Media Reporting and Reference Guide on LGBT Issues

The experience of being non-binary
Genderqueer or Gender-fluid or Non-binary people are those who do not identify with
the male/female binary but somewhere outside or between. Some of them use neutral
pronouns like “they” <strong>and</strong> “them”. All of these terms - including agender <strong>and</strong> bigender
people - do not have exactly the same meaning but they all refer to an experience
of gender, which is not just male or female. Between the above mentioned term,
the most used is “non-binary” (TGEU 2016 July 4; National Center for Transgender
Equality 2016a July 9).
Why the term “Non-Binary”?
Many societies recognize just only two gender identities: male <strong>and</strong> female. This perception
may sometimes be referred to as a “gender binary” because the term “binary” means
something that “has two parts” – in this case male <strong>and</strong> female. Thus, non-binary is a term
used by people who do not identify themselves as (only) male or female (National Center
for Transgender Equality 2016a July 9).
Non-binary <strong>and</strong> Trans people Non-binary <strong>and</strong> Intersex people 1
Non-binary people fall within the trans Non-binary people are not necessarily
umbrella. Some, but not all, non-binary
people - just like transgender people who
identify within the gender binary - may
undergo medical procedures in order to
“adapt” their bodies to their gender identity
(National Center for Transgender Equality
2016a July 9).
intersex people. Intersex people have
an anatomy <strong>and</strong>/or genes that may fit
with the biological/anatomical definition
of male <strong>and</strong> female. They also usually
identify themselves as male or female. On
the other h<strong>and</strong>, non-binary people usually
have a body which fits with the biological/
anatomical definition of male <strong>and</strong> female
but they do not identify themselves as
just males or females. (National Center for
Transgender Equality 2016a July 9). Some
intersex people may identify as non-binary
- the same way they may identify as men
or women - but the two identities are not
intrinsically linked.
1
Non-binary <strong>and</strong> intersex, as terms, refer to different things.
20