SEXUAL ORIENTATION AND SEXUAL IDENTITY
sexual orientation
Sexual
orientation is the emotional, romantic, or sexual attraction that a person
feels toward another person. Sexuality is an important part for us
as humans. Beyond the ability to reproduce, sexuality also defines how we see
ourselves and how we physically relate to others.
Sexual orientation is usually
divided into these categories:
- Heterosexual: Attracted to people
of the opposite sex
- Bisexual: Attracted to people
of either sex
- Homosexual: Attracted to people
of one's own sex
- Pansexual: Attracted to people
of any gender identity
- Asexual: Not sexually
attracted to other people
How Do People Know Their Sexual Orientation?
Many people discover their
sexual orientation as teens or young adults, and in many cases without any
sexual experience. For example, someone may notice that their sexual thoughts
and activities focus on people of the same sex, or both sexes. But it’s
possible to have fantasies or to be curious about people of the same sex without
being homosexual or bisexual. And they may not pursue those attractions.
Can Sexual Orientation Be Changed?
Experts agree that sexual
orientation isn’t a choice and can’t be changed. Some people who are homosexual
or bisexual may hide their sexual orientation to avoid prejudice from others or the shame they may have been taught to feel about their sexuality.
Gender identity
Gender is social and cultural. It’s how your identity relates to society’s idea of what it means to be a woman, man, neither, or a mix of many genders.
Gender
identity is your deeply-held inner feelings of whether you’re female or male,
both, or neither. Your gender identity isn’t seen by others. Some people
identify as a man or a woman. And some have a gender identity that doesn’t fit
into one of these genders.
Some
people whose biological sex does not match their gender identity may make
physical and social changes to express their identified gender. This may
involve using a different name, pronouns, clothing, hair or makeup style. It
may also involve medical changes, such as taking hormones or getting gender-affirming
surgery. This process is called transition.
Gender expression
Gender
expression is how a person outwardly shows their gender identity. It includes
physical expressions such as a person’s clothing, hairstyle, makeup, and social
expressions such as name and pronoun choice.
Some examples of gender expression are masculine, feminine, and
androgynous.
Physical Sex
Physical
sex is how a person’s body develops and changes over their lifespan. It can be
affected by sex chromosomes, hormones, reproductive organs, secondary sex
characteristics, and related medical care.
and finally....
Sexual orientation is an enduring pattern of romantic or sexual attraction to persons of the opposite sex or gender, the same sex or gender, or to both sexes or more than one gender. Gender identity is the personal sense of one's own gender. Gender identity can correlate with a person's assigned sex at birth or can differ from it.
"The rainbow is a part of nature, and you have to be in the right place to see it. it's beautiful, all of the colours, even the colours you can't see. That really fit us as a people because we are all of the colours. Our sexuality is all of the colours. We are all the gender, races, and ages"
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