What is non-binary gender?

This gender identity does not fit the traditional categories of “masculine” or “feminine.” Whether you identify yourself as part of this group, or are interested in understanding it better, don’t miss these lines.

For the most part, people tend to fall into two categories: men or women. This idea is known as gender binarism, and it is what has prevailed in society for millennia. For a couple of decades, new paradigms have emerged that attempt to reflect the spectrum and sexual and gender diversity that exists in reality. One of them is non-binary gender.

But what do we mean when we talk about non-binary gender? Who is part of this diverse community? We will explore these questions and clarify the symbolism of your flag, among other questions.

Gender, beyond sex

First, we need to understand what gender is and why it differs from sex. Sex refers, in a general way, to the physiological and biological characteristics of the bodies that are determined at birth. It is based on the combination of chromosomes (XY for males, and XX for females).

Instead, gender involves the historical and sociocultural processes through which a body comes to become “woman” or “man,” and in turn, to incorporate and reproduce the associated roles and behaviors.

Therefore, Gender is a social construction that sometimes coincides with biological sex (cisgender), and other times it does not coincide (non-cisgender).. Unlike sex, and as mentioned in a report by the National Institute of Health, gender can change over time.

In this sense, gender identity can be understood as the individual experience about how we perceive ourselves in relation to our sexuality and our ways of being.

Non-binary gender: affirming indeterminacy

We have learned to understand the world from a binary logic, using pairs of concepts such as reason/emotion, culture/nature or mind/body. From the point of view of gender, the dichotomy between masculine/feminine has been fundamental in trying to understand bonds, desire, aesthetics, eroticism and identity.

However, In recent decades, identities that escape cisnormative expectations have become visible.. These seek to question the gender binarism and identity rigidity of a system that only allows two options as valid.

In this way, non-binary gender is a concept that allows us to account for those people who do not identify as men or women.

Diversity of experiences

The concept “non-binary” is like an umbrella that encompasses a wide variety of identities. As Emily Kendall points out, in an article in the Encyclopedia Britannica, while some people identify with multiple genders at once, others experience changes in their identity over time.

Surya Monro, Professor of Sociology and Social Policy at the University of Hudderfield, warns that the term “non-binary” includes all people whose identities fall outside of male and female identitiesFor example:

Fluid gender or genderfluid: they experience a mixture of feminine and masculine identities at different times. In these cases, identity flows through periods.Agender: they do not identify with any binary gender identity at all.Polygender: They identify with two or more genders equally.Pangender: They identify with all (or most) gender identities simultaneously.Androgynous: They look for a neutral or combined gender expression. They choose to dress and present themselves in an ambiguous way that does not adhere to traditional gender stereotypes or by mixing elements considered “masculine” and “feminine.”

Non-binary gender flag

In addition to the iconic LGBTIQA+ flag, there are others that symbolize each of the groups within this diverse community. The non-binary gender flag was designed in 2014 by Kye Rowan, a young man committed to social justice. It is made up of four stripes, each of which expresses a specific aspect:

Yellow: It symbolizes people whose gender identity does not conform to binary logic.White: represents those people who identify with more than one gender.Dwelling: reflects those people with a combined gender identity, encompassing both masculine and feminine.Black: refers to those people who do not identify with any particular gender.

Brief history of non-binary gender

In an article on the history of this form of gender, Alexzander Baesten highlights that, although the exploration of gender identity is more prominent today, The idea of being non-binary is nothing new..

This author notes that one of the earliest known examples of someone who might have identified with the contemporary meaning of “transgender” dates back to the 1620s in the colony of Virginia, referring to a servant named Thomas/Thomasine Hall, who identified both as a man and a woman.

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It was not until 1910 that the German sexologist Magnus Hirschfeld coined the term transvestite, although it is now considered outdated and pejorative. Over time, more specific terms were created to describe gender identities outside of the typical binary, such as genderqueerwhich emerged in 1995.

Today, the term nonbinary It is also used to describe gender identities that are not fixed as male or female. Furthermore, it is essential to recognize that non-binary gender identities have existed for centuries in non-Eurocentric cultures.

Thus, Alexzander points out that these gender identities have been consistently present throughout history and challenge the notion that being “non-binary” is a new or modern concept.

For a more respectful and inclusive society!

Sadly, questioning or rejecting binary logic makes us a target for criticism. The trans community, non-binary people and people queer They face multiple forms of discrimination.

It is important to ask ourselves why the idea of undefined gender makes us uncomfortable. What prevents us as a society from breaking with binary thinking and opening ourselves to new ways of being and being, challenging the structures that prioritize certain identities above others?