LGBTQIA+ Resources

This guide supports the LGBTQIA+ community and serves as a starting point for discussion and understanding. Along with a selection of B.D. Owens Library resources, information includes: campus contacts, allies, and organizations; regional and national resources; legal information; and mental and physical health resources. The contents of this guide are only a representation of what is available and offer a wide array of resources that encourage inclusivity and civility. 

Sexuality and gender exist on a spectrum and are uniquie to each person. The terms and definitions listed are always evolving and changing.

• Agender (adj.) – Describes a person who identifies as having no gender.
• Aromantic (adj.) - A sexual orientation that describes a person who experiences little or no romantic attraction to others, and/or little or no interest in forming romantic relationships. Aromantic people may still have intimate relationships.
• Asexual (adj.) – Describes a person who experiences little or no sexual attraction to others.
• Asexuality is not the same as celibacy.
• Bisexual (adj.) – A sexual orientation that describes a person who is emotionally and sexually attracted to people of their own gender and people of other genders.
• Cisgender (adj.) - Describes a person whose gender identity aligns with the sex they were assigned at birth, based on societal expectations. 
• Gay (adj.) – A sexual orientation that describes a person who is emotionally and sexually attracted to people of their own gender. It can be used regardless of gender identity, but is more commonly used to describe men.
• Gender expansive (adj.) - An umbrella term describing people whose gender identity or gender expression goes beyond the gender binary.
• Gender expression (noun) – The way a person acts, dresses, speaks, and behaves (i.e. feminine, masculine, androgynous). Gender expression does not necessarily correspond to assigned sex at birth or gender identity.
• Gender identity (noun) – A person’s internal sense of being a man/male, woman/female, both, neither, or another gender.
• Genderqueer (adj.) - Describes people whose gender identity goes beyond the gender binary.
• Heterosexual (straight) (adj.) – A sexual orientation that describes women who are emotionally and sexually attracted to men, and men who are emotionally and sexually attracted to women.
• Lesbian (adj., noun) – A sexual orientation that describes a woman who is emotionally and sexually attracted to other women.
• Nonbinary (adj.) - An umbrella term for gender identities that go beyond the gender binary of female and male. Non-binary people may refer to themselves as non-binary, and/or may use a range of identity terms, such as: agender, bigender, genderqueer, and gender fluid. Often abbreviated as NB or enby.
• Outing (verb) – Involuntary or unwanted disclosure of another person’s sexual orientation or gender identity.
• Queer (adj.) – An umbrella term used by some to describe people who think of their sexual orientation or gender identity as outside of societal norms. Some people view the term queer as more fluid and inclusive than traditional categories for sexual orientation and gender identity. Due to its history as a derogatory term, the term queer is not embraced or used by all members of the LGBT community.
• Sexual orientation (noun) – How a person characterizes their emotional and sexual attraction to others.
• Transgender (adj.) – Describes a person whose gender identity and assigned sex at birth do not correspond. Also used as an umbrella term to include gender identities outside of male and female. Sometimes abbreviated as trans.

• Transition (noun) – For transgender people, this refers to the process of coming to recognize, accept, and express one’s gender identity. Most often, this refers to the period when a person makes social, legal, and/or medical changes, such as changing their clothing, name, sex designation, and using medical interventions. Sometimes referred to as gender affirmation process.

Terms and definitions are from the National LGBTQIA+ Health Education Center. Find a further list of terms and definitions here.

For more resources on pronouns and why the mantter visit PRONOUNS.ORG.