Let's talk about language and gender! Why is it important? We use language to understand ourselves and the world around us. The language we use influences how we process and communicate. In particular for the LGBTQ+ community, language - specifically identity-based terminology - makes a significant impact. Language is a tool that has the power to be liberatory or oppressive. It’s important to acknowledge the impact of colonialism on how we commonly define and understand gender. In fact, the gender binary became “the standard” through colonization. Multiple genders existed long before and after colonialism! It is important for members of the LGBTQ+ community to understand the diversity of gender and recognize the existence of a multitude of genders. The term transgender is an umbrella term to describe a person whose sense of personal identity and gender does not correspond with their sex assigned at birth. To learn more about the terms listed in the second image visit translanguageprimer.org/primer-index and don’t forget - you get to decide what language feels good to describe yourself! #LGBTQ #GenderIdentity