Gender Enemies: Non-binary People

What is non-binary?

What is this "newly found" term that most people use on the internet?

Non-binary is an umbrella term for people whose gender identity is out of the binary understandings of gender. So basically, it means someone who isn't either a man or a woman. Non-binary identities are varied and can include people who identify with some aspects of binary identities, or people who reject them entirely. Non-binary people can feel that their gender identity and gender experience involve being fluid between genders or completely outside of that binary.

Since there is a difference between sex and gender and sex is biological while gender is psychological, social, and cultural; a person’s gender can be different from their sex. Thus, we can say that gender is socially constructed and unlike biological sex, gender is a product of society.

There are many different identities under the term non-binary such as agender, genderqueer, demigirl, demiboy and gender-fluid. They are all different, sometimes there can be minor similarities with one another though.

Contrary to popular belief, the non-binary term isn’t some new discovery or a popular trend among teenagers. Way back in time, different cultures from different countries had non-binary and trans people amongst themselves. Name-wise, it was different from what we call it today but what they meant was the same as today.

For example, in Native American culture, there was an identity called "two spirit" which refers to someone who identified as both male and female and had the attributes of both genders. This is what can be the equivalent of today’s bigender or gender-fluid identity.

As it can be understood, non-binary people have always existed and will continue to exist. If you are eager to learn more about non-binary identities and gender performativity, Judith Butler’s Gender Trouble is highly recommended.