Acronym preference?

Contributor: zz1aag zz1aag
Quote:
Originally posted by quantumspork
I've heard it said in a lot of circles that the "LGBT" acronym is erasing to a lot of people. Thoughts on what terminology you prefer to cover the spectrum?
LGBTQIA
08/05/2012
Contributor: pestilence pestilence
Quote:
Originally posted by hanjonatan
LGBT, or queer/trans as long as it's understood that "queer" means LGB.

and GSM really isn't an "inclusive term" as an alternative to LGBT. it's a research term meant to include a wide variety of gender and ... more
Even if it wasn't coined for that purpose, why couldn't it be used in such a way? T has nothing to do with LGB, and other additions to the acronym like asexual or intersex have very little relation to the others either. I really don't see why it isn't a fitting term - it absolutely is inclusive, and it manages to be so without being a long list of letters that would constantly need to be updated as awareness of new identities comes to light.
08/11/2012
Contributor: Lori Gonzales Lori Gonzales
im a lesbian lol but i prefer no lables
10/10/2012
Contributor: mamaseatspoop mamaseatspoop
LGBT
10/11/2012
Contributor: mr115393 mr115393
I'm torn between queer/trans and alphabet soup. I like to try to stay as inclusive as possible. I always feel bad when I leave people out without realizing it, so I try to stick to blanket terms.
10/12/2012
Contributor: buttcleavage buttcleavage
Quote:
Originally posted by quantumspork
I've heard it said in a lot of circles that the "LGBT" acronym is erasing to a lot of people. Thoughts on what terminology you prefer to cover the spectrum?
I really like GSM. It is much more inclusive.
10/13/2012
Contributor: tiniest bird tiniest bird
lgbtq or queer community casually

gsm only if i'm referring to other sexual minorities as well
10/13/2012
Contributor: DarthTaco DarthTaco
At this point, I just prefer to headdesk until just before permanent brain damage XP. I am terrible with acronyms, to the point where I keep forgetting which one is the NAACP and which is the NCAA. There is almost no difference! D:

So when it comes to this particular acronym, I go with the most popular one that doesn't have too many letters. It's for the best.
10/13/2012
Contributor: needapacker needapacker
i put lgbtq, but personally i think itd be better to not include the T. Being trans is not a sexuality and does not belong in there
12/04/2012
Contributor: wildshores wildshores
I like LGBT or maybe LGBTQ. I'm personally very uncomfortable with a lot of id'd "queer" politics and the ways class and education are communicated socially within radical queer communities, especially since people with upper/middle class, bicoastal roots will appropriate cultural symbols carelessly. and there's a line between reclaiming slurs and then throwing them around without any self-awareness, and queer IS a slur. like queer people who live in semi-progressive communities throw the word around, while I come from a rural place where the word is dangerous to LGBT people themselves at the hands of straight people. long story short--I think anyone who wants to reclaim a slur as an identity needs to be very aware of its social power AND the position they occupy in being able to inhabit that identity comfortably.
The long alphabet soup-type acronyms aren't my fav precisely because they try to include everyone. If you are both cis and het, you're not systematically oppressed for your sexual orientation or gender presentation. allies and cishet asexuals are neither attracted to the same gender nor identify outside of their birth-assigned sex. that is also, I believe, the qualification for id'ing as queer.
GSM includes all sexual minorities, including kinks, ones that are not queer, and ones that are actively harmful to people. so no.
so I like LGBT.
12/05/2012
Contributor: Vaginas Vaginas
I like gender queer
12/06/2012
Contributor: TheirPet TheirPet
I see LGBT so much that I just use that.
12/06/2012
Contributor: Gracefire Gracefire
I like GSM the best.

Queer/trans* can be problematic because queer has specific political connotations that not everyone in the GSM community embraces.
12/06/2012
Contributor: hanjonatan hanjonatan
Quote:
Originally posted by pestilence
Even if it wasn't coined for that purpose, why couldn't it be used in such a way? T has nothing to do with LGB, and other additions to the acronym like asexual or intersex have very little relation to the others either. I really don't see ... more
see, i don't think it should be a goal for a term to be as inclusive as possible purely for the sake of it. sure it's "inclusive", but inclusive of what, and for what purpose? there is a point at which an acronym or term gets so "inclusive" that it just becomes pointless. i think we reached that point with variations of "LGBT" when we started including two As for asexuals and allies.

and saying that T has nothing to do with LGB is simplistic and ahistorical. the LGB and T communities started the fight for liberation together, and it's foolish to ignore that. though having said that, it is important to be mindful of context - there are certainly contexts in which it doesn't make sense to include the T in the acronym - if you're specifically talking about matters related to homo-or bisexuality, it's better to say LGB, because that's what you're talking about.
12/07/2012
Contributor: iabicpl09 iabicpl09
I like the alphabet soup
12/08/2012
Contributor: FrustratedFemme FrustratedFemme
I like the term LGBT. Using twenty thousand letters turns the acronym into alphabet soup. No matter how many letters we add, someone will still be excluded. I still haven't seen a single LGBT-related acronym that has included pansexuals or genderqueer people, and I've met many more people who were pansexual or genderqueer than people who are asexual or intersex.
12/12/2012
Contributor: Reynolds Reynolds
LGBTQA is the one I hear most often. I feel that "queer" includes everyone who isn't already caught under LGBTA. I also understand that "queer" can have negative connotations, even though I personally like it, and that might make some people uncomfortable. I also once heard that the Q stood for "questioning", but it's been a while since I've heard anyone say that.
12/14/2012
Contributor: Raymaker Raymaker
I think queer is pretty inclusive of everything, and though it's a reclaimed slur, is classic and timeless no matter how the definitions of what is included in the community changes. And openness is important. When the very terminology is acessable to more people, we have less reasons to divide over issues and have a more cohesive community.
12/14/2012
Contributor: mdnght mdnght
LGBTQA.
12/14/2012
Contributor: Happenstance Happenstance
I once heard a suggestion that we change the acronym to "Outside the Relationship, Gender, And Sexuality Mainstream..." or ORGASM. I could just imagine the heyday in academic papers and news articles, "The ORGASM community..." But all jokes aside, it sounds a little too hipster for me.

Anyway, I like Queer/Trans* except that... I don't consider all monosexual gay/lesbian people to be Queer, with a capital Q. Queer in that sense comes with an package of political ideology and a devotion to equality and social justice along multiple, intersecting oppressions... It's a stance against the White Gay Movement, White Feminism, Transphobic Radical Feminism, Classist Gay Capitalism and Gay Assimilationism. It puts Trans* people of color and queer homeless youth first.

And I don't like any of the "alphabet soup," or "LGBTQIAAPPjkdsahfkbah flbgdhvblargh" because 1. Allies are NOT queer and do not share the same struggles. You don't get fucking cookies for being the most basic level of decent human being. 2. heteroromantic asexuals are NOT queer and do not share the same struggles. (homoromantic, biromantic, or panromantic aces/grey-a's, and demisexuals WOULD be queer, because their romantic orientation is queer). 3. Straight polyamorous people are NOT queer and do not share the same struggles. No. Fuck that shit.
12/14/2012
Contributor: Pandwhora Pandwhora
LGBT
12/14/2012
Contributor: unoriginalgirlyid unoriginalgirlyid
Not sure why we need to be referred to as any acronym... I feel like it just further separates us from those who don't identify as one of the "sexual minorities".
12/20/2012
Contributor: bog bog
Quote:
Originally posted by quantumspork
I've heard it said in a lot of circles that the "LGBT" acronym is erasing to a lot of people. Thoughts on what terminology you prefer to cover the spectrum?
I tend to just say queer or queer/trans* with the assumption and hope that it encompasses all alphabetsoup*++etc.
01/15/2013
Contributor: Inkkythesquid Inkkythesquid
LGBT Is The Most Recognizable.
01/15/2013
Contributor: katat katat
don't have a strong opinion on the matter
01/22/2013
Contributor: DaniDeee DaniDeee
I have to say, I usually go with LGBTQ. But those are some pretty good ones.
01/24/2013
Contributor: Genderfree Genderfree
I'm surprised QUILTBAGPIPE was an actual thing! I like the E: Everyone! But, yes, alphabet soup. spill it out, see what you get, it'll include enough people.
01/27/2013
Contributor: damnbul12 damnbul12
Quote:
Originally posted by quantumspork
I've heard it said in a lot of circles that the "LGBT" acronym is erasing to a lot of people. Thoughts on what terminology you prefer to cover the spectrum?
LGBT
02/09/2013
Contributor: Genderfree Genderfree
Quote:
Originally posted by FrustratedFemme
I like the term LGBT. Using twenty thousand letters turns the acronym into alphabet soup. No matter how many letters we add, someone will still be excluded. I still haven't seen a single LGBT-related acronym that has included pansexuals or ... more
LGBTQQIAAP.

The P is for pansexual. The I is for intersex.

Now that really is almost becoming alphabet soup.
02/10/2013