Hello everyone, I am not sure if this is the appropriate place to post this but here's what I am in search of: I am looking for a forum where I can ask questions regarding not only definitions to some terms, but also reasons for said various terms (where did this term come from, why would someone use this term as opposed to another, when/how can this term be used appropriately, etc..). It would be mostly in the area of gender vs. sex, gender identities, differences in sexualities to start. I turned to a forum because I feel just as confused as when I started after doing web searches, also, sometimes basic definitions are ok to understand but i don't understand the 'why' part. I am not well educated in things regarding the LGBT+ community but would appreciate the opportunity to be more than you'd understand (I may even be part of it, I'm unsure). I'm looking for a friendly, open environment to ask questions and receive answers and opinions and this is important because since I'm not that educated, if a question comes off as ignorant or offensive, it is COMPLETELY UNINTENTIONAL because i really don't want to offend anyone and it would only be because i just don't know. In this case I'm looking for an environment that would correct me and let me know something like 'this is said instead of that because that could be seen as offensive'. I would really appreciate some direction in whether this is a good place to start or if there is a better/more appropriate avenue. Thank you for any replies! *peace, love, unity and respect*
Hey EC is a really friendly and welcoming forum, I don't see why you shouldn't ask your questions here.
Hey! Your curiosity is not offensive at all! In fact, it’s very nice of you to be so open-minded and curious. I actually feel cared about and respected when someone is genuinely curious to learn about the LGBT community. So thank you! Some LGBT individuals don’t exactly like labels, but from what I’ve observed, most LGBT individuals prefer labels. The main reason is because many people want a way to describe their preferences and identity without going into detail (because that can be a bit time-consuming, lol). So I’ll give you an example. When someone is curious about my orientation, I usually tell them I’m a lesbian. But when someone wants me to go into depth about what I consider myself to be, I tell them I’m a Kinsey 5 lesbian (or homoflexible); it depends on which terminology they’re accustomed to. What that means is that while I find certain men to be attractive, I don’t desire to be with a man because 1. I don’t fantasize about men, and 2. Even if I were with a man, I would grow bored because I will always prefer a woman. The Kinsey Scale was designed to describe the Heterosexual-Homosexual spectrum. Let’s say a woman is extremely attracted to men, but she also finds women to be attractive and she would kiss women, but she doesn’t desire to be with a woman because she greatly prefers men. She would most likely identify as a Kinsey 2 (or heteroflexible). It would be up to her if she would rather identify as a Kinsey 2 heterosexual or a Kinsey 2 bisexual (depending on how much attraction she feels for women). Now let’s say a man desires men and women equally. He may or may not desire one over the other in a romantic way. But if he desires both equally in a sexual way, then he would be known as bisexual or Kinsey 3. I hope that makes sense. Feel free to ask anymore questions.
