Does non binary even like..mean anything… at all..
It posits itself as an identity rather than a descriptor so no.
No gender is an identity. Gender is just a set of social laws, not anyone’s personal identity. Etiquette is also a set of social laws but no one includes their manners in their self definition of who they are.
Manners are a set of social behaviors learned through positive and negative reinforcement as a person grows up. Gender is a set of social behaviors learned through positive and negative reinforcement as a person grows up. There is a gender (or set of rules) for each sex. The rules are different for each.
Someone who doesn’t conform to the rules of etiquette is considered “rude”, but the person will never answer “I’m rude” when someone asks them, “so who are you as a person?”
Someone who doesn’t conform to the rules of gender according to the body they were born with is considered gender non-conforming. This shouldn’t be a part of your identity any more than a woman being traditionally feminine is part of her identity, or her manners. Her body is a part of her identity as a woman which is what people call “gender identity” these days, which refers to a person’s understanding of themselves as either male or female. But people base this conclusion on their gendered behaviors that they’ve learned growing up, which is fucking ridiculous! How can they then go on to claim that its inherent? It’s literally the opposite of learned. Your sex is not dependent on your gender! Your sex is your body. That’s all. It’s not “your” gender any more than western etiquette is “yours”, or eastern etiquette, or any culture-specific set of social laws.
These are prescribed customs. They don’t come from you. You aren’t born with them. You learn them, the same way you learn language.
You weren’t born English. You weren’t born feminine. You weren’t born polite. But you were born female. You were born European or African or Asian. You were born a certain blood type. You were not born with gender.
So non-binary defining itself and being used as an identity is bullshit. Linguistically, “gender non-conforming” is a participle, which is a description of a verb/action, compared to “non-binary” which is an adjective, which describes a noun (the person). Considering yourself gnc is describing your behavior, (denoted by the suffix -ing) which is appropriate. It does not describe you, as a person. It doesn’t form a part of your identity. You are a person. You have an identity. You have a personality. Your thoughts, feelings, opinions, dreams, hopes, these are things that contribute to identity. Your immutable qualities such as sex and race. While cultural norms can sometimes influence your identity, they can’t be your identity. They are the catalyst. You are the medium.
The old adage “a person is defined by their actions” doesn’t mean your personal, internal self identity, it means you will objectively be defined (judged/considered) by other people based on your actions; your integrity will be defined by your actions. Your identity roots you to this earth as a standalone being. I am Jamie. I am a woman.
Non-binary means nothing. Gnc means something.
