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Definitions
Transgender: An umbrella term including people whose gender identity does not correlate to their assigned sex
Cisgender: An identity in which a person's assigned sex aligns with their gender identity
Gender Binary: The social classification of gender into two distinct forms of masculine and feminine
Gender Non-Binary: When an individual identifies as neither male nor female
Hormonal Affirmation Treatment (HAT), as defined by the Transgender Health Initiative: the use of medications to achieve affirmation of your true gender identity
Ally: Any individual who cares about transgender issues and works to challenge gender related oppression
Gender Identity: A person's own understanding of themselves in terms such as man, woman, trans man, trans woman, and others
Assigned Sex: A sex category (usually male or female) given at birth on the basis of anatomy
Gender Expression: The ways in which people manifest masculinity or femininity. This may not correlate with gender identity
Pronouns: The set of words people use to refer to an individual (e.g., she/her, ze/hir, they/them, he/him)
Sexuality: The sexual, romantic, and/or physical attraction someone feels toward others (lesbian, bisexual, gay, asexual, etc.)
*Based on information from the Rutgers Center for Social Justice;
these terms are not inclusive of all identities, but can be used personally
and/or to find community.
Labels mean something different for every individual.