The word queer, however, is intentionally vague, and with such vagueness also comes different interpretations. “As a person who is mostly in other-sex relationships, not all individuals who identify as queer believe that people like me, or people in the plus, ought to be included in the community,” Pasciucco explains.Ĭritics say that for a straight, poly person to describe themselves as queer is piggybacking on decades of LGBTQ activism to gain fundamental rights and celebrate their identities. Pasciucco, for example, utilizes the "+" sign when referring to the queer community in order to indicate pangender or pansexual individuals and those in alternative relationship communities, such as polyamory, kink, or non-monogamy. Generally, someone who is heterosexual, heteroromantic, cisgender, and monogamous wouldn’t be considered queer-but there’s an exception. Since sexuality is a spectrum, it sometimes makes using the term polarizing for bisexual and heteroflexible individuals (even though they totally count). The definition of queer varies depending on who you ask, so it’s a little tricky to determine who isn’t queer. That said, there are so many ways to identify as queer, so if you feel like you’re queer and want to own it, go forth with pride.
To keep it supes simple, if someone describes themselves as queer, it’s quite often because their sexual orientation and/or gender falls under the LGBTQIA+ umbrella rather than the heterosexual norm.
Pasciucco adds that the term indicates an “individual who self-identifies as either lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer (also sometimes called 'questioning'), intersex and/or asexual, aka the LGBTQIA+ community." To many, queerness encompasses an intersection of identities. "Beyond that, it's really about if the person with that identity wants to see themselves as being part of a larger queer umbrella," they explain. According to Schuster, “any that's not straight” is considered queer. Since "queer" is such a broad term, it’s a little confusing to determine who, exactly, it applies to. Which orientations fall under the queer umbrella? Whether you consider yourself queer, you’re trying to become a better ally, or you simply want to learn more, here’s everything you need to know about the definition of and history behind the term. In general, “queerness” is an umbrella term that is both an orientation and a community for those on the LGBTQIA+ spectrum.Ĭonsidering how many people the term can describe-both as individuals and as a community-it’s definitely an important word to understand and celebrate. “For many people who use the term 'queer,' it is specifically about embracing this idea of being out of mainstream ideas and embracing one's own authentic self,” Schuster explains. While you might’ve heard the word used as an insult, the term has actually been reclaimed by the community as an act of empowerment, says certified sex therapist, Amanda Pasciucco, AASECT. If you’re wondering what the actual definition of "queer" is, Elise Schuster, MPH, co-founder and executive director of OkaySo, says the simplest way to describe it is “not straight.” For them, it's an identity and/or orientation that doesn’t align with the heteronormative expectation that everyone’s automatically heterosexual and heteroromantic.