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An Introduction to Gender as an Issue
For centuries, the definition of gender has been mostly in line with the definition of sex. A simple way to identify universally the sex of a human was to observe the genitals of the infant after birth, and their behavior in life would typically fall in line with their respective sex. In 1959, Klinefelter Syndrome, the presence of an extra sex chromosome leading to XXY genes, was defined as a chromosomal disorder. From there, more internal disorders were linked to DNA and human genes. Gender Dysphoria became the official umbrella term for individuals under "conflict between [their] physical or assigned gender and the gender with which they identify." (Parekh, "What is Gender Dysphoria?") This idea is now supported by a variety of sex chromosome disorders as well as individual cases where hormone output was inconsistent to their sex (large amounts of testosterone in a female, for example). Transgender and transsexual individuals have been the most classic examples of Gender Dysphoria, and their cases were diagnosed as such. Before the 2000s, transgender and transsexual individuals faced the same social oppression as the LGBT community, hence the T in LGBT. At the turn of the 2000s and 2010s, tolerance for Trans individuals grew impressively, along with the rest if the LGBT community. Recently, however, a new idea appeared that redefined the T in LGBT and is currently taking up storm in the internet.
The idea of the Gender Spectrum, "a range of gender identities between and outside the categories of male and female" (Cavanaugh, "What Gender Spectrum?"), likely began to become popular in 2012 after a TED Talk was published in Youtube featuring a transgender Female-to-Male speaking about his struggle in with Gender Dysphoria as well as introducing the terms cisgender, conforming to male or female, and pangender, identifying outside and including male and female. The movement grew steadily over time until late 2015, early 2016. It was around that period where articles and videos supporting the gender spectrum began to surge. New labels were created, and entire groups and websites were formed to house these labels and acquire support under the name of the LGBT community. Gender began to be expressed as an idea that lies in tandem with personality and individual characteristics, with terms such as demisexual, "Little or no capacity to experience sexual attraction until a strong romantic or emotional connection is formed with another individual, often within a romantic relationship" (Killermann, "Comprehensive* List of LGBTQ+ Vocabulary Definitions"), and agender, "A person with no (or very little) connection to the traditional system of gender, no personal alignment with the concepts of either man or woman, and/or someone who sees themselves as existing without gender. Sometimes called gender neutrois, gender neutral, or genderless" ("Comprehensive* List of LGBTQ+ Vocabulary Definitions") touching on personal preference, opinion, and circumstances. This issue also caught the attention of popular media and several acclaimed websites have become largely liberal in this sense. Google displays more search results that are for or neutral on the gender spectrum. Sites like TED, Wikipedia, and the Huffington Post among others have shown support for the idea on their articles. Because of these supporters, the social issue caught fire as followers and subscribers to these websites learned of the world past the gender binary, or the idea of male and female being the only genders.
As these ideas spawned, so too did opposition from the popular front. Common men and women took to the cameras to create videos arguing against the idea of the gender spectrum, putting the entire LGBT community under scrutiny. Youtube is an exceptional source of public opinion against the idea. Many content creators in the aforementioned website have pushed out videos expressing their frustration with the idea. In these videos, a common phrase against the gender spectrum appears often to degrade the movement: "There are only two genders." Typically referring to sexes and the gender binary, arguments from the videos have often been aggressive in nature. Cartoons can even be found on Google Images harassing the idea of a gender spectrum and those identifying among it.
The problem with both sides of the argument is that both have little to work with in terms of evidence. Both sides expect the other to accept their dogmas as truth and preach them as if it was. Science, sex, and genetics are often disregarded. The ideas proposed by the pro-binary in their YouTube videos are heavily opinionated and lack real educated substance. Some ideas ignore or deny altogether the existence of Gender Dysphoria. At the same time, pro-spectrum articles and videos continue to teach freely these terms and the idea of gender being fluid like personality, expecting their audience to believe it as truth and young audiences to follow it like gospel. However, both the pro-spectrum and the pro-binary have made history as their ideas continue to circulate through the internet, where audiences of all types can deliberate their stance, formulate opinions, and prolong the question of the idea of Gender. Over time, the gender spectrum will either become as legitimate as sex chromosome disorders or a memory left over by the extreme left-wing; and only the social landscape can decide the fate of the idea.
Works Cited
Visootsak, Jeannie; Graham Jr., John M, "Klinefelter Syndrome and other sex chromosomal aneuploidies." NCBI. 24 Oct. 2006. Web. 15 September, 2017.
Parekh, Ranna. "What is Gender Dysphoria?" American Psychiatric Association. Feb. 2016. Web. 15 September, 2017.
Killermann, Sam. "Comprehensive* List of LGBTQ+ Vocabulary Definitions." it's pronounced Metrosexual. 1 Dec. 2016. Web. 15 September, 2017.
Bhardwaj, Neha. "Teenage Gender Ambiguity: Ethical and Social Issues." NYU Langone Medical Center. Web. 15 September, 2017.
"Beyond the Gender Binary | Yee Won Chong | Tedx Rainier." Tedx Talks. YouTube, 13 Dec. 2012. Web. 15 September, 2017
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In light of recent social controversies, I intend to give a short summary of the idea of the Gender Spectrum, as well as the growth of the idea and the opposition to the idea. The paper is meant to be neutral on all stances and accounts, and neither should it reflect my views on the Gender Spectrum. The paper is not meant to be partisan. The paper is meant to be as objective as possible and encourage critical thought on the matter.