Non-Binary 101
This week on The Slut Show Ellen Moore is joined by non-binary demisexual drag queen Robin (she/they). They discuss their demisexuality, what being non-binary looks like on a daily base, sexual experiences and orgi’s. This week’s Slutty Science contextualizes the day to day experiences of non-binary folks, explaining the consequences of the binary systems this world was built upon.
This episode builds on the Slutty Science of episode 2, 5 and 6 of season 2.
Please note: this article contains information about gender dysphoria, mental health issues and suicide, which may be triggering for some readers.
I was born with the sex of a woman. My gender identity corresponds with the sex I was born with and therefore I am a cis-gendered woman. The gender of people whose gender identity does not align with the sex they were assigned with at birth, falls within the umbrella term “transgender.” These people are therefore called transgender individuals.
Among those trans folks are non-binary people. About one third of individuals who identify as transgender primarily identify as non-binary. Non-binary folks can consider their gender to be neither male nor female, they may identify as both male and female at the same time, they may identify with different genders at different times - this is called gender fluidity - or they identify with no gender at all, rejecting the very idea of (only two) genders.
Non-binary people - like any other group of humans - come in all shapes, colours and sizes, expressing their gender identity in all types of ways. Perhaps at times extravagantly, or maybe never at all.
Population-based studies show a small percentage – but a sizable proportion in terms of raw numbers – of people who identify as non-binary. These people remain to be at risk of victimization and of minority or marginalization stress as a result of discrimination.
Recent studies have shown that non-binary people are at a higher risk to attempt suicide. They have shown to experience more psychological distress and on top of that experience higher levels of depression and anxiety. New studies on identity development of non-binary individuals provide explicit and fluid understandings of gender identity development outside of the binary binoculars of male/female, man/woman and boy/girl.
Very little research is focused on non-binary individuals even though non-binary people make up a significant portion of the transgender community and experience even greater negative mental health risks. Non-binary people face several challenges in a society that is not just structured, but build upon binary gender identities.
Therefore speaking to, but more importantly listening to non-binary folks is of vital importance in order to properly understand the battles they go through and how we - cis gendered folks - can make their lives a little easier.
Interested in hearing more? You can now watch the full episode of The Slut Show on YouTube or listen to it on your favorite podcast platform- now also on Apple Podcasts & Spotify! Either way make sure to subscribe and turn on the notification bell, to get notified of new uploads.
Want to send in questions for our mail-segment? Want to be on the show yourself or do you have suggestions for subjects to talk about? Don’t hesitate and hit us up on Instagram @TheSlutShowWithEllenMoore!
We hope to see you on our socials and for now, Sluts Out!
Lots of love,
Sources
- Matsuno, Emmie, and Stephanie L. Budge. 2017. “Non-Binary/Genderqueer Identities: A Critical Review of the Literature.” Current Sexual Health Reports 9 (3): 116–20. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11930-017-0111-8.
- Richards, Christina, Walter Pierre Bouman, Leighton Seal, Meg John Barker, Timo O. Nieder, and Guy T’Sjoen. 2016. “Non-Binary or Genderqueer Genders.” International Review of Psychiatry 28 (1): 95–102. https://doi.org/10.3109/09540261.2015.1106446.