It may have begun with a simple three letter word, Gay, that encompassed what was most of what was known about sexual orientation at the time, but slowly ,over time, as we began to learn more about more types of sexual orientations, and so as not to be hidden in an all-encompassing term that unintentionally hides their specific orientation, it was decided to add more letters as more information came out showing the variations in human sexuality and gender that go far beyond a simple binary of Heterosexual and Gay.
Eventually, the order of letters, which ones were included without necessarily knowing what each meant, being prepared to get yelled at by someone whose letter you accidently left out or not put in the expected place in the list of letters, and just the number of them and the fact that there actually is no official order, the name of the Community became too difficult to name and often became a joke to those trying to recite all the letters in their proper order correctly.
I have been condemned many times for using “GLBT” because putting the G first somehow was supporting and promoting the patriarchy and is, therefore, anti-feminist in general and anti- Lesbian in particular. It actually is in the order that letters were initially added content with our knowledge until all the other gender variants started getting attention.
A few years back, having never been the victim of the word “Queer” in the past when it was used as a slur, often being what you heard as you were beaten up, heard used against someone else as they were getting beaten up, or the last word many Gay men heard as they died from the beating, young people began to “reclaim” the word which actually they were claiming as it was not a word used against them.
The Youth may have been aware that the word was used in the past, but they were not aware of its use as a physical and emotional bludgeon, or, for some odd reason, they just did not care how that word affected older Gay people.
But, their intention was a good one.
Just as the word “Gay” had been one word to unify a community known and yet to be, the word “Queer” was chosen to do the same thing. One word that covered everybody, was easier to remember than an everchanging list of letters and would not be the butt of jokes as a way to cover one’s letter confusion. Unfortunately, those who make arbitrary decisions in the name of Gay people who did not choose them as a leader, whoever the powers that that they assume themselves to be, simply added the Q for “Queer” onto the alphabet making it one more additional letter longer. Their intention to eat the blobbed ended with them being eaten instead by it.
So, instead of LGBTLMNOP, LGBTMORELETTERS, or any seemingly unending string of letters that keeps growing like writing out all the numbers in Pi, we need a new, all-inclusive name that not only acknowledges the various gender identities and sexual orientations we are aware of now, but includes those yet to be learned.
I would like to offer “Non-Het” as an all-inclusive term as it includes anyone who is not Heterosexual, and in being used as a single encompassing term, it will show that the Heterosexual Majority is not necessarily so if compared to all those who aren’t.
I did consider “Not-Het”, but its proximity to Knot-Head had me rule it out. I am, after all, looking for a way to get away from the alphabet that is too often joke fodder.
When seemingly attempting to establish that you only get full citizenship under the U.S. Constitution if the group to which you belong passes a certain percentage of the population, bigots often go one letter at a time to establish each group does not have enough numbers to qualify for their rights., as if there is a Constitutional cut off point. There was a discussion that since the actual 10% of the population is Gay figure was more like 3%, Gays did not qualify in sufficient numbers to have full citizenship.
They played the percentage game with all the other letters as well because it seemed like a good strategy.
Not enough, Gays, Lesbians, Bisexuals, Transgenders, Nonbinary, Gender fluid etc. were in those individual, separate groups for the members of each to have rights.
But, If the division of who is Heterosexual and who is not is viewed that way but in a more binary way, Heterosexual or not, the non-heterosexuals have the greater number as a whole. There may be a higher percentage of Straights when considering the letters individually but considering that the comparison is between those who are Heterosexual and those who are not, the Heterosexuals are outnumbered.
One overarching term, which could be given specificity by individuals, would make it clear that in the full spectrum of human gender, genders on the continuum out number those who assume they are the norm.
I would refer to the Community as the Nonhet Community and I could then tell that person I am Gay, without having to first list a bunch of letters hoping I get them all and in the correct order.
As it is, there is no official order with many organizations arranging their letters to reflect the sexual orientation of the founder of it. Because the Harvard group was founded by a bisexual person, the B went first. This was continued as chapters opened on other college campuses.
In Oklahoma the list begins with 2S for the Native American Two Spirit gender that most people in the country know nothing about, but they do there because that is where the tribes were sent by the U.S. Government in the 1800s.
Alphabetical fluidity causes problems with those who are comfortable with established things, like the order of the letters, but do not actually understand the spirit of the thing. Hence my putting the G first being somehow a feminine suppressing promotion of patriarchy.
So, there it is.
No way you can work Nohet into the alphabet.
Most importantly, though, it will make it clear that the population of this country is more diverse than those who rely on a lack of it to keep control over everyone to their own benefit.
There may be fewer Gays compared to Heterosexuals, but the Nonhet segment of society out numbers the assumed majority.
This perspective could change things and be open to any new findings in the area of Gender science.
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