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Sexual & Reproductive Health

Feminism

The belief that women should be treated as social and political equals to men. The goal feminism is the same: equity for women. 

In the United States, there have been three major waves of feminism:

 

  •  First wave feminism is considered the call for women's political, property, and legal rights and had its roots in the abolition movement, which spurred the women's suffrage movement. 

 

  • Second wave feminism focused on women's political and economic equality. It was during this phase of feminism that lesbians began to make claims for their sexual equality and autonomy.  

 

  • Third wave feminism, looked at the intersection of race, class, and gender. 

 

This ABC News program anchored by Peter Jennings traces the evolution of women’s rights, from Susan B. Anthony through the fight for passage of the Equal Rights Amendment. Following the rocky road to true equality, it examines the contributions of pivotal figures such as Eleanor Roosevelt, Betty Friedan, Amelia Earhart, and Babe Didrickson.

Masculinity

  • Masculinity defies a simple definition. It is typically represented as a set of stereotypical characteristics that constitutes an energy, an essence, or a state of being.

 

  • We recognize masculinity when it is encountered, but it is difficult to distill the interacting components into a single, unifying definition that can be applied uniformly.
  • Despite varying standards of masculinity throughout history, it has always tended to define itself as different from and superior to femininity.

 

  • In contemporary U.S. culture, masculinity is exemplified by physical strength and bravado, suppression of vulnerability, economic independence, authority over women and other men, and exclusive heterosexuality with associated objectification of women. 

This video explores the concept of positive masculinity via Aragorn from Lord of the Rings.

Gender Binary

  • Gender binary, also called gender binarism, is a social classification in which people believe that gender can only be identified as male or female. The system states that people are the biological sex they are assigned at birth and should follow gender-defined societal roles.

 

  • Males are expected to possess masculine qualities, while women should be feminine. People who support the idea of gender binarism generally do not consider other genders, including transgender males and females and nonbinary/genderqueer individuals.

Author and gender activist Sam Killermann defines the concepts of gender identity, gender expression, and biological sex. Gender is different than sexual orientation; external genitalia do not dictate gender. A National Geographic Production.

Transgenderism

  • A transgender person is someone whose gender identity differs from the one that corresponds to their assigned sex at birth. While sex refers to a person's biological and genetic makeup, gender is a social construct that encompasses particular behaviors, attributes, appearances, and roles that are often associated with either men or women.

 

  • Gender identity describes an individual's innate sense of being male, female, or another gender. A person's gender identity may be expressed through behavior, clothing, hairstyle, voice, or body characteristics.

 

  • The term transgender can include a variety of gender identities. A transgender man is someone who was assigned female at birth but who identifies as a man; conversely, a transgender woman is someone who was assigned male at birth but identifies as a woman.

 

  • People who reject the male-female gender binary may identify as gender nonconforming, genderfluid (having a gender that may fluctuate or change), nonbinary, agender (not having a gender), intersex (born with sexual anatomy that does not fit strict male/female categories), or otherwise. Such individuals may or may not also personally identify as transgender, but these identities are typically included in general use of the term.

Pediatric endocrinologist Dr. Ximena Lopez started a clinic for transgender children. She discusses the harm in denying children their gender identities. The American Psychological Association now recognizes transgenderism as a normal biological process. Josselynn suffered depression with gender dysphoria.

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