good afternoon everyone I would have
started my talk by saying good afternoon
ladies and gentlemen but that would not
cover all of us today I will be speaking
about gender identity
more specifically the small group in
society who are neither ladies nor
gentlemen as well as discussing the
system we live in society right now
known as the gender binary but to
understand all these big words better we
must understand what is gender anyway I
believe that gender is simply just a box
to be ticked off and here’s why ten
years ago with my hair growing all the
way back here rocking my favorite pink
shirt and carrying a doll around a small
mall near my house someone mistaken me
for a girl I was deeply offended and
fiercely told the man that I was in fact
a boy but since this rather embarrassing
incident I’ve been mulling over one
question then what does it mean to be a
boy if the site of my six year old self
carrying these stereotypically feminine
traits was enough to have a mistake ‘end
as a girl then isn’t gender as simply
just those invisible rules and those
stereotypical labels that we sign and if
that was the case why should there be
only two genders if everyone were their
own individual selves we live in a
society plagued by the belief that
everyone is either male or female we
look at a baby’s genitals and we decide
from that whether they’re male or female
if they have a penis a boy if a vagina a
girl simple right but from their
biological sex
we also dictate everything expected of
that person as they grow up we tell them
what toys I must play with what clothes
I must wear what colors they must like
what careers I must pursue who they have
to be and this is why gender is
different from sex does nothing to do
with their private parts or chromosomes
or all that by
it’s simply a set of social traits and
expectations and behaviors that we put
upon someone as they grow up throughout
the years we’ve whittled out these neat
labels that we assigned to each gender
men are strong emotionless aggressive
fighters women are weaker they’re subtle
and they and they get emotional men
shorts women skirts men doctors woman
nurses boys cars girls dolls boys blue
girls pink as you can see I really went
for that last one today these neatly
carved gender roles have been instilled
into us on a daily basis in a way we are
our gender because we let it define us
it wasn’t until a phone call I received
about ten months ago when I began to
realize just how nonsensical and Hollow
these labels really are I received a
phone call from my mom I picked up and
in a panic voice she said I accidentally
bought toothpaste for men my heart
stopped beating my phone slit from my
hand no not really in all seriousness
what was the difference between
toothpaste for men and for women
and what about shampoo what about
toilets what about clothing lines what
about people besides our biological sex
what makes all of us different not much
and because of this this is why I
believe that we should revolutionize
gender instead of using it as a gene to
separate and segregate people we should
use it as a tool to help people
celebrate everyone as unique individuals
so as I said gender is not tangible it
is completely social is it is completely
social and in a way completely made-up
and it is definitely not a black or
white concept it is not having a penis
or having a vagina it’s a mixture of
traits in fact we are all a mixture of
traits we all have times where
lead which society prescribes as being
masculine and we all have times where I
feel emotional a trait that society
prescribes as being feminine so if we
are a mixture of all these traits then
essentially I believe that gender lies
on a spectrum and this tectonic shift in
the way that gender is perceived in
society today has given rise to a number
of many gender identities which do not
simply fit on to the male and female
gender binary we refer to these people
simply as non-binary identities because
they don’t fit on to the gender binary
here is an infographic to show just some
of these identities now in case any of
you are still wondering how could all
this exist when you can only have a
penis in a vagina I must reiterate that
sex is vastly different from gender and
although we may not have time to delve
into the details of what each of these
symbols mean we can acknowledge that
some people simply do not fit on to the
male and female gender binary and to
help you understand that better I will
show you two colors red in this case
represents a man and yellow represents a
woman now for most of us here our color
is really really close enough to either
of these that it wouldn’t hurt to be
labeled as red or yellow as a man or a
woman but humans are not built to
conform to such simple binaries so for
some of us we may feel that our colors
may look like this or this or this or
perhaps even this now these colors do
not belong in two separate groups and
you can appreciate that some people just
do not belong and we it would be
inaccurate to label them as a man or a
woman so if this is the case does it
make any of these colors any less real
than red or yellow just because they do
not fit oh no
but unfortunately non-binary people face
major consequences in the world today so
as you know when making online profiles
you are often asked
specify your gender along with your date
of birth and your name and your email
address I decided to see how many
popular websites some of which are the
most influential and popular of these
sites to see how many would take me to
find the golden website that
accommodates the option of not being
male or female it was frustrating going
through all these websites that all of
us have used at some point in our lives
and being met with a mere two genders so
what is the message here in the 52
websites that it took me to find that
golden web site the message was simple
your gender does not exist not only this
but people in real life trying to make a
passport trying to make IDs or driver
licenses will likely be met with the
same problem worldwide only eight
countries legally recognize the
existence of a gender which is not male
or female again in the rest of the world
the message is this your gender does not
exist not only this but seven out of ten
people in society believe that there are
only two genders so in other words in
the majority of society your gender does
not exist and just like how gay
marriages cannot take place in many
parts of the world or how transgender
people are forced to use the toilets
intended for the birth assigned gender
denying someone of their true identity
hurts everyone but thankfully there are
things that we can do to make society
more open and kindly accommodating for
these gender identities but not simply
that but just a less pressuring place to
be for people of all gender identities
to feel that they are included and
accepted in society one solution that I
propose to redefine gender is to work
towards a gender-neutral future a
gender-neutral future is a future and a
society which is free of gender systems
free of gender segregation and
stereotypes in the last few years we saw
a major revolution in how gender is
marketed and perceived
in society we’ve seen major toy outlets
lose its male and female toy section and
we’ve heard the praise from all the
happy parents about how this is so how
this has benefited their children and
the mindset we’ve seen public services
such as the London Underground changed
its wording from gender specific
language ladies and gentlemen to
everyone and it is a small things that
make society more open and more
inclusive to everyone again this is not
a future which is just better for people
who die identify as non-binary but for
everyone to live free of these two of
these unhealthy and oftentimes stressful
stereotypes that are put upon us
something else
and perhaps most importantly we must
learn to unlearn these harmful
stereotypes we must not be afraid to
burst free of these rigid boxes that are
for so long oppressors from doing what
we want but instead have to conform and
do what we see fit societies and fitted
standards we must not be afraid to call
out sexism and let them know that 18
years into this millennium there is no
place for sexism and by unev oving the
stigma surrounding those who are not the
perfect archetype of each gender we are
essentially erasing the pressure to
conform and by erasing the pressure to
conform we are basically making society
a more happy place for not just the
minorities who identify as non-binary
but again for everybody there will be no
need for men to feel that they have to
bottle up their emotions because that is
what society wants there will be no need
for women to feel that they have to sit
back and look pretty even though they
want to get up and fight
especially on International Women’s Day
and there’s definitely no need for
anyone in between to feel that they have
to conform but if there’s one last
message that I can leave it is this when
we detect something that is different or
against what we’ve been told our whole
lives or perhaps even illogical from a
scientific point of view we 10
to hate I went and to turn our faces
around from that idea and although you
may not understand why I believe that a
gender-neutral future and why people are
choosing and opting for a gender-neutral
future and why that is an idea I believe
is worth spreading or you may not
understand why non-binary people feel
that they don’t fit onto the male and
female spectrum the most important thing
is respect and as long as we take the
chance to make changes towards a society
which is more respectful for people with
all our differences we can do no wrong
so today although gender may define us
I believe that tomorrow we can redefine gender thank you
started my talk by saying good afternoon
ladies and gentlemen but that would not
cover all of us today I will be speaking
about gender identity
more specifically the small group in
society who are neither ladies nor
gentlemen as well as discussing the
system we live in society right now
known as the gender binary but to
understand all these big words better we
must understand what is gender anyway I
believe that gender is simply just a box
to be ticked off and here’s why ten
years ago with my hair growing all the
way back here rocking my favorite pink
shirt and carrying a doll around a small
mall near my house someone mistaken me
for a girl I was deeply offended and
fiercely told the man that I was in fact
a boy but since this rather embarrassing
incident I’ve been mulling over one
question then what does it mean to be a
boy if the site of my six year old self
carrying these stereotypically feminine
traits was enough to have a mistake ‘end
as a girl then isn’t gender as simply
just those invisible rules and those
stereotypical labels that we sign and if
that was the case why should there be
only two genders if everyone were their
own individual selves we live in a
society plagued by the belief that
everyone is either male or female we
look at a baby’s genitals and we decide
from that whether they’re male or female
if they have a penis a boy if a vagina a
girl simple right but from their
biological sex
we also dictate everything expected of
that person as they grow up we tell them
what toys I must play with what clothes
I must wear what colors they must like
what careers I must pursue who they have
to be and this is why gender is
different from sex does nothing to do
with their private parts or chromosomes
or all that by
it’s simply a set of social traits and
expectations and behaviors that we put
upon someone as they grow up throughout
the years we’ve whittled out these neat
labels that we assigned to each gender
men are strong emotionless aggressive
fighters women are weaker they’re subtle
and they and they get emotional men
shorts women skirts men doctors woman
nurses boys cars girls dolls boys blue
girls pink as you can see I really went
for that last one today these neatly
carved gender roles have been instilled
into us on a daily basis in a way we are
our gender because we let it define us
it wasn’t until a phone call I received
about ten months ago when I began to
realize just how nonsensical and Hollow
these labels really are I received a
phone call from my mom I picked up and
in a panic voice she said I accidentally
bought toothpaste for men my heart
stopped beating my phone slit from my
hand no not really in all seriousness
what was the difference between
toothpaste for men and for women
and what about shampoo what about
toilets what about clothing lines what
about people besides our biological sex
what makes all of us different not much
and because of this this is why I
believe that we should revolutionize
gender instead of using it as a gene to
separate and segregate people we should
use it as a tool to help people
celebrate everyone as unique individuals
so as I said gender is not tangible it
is completely social is it is completely
social and in a way completely made-up
and it is definitely not a black or
white concept it is not having a penis
or having a vagina it’s a mixture of
traits in fact we are all a mixture of
traits we all have times where
lead which society prescribes as being
masculine and we all have times where I
feel emotional a trait that society
prescribes as being feminine so if we
are a mixture of all these traits then
essentially I believe that gender lies
on a spectrum and this tectonic shift in
the way that gender is perceived in
society today has given rise to a number
of many gender identities which do not
simply fit on to the male and female
gender binary we refer to these people
simply as non-binary identities because
they don’t fit on to the gender binary
here is an infographic to show just some
of these identities now in case any of
you are still wondering how could all
this exist when you can only have a
penis in a vagina I must reiterate that
sex is vastly different from gender and
although we may not have time to delve
into the details of what each of these
symbols mean we can acknowledge that
some people simply do not fit on to the
male and female gender binary and to
help you understand that better I will
show you two colors red in this case
represents a man and yellow represents a
woman now for most of us here our color
is really really close enough to either
of these that it wouldn’t hurt to be
labeled as red or yellow as a man or a
woman but humans are not built to
conform to such simple binaries so for
some of us we may feel that our colors
may look like this or this or this or
perhaps even this now these colors do
not belong in two separate groups and
you can appreciate that some people just
do not belong and we it would be
inaccurate to label them as a man or a
woman so if this is the case does it
make any of these colors any less real
than red or yellow just because they do
not fit oh no
but unfortunately non-binary people face
major consequences in the world today so
as you know when making online profiles
you are often asked
specify your gender along with your date
of birth and your name and your email
address I decided to see how many
popular websites some of which are the
most influential and popular of these
sites to see how many would take me to
find the golden website that
accommodates the option of not being
male or female it was frustrating going
through all these websites that all of
us have used at some point in our lives
and being met with a mere two genders so
what is the message here in the 52
websites that it took me to find that
golden web site the message was simple
your gender does not exist not only this
but people in real life trying to make a
passport trying to make IDs or driver
licenses will likely be met with the
same problem worldwide only eight
countries legally recognize the
existence of a gender which is not male
or female again in the rest of the world
the message is this your gender does not
exist not only this but seven out of ten
people in society believe that there are
only two genders so in other words in
the majority of society your gender does
not exist and just like how gay
marriages cannot take place in many
parts of the world or how transgender
people are forced to use the toilets
intended for the birth assigned gender
denying someone of their true identity
hurts everyone but thankfully there are
things that we can do to make society
more open and kindly accommodating for
these gender identities but not simply
that but just a less pressuring place to
be for people of all gender identities
to feel that they are included and
accepted in society one solution that I
propose to redefine gender is to work
towards a gender-neutral future a
gender-neutral future is a future and a
society which is free of gender systems
free of gender segregation and
stereotypes in the last few years we saw
a major revolution in how gender is
marketed and perceived
in society we’ve seen major toy outlets
lose its male and female toy section and
we’ve heard the praise from all the
happy parents about how this is so how
this has benefited their children and
the mindset we’ve seen public services
such as the London Underground changed
its wording from gender specific
language ladies and gentlemen to
everyone and it is a small things that
make society more open and more
inclusive to everyone again this is not
a future which is just better for people
who die identify as non-binary but for
everyone to live free of these two of
these unhealthy and oftentimes stressful
stereotypes that are put upon us
something else
and perhaps most importantly we must
learn to unlearn these harmful
stereotypes we must not be afraid to
burst free of these rigid boxes that are
for so long oppressors from doing what
we want but instead have to conform and
do what we see fit societies and fitted
standards we must not be afraid to call
out sexism and let them know that 18
years into this millennium there is no
place for sexism and by unev oving the
stigma surrounding those who are not the
perfect archetype of each gender we are
essentially erasing the pressure to
conform and by erasing the pressure to
conform we are basically making society
a more happy place for not just the
minorities who identify as non-binary
but again for everybody there will be no
need for men to feel that they have to
bottle up their emotions because that is
what society wants there will be no need
for women to feel that they have to sit
back and look pretty even though they
want to get up and fight
especially on International Women’s Day
and there’s definitely no need for
anyone in between to feel that they have
to conform but if there’s one last
message that I can leave it is this when
we detect something that is different or
against what we’ve been told our whole
lives or perhaps even illogical from a
scientific point of view we 10
to hate I went and to turn our faces
around from that idea and although you
may not understand why I believe that a
gender-neutral future and why people are
choosing and opting for a gender-neutral
future and why that is an idea I believe
is worth spreading or you may not
understand why non-binary people feel
that they don’t fit onto the male and
female spectrum the most important thing
is respect and as long as we take the
chance to make changes towards a society
which is more respectful for people with
all our differences we can do no wrong
so today although gender may define us
I believe that tomorrow we can redefine gender thank you
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