LGBTQIA+ L - Lesbian G - Gay B - Bisexual T - Transgender Q-“questioning”, as in still exploring one’s sexuality or “queer,” or sometimes both. I,A - Added on later to stand for Intersex, Ally or Asexual + - For everyone else that wasn't included in the first letters.

Sexual orientation: Sexual attraction to other men, women or others who identify as non-binary. Gay: This is an adjective (e.g., gay man, gay people) used to describe people characterized by sexual or romantic attraction to people of one's same sex. Lesbian: A female whose enduring physical, romantic and/or emotional attraction is to females. Note: Identifying gay people as “homosexuals”, is a derogatory and offensive to many lesbian and gay people. Bisexual, Bi: A person who is attracted to both males and females physically, romantically and/or emotionally. Transgender: Transgender people may identify themselves as male or female, unlike the non-binary people. It is a term used to cover a broad category (adj.) for people whose gender identity and/or gender expression differs from the sex they were assigned at birth. They are identified as transgender, transsexual, cross-dresser, FTM(female-to-male) or MTF(male-to-female) as preferred by the individual. These people may or may not decide to change their bodies hormonally and/or surgically. Trans Man (Transgender Man): The sex assigned at birth was female but whose gender identity (i.e. the person’s emotional and psychological sense of their gender, which may not align with the sex they were assigned at birth) is male. These identities can also refer to someone who was surgically assigned female at birth, in the case of intersex people, but whose gender identity is male. Trans Woman (Transgender Woman): The sex assigned at birth was male but whose gender identity (i.e. the person’s emotional and psychological sense of their gender, which may not align with the sex they were assigned at birth) is female. These identities can also refer to someone who was surgically assigned male at birth, in the case of intersex people, but whose gender identity is female. Non-binary: Term used to describe people who don’t identify as female or male. Some may have a gender that blends masculine or feminine‍ qualities, or they may not identify with any gender. Commonly used synonyms to non-binary terms include gender queer and gender nonconforming. Cisgender: Describes a person whose gender identity matches their assigned sex at birth. Queer:Queer is an umbrella term for sexual and gender minorities who are not heterosexual or cisgender. Questioning: This term describes someone who is questioning their sexual orientation or gender identity. Intersex: This term is used when an individual is born with reproductive or sexual anatomy that doesn’t fit the boxes of “female” or “male.” Sometimes doctors do surgeries on intersex babies and children to make their bodies fit binary ideas of “male” or “female”. Asexual: A term used when sexual orientation is characterized by a lack of sexual attraction, but it doesn’t rule out romantic attraction. Ally: A person who actively supports the LGBT community but is not a LGBTIA+ Gender identity: is a term used when an individual’s emotional and psychological sense of their gender, which may not align with the sex they were assigned at birth. The most common examples of gender identity are male and female, but there are several other terms used in the LGBT community also for people who don’t fit into those categories, one of them is Pansexual: Pansexual is an adjective for those who are attracted to all types of people, regardless of their gender or sexual orientation. Cross-Dresser or CD An individual typically a cisgender man who sometimes wears feminine clothing in order to have fun, entertain, gain emotional satisfaction, for sexual enjoyment, or to make a political statement about gender roles. Drag King A performer, who is a female and who exaggerates male behaviors.They dress for the purposes of entertainment at bars, clubs, or events. Some drag kings might identify as transgender. Drag Queen A performer, who is a male and who exaggerates female behaviors.They dress for the purposes of entertainment at bars, clubs, or events. Some drag queens might identify as transgender. FLAGS & SYMBOLS

Gay pride or LGBT pride is the promotion of the self-affirmation, dignity, equality, and increased visibility of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people as a social group. The Gay rights movement, also called homosexual rights movement or gay liberation movement is like a civil rights movement that advocates equal rights for gay men, lesbians, bisexuals, and transgender persons; seeks to eliminate sodomy laws barring homosexual acts between consenting adults; and calls for an end to discrimination against gay men, lesbians, and transgender persons in employment, credit, housing, public accommodations, and other areas of life. Ranging from solemn to carnivalesque, pride events are typically held during LGBT Pride Month or some other period that commemorates a turning point in a country's LGBT history. Some pride events include LGBT pride parades and marches, rallies, commemorations, community days, dance parties, and festivals. The rise of the movement: From the 1870s, social reformers began to defend homosexuality, but due to the controversial nature of their advocacy, kept their identities secret. A secret British society called the "Order of Chaeronea" campaigned for the legalization of homosexuality, and counted playwright Oscar Wilde among its members in the last decades of the 19th century. Immediately following World War II, a number of homosexual rights groups came into being or were revived across the Western world, in Britain, France, Germany, the Netherlands, the Scandinavian countries and the United States. These groups usually preferred the term homophile to homosexual, emphasizing love over sex. The homophile movement lobbied to establish a prominent influence in political systems of social acceptability. By 1969, there were dozens of homophile organizations and publications in the U.S, and a national organization had been formed, but they were largely ignored by the media. A 1962 gay march held in front of Independence Hall in Philadelphia, according to some historians, marked the beginning of the modern gay rights movement. An early LGBT movement also began in Germany at the turn of the 20th century, centering on the doctor and writer Magnus Hirschfeld. In 1897 he formed the Scientific-Humanitarian Committee to campaign publicly against the notorious law "Paragraph 175", which made sex between men illegal. Women only began to join the previously male-dominated sexual reform movement around 1910 when the German government tried to expand Paragraph 175 to outlaw sex between women. Heterosexual feminist leader Helene Stöcker became a prominent figure in the movement. Bisexual activism became more visible toward the end of the 1960s in the United States. The new social movements of the sixties, such as the Black Power and anti-Vietnam war movements in the US, the May 1968 insurrection in France, and Women's Liberation throughout the Western world, inspired many LGBT activists to become more radical, and the Gay Liberation movement emerged towards the end of the decade. Source of the Content :https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_movements

The term "Gay Pride" was crafted by Thom Higgins, a gay rights activist in Minnesota (1969+). Brenda Howard, a bisexual activist, is known as the "Mother of Pride" for her work in coordinating the first Pride march in New York City, and she also originated the idea for a week-long series of events around Pride Day which became the genesis of the annual LGBT Pride celebrations that are now held around the world every June. Additionally, Howard along with the bisexual activist Robert A. Martin (aka Donny the Punk) and gay activist L. Craig Schoonmaker are credited with popularizing the word "Pride" to describe these festivities. Gilbert Baker designed the rainbow Pride flag for the 1978 San Francisco Gay Freedom Day celebration. He designed the flag as a "symbol of hope" and liberation, and an alternative to the symbolism of the pink triangle. The flag does not depict an actual rainbow. Rather, the colors of the rainbow are displayed as horizontal stripes, with red at the top and violet at the bottom. It represents the diversity of gays and lesbians around the world. In the original eight-color version, pink stood for sexuality, red for life, orange for healing, yellow for the sun, green for nature, turquoise for art, indigo for harmony, and violet for spirit. Resource: Wikipedia.org

Gender fluid denotes or relates to a person who does not identify themselves as having a fixed gender. Cisgender means a person’s gender identity matches the sex — female or male — designated on their original birth certificate. Gender fluidity refers to change over time in a person’s gender expression or gender identity, or both. That change might be in expression, but not identity, or in identity, but not expression. Or both expression and identity might change together. For some youth, gender fluidity may be a way to explore gender before landing on a more stable gender expression or identity. For others, gender fluidity may continue indefinitely as part of their life experience with gender. Not everyone who experiences changes in their gender expression or identity identifies as gender-fluid. Nor does everyone desire gender-affirming medical treatment to change their body to better align with their gender identity. People typically begin developing a gender identity in early childhood, around the age of 2 or 3. Gender identity develops within multiple social contexts: a person’s family, their larger community, and the society and historical time in which they live. Each of these may have very different norms and expectations about gender expression and gender identity. A youth who is gender-fluid may be at greater risk for prejudice and discrimination, because their shifting gender identity or expression goes against an expectation that each of these aspects of person-hood develops early and stays the same over time. And the harmful interactions may not occur only with people who are cisgender. A youth who is gender-fluid may also face discrimination from some people in the transgender community who view them as “not really transgender.” Resources: https://www.webmd.com/sex/what-is-fluid https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/gender-fluidity-what-it-means-and-why-support-matters-2020120321544

Gender Disphoria is the latest medical diagnostic term for the experience of distress some people have when their psychological or emotional sense of gender doesn’t match up with their biological sex. If a person has a mismatch but has no distress then they have no condition. People who experience gender dysphoria may feel uncomfortable with and distressed over the conflict between the sexual characteristics of their physical body and how they feel and think about themselves. They may also experience feelings of distress or discomfort over the traditional gender roles that are expected of their assigned gender. This is a real condition for those who have this sense of mismatch because it brings on depression, distress, anxiety, confusion etc. The attempted suicide rate is quite high. Not everyone who has gender dysphoria identifies as transgender, but many people diagnosed with gender dysphoria do identify as transgender, gender fluid, or gender non-conforming. Symptoms: Symptoms of gender dysphoria can include feeling a strong sense of distress or discomfort with one’s assigned gender. Some signs that someone is experiencing gender dysphoria include: A desire to no longer have the primary sex characteristics of their birth-assigned gender A desire to be treated as the opposite gender A desire to have the primary and secondary sex characteristics of their preferred gender identity The insistence that they are a gender different from their birth-assigned sex Preferences for cross-sex roles Strong rejection of toys, games, and other things that are typically associated with their birth-assigned gender Wearing clothing typically associated with the opposite gender Causes: The exact causes of gender dysphoria are not completely understood, but several different factors may play a role. Genetics, hormonal influences during prenatal development, and environmental factors may be involved. For example, prenatal exposure to certain chemicals has been associated with disruptions in the normal development of sex determination prior to birth. Research also points to a genetic link, since there is a higher shared prevalence between identical twins than between fraternal twins. The onset of gender dysphoria is often during early childhood. Resource: https://www.verywellmind.com/gender-dysphoria-5085081

According to NHS England, conversion therapy - sometimes called "reparative therapy" or "gay cure therapy" - tries to change someone's sexual orientation or gender identity. It and other professional bodies have warned all forms of conversion therapy are "unethical and potentially harmful".. In practice, it means trying to stop or suppress someone from being gay, or from living as a different gender to their sex recorded at birth. It can include talking therapies and prayer, says Jayne Ozanne, a former government equality adviser subjected to the practice. More extreme forms can include "exorcisms, physical violence and food deprivation", she says. Such practices have been rejected by every mainstream medical and mental health organization for decades, but due to continuing discrimination and societal bias against LGBTQ people, some practitioners continue to conduct conversion therapy. Minors are especially vulnerable, and conversion therapy can lead to depression, anxiety, drug use, homelessness, and suicide. Have other countries banned conversion therapy? Many places have introduced a full or partial ban, including Canada, Malta, Germany, Mexico and parts of Australia. In Germany, under-18s are not allowed to receive conversion therapy, while it is outlawed for adults in cases of coercion or deceit. About 20 US states have banned the practice, although many of these do not include religious counselors and organizations. All countries that have introduced some form of conversion therapy ban have covered gender identity in their definitions. Resource: https://www.bbc.com/news/explainers-56496423

Perhaps the single defining event of gay activism occurred in the United States in the early morning hours of June 28, 1969 at the Stonewall Inn, a gay bar in New York City’s Greenwich Village which was raided by the police. The Stonewall riots (also known as the Stonewall uprising or the Stonewall rebellion) were a series of spontaneous demonstrations by members of the gay community. Nearly 400 people joined a riot that lasted 45 minutes and resumed on succeeding nights. “Stonewall” came to be commemorated annually in June with Gay Pride celebrations, not only in U.S. cities but also in several other countries Resource : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stonewall_riots#:~:text=The%20Stonewall%20riots%20(also%20known,Village%20neighborhood%20of%20New%20York

In the 1970s and ’80s gay political organizations proliferated, particularly in the United States and Europe, and spread to other parts of the globe, though their relative size, strength, and success—and toleration by authorities—varied significantly. Groups such as the Human Rights Campaign, the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, and ACT UP (AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power) in the United States and Stonewall and Outrage! in the United Kingdom—and dozens and dozens of similar organizations in Europe and elsewhere—began agitating for legal and social reforms. In addition, the transnational International Lesbian and Gay Association was founded in Coventry, England, in 1978. Now headquartered in Brussels, it plays a significant role in coordinating international efforts to promote human rights and fight discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender persons. In the United States, gay activists won support from the Democratic Party in 1980, when the party added to its platform nondiscrimination clause a plank including sexual orientation. This support, along with campaigns by gay activists urging gay men and women to “come out of the closet” encouraged gay men and women to enter the political arena as candidates. Resource: https://www.britannica.com/topic/gay-rights-movement