9781422275214

Words to Understand Demographic: A specific sector of a population, sometimes identified for the purposes of marketing or political targeting. Non-binary: A broad category for gender identities that are not exclusively masculine or feminine, male or female, also known as genderqueer. Non-binary people may embrace a combination of masculinity and femininity, or neither, as their expressed gender. Stereotype: A widely held belief about a marginal part of any given population. Stereotyping is oversimplifying a preconception of a group of people. All of us are exposed to stereotypes every day. They surround us from the ads we see the moment we wake up and check our phones, and all throughout the rest of the day. We’re told that women are soft, passive, objects of sexual desire, while men are ambitious, rugged, and success oriented. These are the so-called societal norms we’ve all grown up with, norms that may be challenged by an ever-changing culture, yet ultimately firmly in place. But what about those of us who don’t fit these pervasive sexual stereotypes that tell us what is considered normal? Are we automatically abnormal if we don’t relate to these stereotypes? Some biological females prefer dressing in male-tailored suits, while some biological men choose to go about their lives in dresses. Does gender nonconformity, then, deserve to be castigated because it defies sexual stereotypes embraced by our culture? There are a host of misinformed assumptions regarding gender identities, including the belief that girls are more sensitive than boys;

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Beyond Stereotypes