NONBINARY

 

 

According to Stonewall UK – a charity that campaigns for the equality of lesbian, gay, bi and trans people across Britain – non-binary is described as an “umbrella term for people whose gender identity doesn’t sit comfortably with ‘man’ or ‘woman'”. While some non-binary individuals identify as either having a gender which is in-between the two categories ‘man’ and ‘woman’, others can fluctuate between them, or have no gender, either permanently or some of the time. This concept, which suggests there are only two genders, is often referred to as a gender binary, with binary meaning “having two parts”. Therefore, “non-binary” is a term people can use to “describe genders that don’t fall into one of these two categories, male or female”.

Is non-binary different to being transgender?

Transgender is a term used to describe people “whose gender is not the same as, or does not sit comfortably with, the sex they were assigned at birth,” says Stonewall UK.

For example, a transgender man is a term used to describe someone who is assigned female at birth but identifies and lives as a man. Non-binary, on the other hand, refers to someone who does not fit into rigid gender categories and is neither female nor male. While they can identify with aspects of either gender, they can also have an identity outside the binary, which can also change and evolve over time..

How can you be a better ally to non-binary people?  Aside from using the correct pronouns, there are many ways you can support non-binary people.  From educating yourself on the term to being an advocate for non-binary friendly policies and donating to or fundraising for LGBTQ+ charities.

What pronouns are used to describe someone who is non-binary?

Pronouns are the words that take place of a person’s name and some people feel more comfortable using certain pronouns than others. Non-binary people can use a range of pronouns, including ‘he’ and ‘she’. However, they may also prefer to use gender neutral pronouns such as ‘they’ and ‘them’ to reflect that they don’t identify as either male or female. There are also various new pronouns, including xie and xir, zie and zir, and sie and hir.

If a person is non-binary, it is perfectly polite to ask them what pronouns they would like you to use, so as to avoid using the incorrect terms. Non-binary people may wish to transition so that their gender expression more closely reflects their internal identity. Many non-binary people wish to appear androgynous and adopt unisex names, gender-neutral titles such as Mx. And/or gender-neutral pronouns, but others prefer to express themselves in ways which are traditionally seen as masculine or feminine or mix aspects of the two.

Those with non-binary genders can:

Have an androgynous (both masculine and feminine) gender identity, such as androgyne.

Have an identity between male and female, such as intergender.

Have a neutral or unrecognized gender identity, such as agender, neutrois, or most xenogenders.

Have multiple gender identities, such as bigender or pangender.

Have a gender identity which varies over time, known as genderfluid.

Have a weak or partial connection to a gender identity, known as demigender.

Are intersex and identify as intersex, known as amalgagender Have a Galactian Alignment identity, created to describe genders without using binary terms.

Have a culturally specific gender identity which exists only within their or their ancestor’s culture.

Identify as a thirdgender that doesn’t exactly exist only within a specific culture such as Proxvir, Juxera, or Maverique.

 

Nonbinary Flag

In 2014, Kye Rowan designed the nonbinary flag, shown at the top of this article. This flag is meant to “represent nonbinary folk who did not feel that the genderqueer flag represented them. This flag was intended to go alongside Marilyn Roxie’s genderqueer flag rather than replace it.

Yellow: gender without reference to the binary; White: many or all genders; Purple: gender between or a mix of female and male; Black: lack of gender.

Non-binary people can have any sexual orientation, although if attracted primarily to a single gender they may prefer to use gender-terminology to express this, such as androsexual or gynosexual.

Notable Non-binary people

Rebecca Sugar, an American animator, director, screenwriter, producer, and singer/songwriter who has worked on Adventure Time and Steven Universe. Sugar prefers to be referred by she/her and they/them pronouns.

Sam Smith, an English singer and songwriter, notable for singing La La La (Naughty Boy song) and Stay with Me. In They came out as non-binary and changed their pronouns to they/them in September of 2019.

Liv Hewson is a notable playwright and actor. Henson refers themselves to Singular they pronouns.

Féi Hernandez is a visual artist, writer, and healer.

Zack Torres is an American dancer most notably known for Dance Moms and Abby’s Ultimate Dance Competition.