physical, and more interested in gender identity which still tends to fall along lines of "male", "female", "transgender" (which would include "both" and "neither", presumably).

[hippie4lyfe]

Intersexual cannot fall under transgender. Because if you dissect the word transgender it is about "trans" transitioning and appearing different or feeling different from how you were originally. Intersexual people are not transgender, some go onto become transgender due to botched surgeries or they later on in life feel more comfortable with one gender or the other.

[Gregory_de_Bois]

I think asexuals are pressured the most during adolescence. People expect them to conform to liking the opposite sex. They don't like sex. They are accused of being gay. They are oppressed. And that's the story. I think their oppression might be a little more subtle, but it is still there.

[TigerXero]

Actually, 'transgender' aren't really transgender (I'm going to make this argument from the point of Elis Elrod (sp check), who's a 'transgender' pastor within the Southern Baptist Ministry {curious how that happened}). They've always identified as one gender and thus haven't ever transitioned from one gender to another, and they haven't changed their biological chromosomal sex (of which there is a variety of possibilities), so they're not really transexuals either, {now I'm talking} so what do they call themselves? The gender varient community? The GID (Gender Idenity Disorder) community? Any surgery and treatments they may undergo to help transition IS a good thing because it helps them overcome their identity crisis which often leads to depression and suicide among other things, but what about how they describe themselves?

I think the problem with the term transgender is that it's what is universally used to describe such people but it doesn't really fit them, and it's used for an assortment of other things. Wordign is important, too, because it's what those who oppose the gender varient can use against them. (I forget the examples for this).

I'm not an expert on any of this, and I'm kind of just thinking out loud, so this is just sort of food for thought I guess.

[Alecto]

The word "transgender", as I've seen it used, is NOT just a breakdown of latin roots. The hrc list of definitions (used for safezone training etc) describes it as an umbrella term for folks who don't fit traditional gender norms, or for whom "male" or "female" are not wholly accurate descriptions. Covered under this are the GID folks, who may be male bodied but identify as female (hence, not wholly accurate), people who may feel that "male" as described by society doesn't cover all of their gender identity (folks who oppose some of the gendertyping OF what "male" or "female" is), and may extend to drag queens etc. as well. It's a sort of deliberately vague word because it's meant as an umbrella term in today's language. Failing the use of this word for that idea, the idea still exists.

And, as mentioned, if there's a "gender" box, then Intersex really doesn't necessarily apply. If one gender identifies as "male", then there's a box for "male".