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{{short description|Initialism for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender persons}}
{{about|the term LGBT|the history of the movement|LGBT history|the people|LGBT community|other topics|Outline of LGBT topics}}
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[[File:Gay flag.svg|thumb|261x261px|A six-band [[Rainbow flag (LGBT)|rainbow flag]] representing the [[LGBT community]]]]
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'''''{{dfn|LGBT}}''''' or '''''{{dfn|GLBT}}''''' is an [[initialism]] that stands for [[lesbian]], [[gay men|gay]], [[bisexual]], and [[transgender]]. In use since the 1990s, the term is an adaptation of the initialism '''''{{dfn|LGB}}''''', which began to replace the term ''gay'' in reference to the broader [[LGBT community]] beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s.<ref>''Acronyms, Initialisms & Abbreviations Dictionary'', Volume 1, Part 1. Gale Research Co., 1985,  {{ISBN|978-0-8103-0683-7}}.
[https://books.google.com/books?id=JDtUAAAAMAAJ Factsheet five, Issues 32–36, Mike Gunderloy, 1989]</ref> The initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an [[umbrella term]] for [[Sexuality and gender identity-based cultures|sexuality and gender identity]].<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Parent|first1=Mike C.|last2=DeBlaere|first2=Cirleen|last3=Moradi|first3=Bonnie|date=June 2013|title=Approaches to Research on Intersectionality: Perspectives on Gender, LGBT, and Racial/Ethnic Identities|journal=Sex Roles|volume=68|issue=11–12|pages=639–645|doi=10.1007/s11199-013-0283-2|s2cid=144285021}}</ref>

It may refer to anyone who is [[non-heterosexual]] or non-[[cisgender]], instead of exclusively to people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender.<ref name="The Handbook of Lesb"/> To recognize this inclusion, a popular variant, '''''{{dfn|LGBTQ}}''''', adds the letter ''Q'' for those who identify as [[queer]] or are [[Questioning (sexuality and gender)|questioning]] their sexual or gender identity.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/arts-and-entertainment/wp/2014/05/23/civilities-what-does-the-acronym-lgbtq-stand-for/|access-date=February 19, 2018|work=[[The Washington Post]]|title=Civilities, What does the acronym LGBTQ stand for?}}</ref> Those who add [[intersex]] people to [[Portal:LGBT|LGBT]] groups or organizing may use the extended initialism '''''{{dfn|LGBTI}}'''''.<ref>William L. Maurice, Marjorie A. Bowman, [https://books.google.com/books?id=HX9HAAAAMAAJ Sexual medicine in primary care], Mosby Year Book, 1999, {{ISBN|978-0-8151-2797-0}}</ref><ref name="Challenging Lesbian Nor"/> These two initialisms are sometimes combined to form the terms '''''{{dfn|LGBTIQ}}'''''{{thin space}}<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.voanews.com/a/trans-women-march-for-their-rights-in-conservative-indonesia/4894550.html|title=Trans Women March for Their Rights in Conservative Indonesia|last=Siddharta|first=Amanda|date=April 28, 2019 |website=VOA |language=en|access-date=April 28, 2019}}</ref> or '''''{{dfn|LGBT+}}''''' to encompass [[human sexuality spectrum|spectrums of sexuality]] and [[Gender identity|gender]].<ref name="udayton.edu">{{cite web|url=http://news.trust.org/item/20190426194739-w5zag/|title=Armenia's LGBT+ community still waits for change one year after revolution|last=Vikhrov|first=Natalie|date=April 26, 2019|website=Thomson Reuters Foundation|access-date=April 28, 2019}}</ref> Other, less common variants also exist, such as '''''LGBTQIA+''''',<ref>{{Cite web|title=LGBTQIA+ Terminology - Gender and Sexuality Student Services - UIS|url=https://www.uis.edu/gendersexualitystudentservices/about/lgbtqaterminology/|access-date=2021-01-18|website=www.uis.edu|language=en}}</ref> with the ''A'' standing for "[[Asexuality|asexual]]" or "[[Aromanticism|aromantic]]". Longer acronyms, with some being over twice as long as ''LGBT'', have prompted criticism for their length,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://qz.com/quartzy/1303522/the-new-rainbow-pride-flag-is-a-design-disaster-but-a-triumph-for-lgbtq-inclusiveness/ |title=The new rainbow pride flag is a design disaster—but a triumph for LGBTQ inclusiveness |publisher=Quartz |date=2018-06-12 |access-date=2020-07-07}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Coming to terms with terms|url=http://www.oakpark.com/News/Articles/9-24-2019/Coming-to-terms-with-terms/|access-date=2020-06-25|website=www.oakpark.com|language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Oli|date=2019-12-04|title=The challenge of generosity|url=https://oliverarditi.com/2019/12/04/the-challenge-of-generosity/|access-date=2020-06-25|website=Oliver Arditi|language=en}}</ref> and the implication that the acronym refers to a single community is also controversial.<ref name="Counseling Lesbian, G">{{cite book |last1=Finnegan |first1=Dana G. |first2 = Emily B. |last2=McNally |title=Counseling Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Substance Abusers: Dual Identities |publisher=Haworth Press |year=2002|isbn= 978-1-56023-925-3 |url =https://archive.org/details/counselinglesbia2002finn |url-access=registration }}</ref>

== History of the term ==
{{Main|Terminology of homosexuality}}
[[File:Stonewall_Inn_5_pride_weekend_2016.jpg|thumb|left|The [[Stonewall Inn]] in the [[gay village]] of [[Greenwich Village]], [[LGBT culture in New York City|Manhattan]], site of the June 1969 [[Stonewall riots]], the cradle of the modern [[LGBT rights]] movement and an icon of [[LGBT culture]], is adorned with [[Rainbow flag (LGBT)|rainbow pride flags]].<ref name=GayGreenwichVillage1>{{cite web|url=https://theculturetrip.com/north-america/usa/new-york/articles/why-new-york-city-is-a-major-destination-for-lgbt-travelers/|title=Why New York City Is a Major Destination for LGBT Travelers|author=Julia Goicichea|publisher=The Culture Trip|date=August 16, 2017|access-date=February 2, 2019}}</ref><ref name=GayGreenwichVillage2>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/25/nyregion/stonewall-inn-named-national-monument-a-first-for-gay-rights-movement.html
|title=Stonewall Inn Named National Monument, a First for the Gay Rights Movement|author=Eli Rosenberg|newspaper=The New York Times|date=June 24, 2016|access-date=June 25, 2016}}</ref><ref name=GayGreenwichVillage3>{{cite web |url=http://www.nps.gov/diversity/stonewall.htm |title=Workforce Diversity The Stonewall Inn, National Historic Landmark National Register Number: 99000562 |publisher=National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior |access-date=April 21, 2016}}</ref>]]
[[File:Palco BolognaPride08.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|LGBT publications, [[pride parade]]s, and related events, such as this stage at [[Bologna]] Pride 2008 in Italy, increasingly drop the ''LGBT'' initialism instead of regularly adding new letters, and dealing with issues of placement of those letters within the new title.<ref>Cahill, Sean, and Bryan Kim-Butler. "Policy priorities for the LGBT community: Pride Survey 2006." New York, NY: National Gay and Lesbian Task Force (2006).</ref>]]
The first widely used term, ''[[homosexual]]'', now carries negative connotations in the United States.<ref name=glaad>[https://www.glaad.org/reference/style Media Reference Guide] (citing AP, [[The Washington Post|Washington Post]] style guides), [[GLAAD]]. Retrieved 23 Dec 2019.</ref> It was replaced by  ''[[homophile]]'' in the 1950s and 1960s,<ref>{{cite book |last=Minton |first=Henry |title=Departing from Deviance |publisher=University of Chicago Press |year=2002 |isbn=978-0-226-53043-7 |url= https://archive.org/details/departingfromdev0000mint |url-access=registration |page=[https://archive.org/details/departingfromdev0000mint/page/238 238] |access-date=2009-01-01}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Stein|first=Marc|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6X5daAWEfxwC|title=Rethinking the Gay and Lesbian Movement|date=2012-06-14|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-136-33157-2|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.sunypress.edu/p-5329-masked-voices.aspx|title=Masked Voices|website=www.sunypress.edu|access-date=2020-02-24}}</ref>{{Dubious |Challenging the history of the term |reason=The term "homophile" was little used and never replaced "homosexual". |date=July 2017}} and subsequently ''[[gay]]'' in the 1970s; the latter term was adopted first by the homosexual community.<ref name="The Social Studies C">{{cite book |last=Ross |first=E. Wayne |title=The Social Studies Curriculum: Purposes, Problems, and Possibilities |publisher=SUNY Press |year=2006|isbn= 978-0-7914-6909-5 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=4qFMqjxte9IC }}</ref>

As lesbians forged more public identities, the phrase "gay and lesbian" became more common.<ref name="Gay Pride Nee"/> A dispute as to whether the primary focus of their political aims should be [[feminism]] or [[gay rights]] led to the dissolution of some lesbian organizations, including the [[Daughters of Bilitis]], which disbanded in 1970 following disputes over which goal should take precedence.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Esterberg | first1 = Kristen | year = 1994 | title = From Accommodation to Liberation: A Social Movement Analysis of Lesbians in the Homophile Movement | journal = Gender and Society | volume = 8 | issue = 3| pages = 424–443 |doi=10.1177/089124394008003008 | s2cid = 144795512 }}</ref> As equality was a priority for [[lesbian feminism|lesbian feminists]], disparity of roles between men and women or [[butch and femme]] were viewed as [[patriarchy|patriarchal]]. Lesbian feminists eschewed [[gender role]] play that had been pervasive in bars as well as the perceived [[chauvinism]] of [[gay men]]; many lesbian feminists refused to work with gay men, or take up their causes.<ref>Faderman, Lillian (1991). ''Odd Girls and Twilight Lovers: A [[History]] of Lesbian Life in Twentieth Century America'', Penguin Books. {{ISBN|0-14-017122-3}}, p. 210–211.</ref>

Lesbians who held the [[essentialism|essentialist]] view, that they had been born homosexual and used the descriptor "lesbian" to define sexual attraction, often considered the separatist opinions of lesbian-feminists to be detrimental to the cause of gay rights.<ref>Faderman (1991), p. 217–218.</ref> Bisexual and transgender people also sought recognition as legitimate categories within the larger minority community.<ref name="Gay Pride Nee">{{cite news | last=Swain | first=Keith W. | title=Gay Pride Needs New Direction | newspaper=[[Denver Post]] | date=21 June 2007 |url = http://www.denverpost.com/ci_6198394?source=rss |access-date= 2008-07-05 }}</ref>

After the elation of change following group action in the 1969 [[Stonewall riots]] in New York City, in the late 1970s and the early 1980s, some gays and lesbians became less accepting of [[bisexual]] or [[transgender]] people.<ref name="Transgender Subjectivities">{{cite book |last1=Leli |first1=Ubaldo |first2=Jack | last2=Drescher |title=Transgender Subjectivities: A Clinician's Guide |publisher=Haworth Press |year=2005|isbn= 978-0-7890-2576-0|url =https://books.google.com/books?id=QiJryCzrZmYC}}</ref><ref name="Bisexuality and Transgend">{{cite book |last1=Alexander |first1= Jonathan |first2=Karen |last2=Yescavage |title= Bisexuality and Transgenderism: InterSEXions of The Others |publisher=Haworth Press |year=2004|isbn= 978-1-56023-287-2 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2SOe4igsrbgC}}</ref> Critics{{like whom|date=September 2018}} said that transgender people were acting out [[stereotypes]] and bisexuals were simply gay men or lesbian women who were afraid to [[coming out|come out]] and be honest about their identity.<ref name="Transgender Subjectivities"/> Each community has struggled to develop its own identity including whether, and how, to align with other [[gender]] and [[sexuality]]-based communities, at times excluding other subgroups; these conflicts continue to this day.<ref name="Bisexuality and Transgend"/> LGBTQ activists and artists have created posters to raise consciousness about the issue since the movement began.<ref name="Exhibition Guide">{{cite web|url=http://www.politicalgraphics.org/out-of-the-closet |website=[[Center for the Study of Political Graphics]]|access-date=1 October 2016|title=Out of the Closet and Into the Streets}}</ref>

From about 1988, activists began to use the initialism ''LGBT'' in the United States.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=PiglAQAAIAAJ Research, policy and practice: Annual meeting], American Educational Research Association Verlag AERA, 1988.</ref> Not until the 1990s within the movement did gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people gain equal respect.<ref name="Bisexuality and Transgend"/>  This spurred some organizations to adopt new names, as the [[GLBT Historical Society]] did in 1999.  Although the LGBT community has seen much controversy regarding universal acceptance of different member groups (bisexual and transgender individuals, in particular, have sometimes been marginalized by the larger LGBT community), the term ''LGBT'' has been a positive symbol of inclusion.<ref name="The Handbook of Lesb">{{cite book |last=Shankle |first=Michael D. |title=The Handbook of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Public Health: A Practitioner's Guide To Service |publisher=Haworth Press |year=2006|isbn= 978-1-56023-496-8 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pUUyLSKD5voC}}</ref><ref name="Bisexuality and Transgend"/>

Despite the fact that ''LGBT'' does not nominally encompass all individuals in smaller communities (see Variants below), the term is generally accepted to include those not specifically identified in the four-letter initialism.<ref name="The Handbook of Lesb" /><ref name="Bisexuality and Transgend" /> Overall, the use of the term ''LGBT'' has, over time, largely aided in bringing otherwise marginalized individuals into the general community.<ref name="The Handbook of Lesb" /><ref name="Bisexuality and Transgend" /> Transgender actress [[Candis Cayne]] in 2009 described the LGBT community as "the last great minority", noting that "We can still be harassed openly" and be "called out on television".<ref name="Advocate 2009-03">{{cite news|title=I Advocate...|date=March 2009|work=[[The Advocate (LGBT magazine)|The Advocate]]|publisher=Issue #1024|page=80}}</ref>

In 2016, [[GLAAD]]'s Media Reference Guide states that ''LGBTQ'' is the preferred initialism, being more inclusive of younger members of the communities who embrace ''[[queer]]'' as a self-descriptor.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Ring|first1=Trudy|title=Expanding the Acronym: GLAAD Adds the Q to LGBT|url=http://www.advocate.com/media/2016/10/26/expanding-acronym-glaad-adds-q-lgbt|publisher=Advocate|access-date=30 October 2016|date=2016-10-26}}</ref> However, some people consider ''queer'' to be a derogatory term originating in hate speech and reject it, especially among older members of the community.<ref name="Nadal-2017">{{cite book |last=Nadal |first=Kevin |title=The SAGE Encyclopedia of Psychology and Gender |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lVYoDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA1384 |access-date=3 January 2019 |date=15 April 2017 |publisher=SAGE Publications |location=Thousand Oaks, California |isbn=978-1-4833-8427-6 |page=1384 |oclc=994139871}}</ref>

== Variants ==
=== General ===
[[File:Plaza de Mayo LGBT.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|2010 [[pride parade]] in [[Plaza de Mayo]], [[Buenos Aires]], which uses the LGBTIQ initialism<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.marchadelorgullo.org.ar/|title=Marcha del Orgullo LGBTIQ|language=es|publisher=Comisión Organizadora de la Marcha (C.O.M.O)|access-date=December 2, 2016}}</ref>]]
[[File:Helsinki Pride Parade I (5897488480).jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|People gathering at the [[Senate Square, Helsinki|Senate Square]], [[Helsinki]], right before the [[Helsinki Pride|2011 Helsinki Pride parade]] started]]

Many variants exist including variations that change the order of the letters; ''LGBT'' or ''GLBT'' are the most common terms.<ref name="Bisexuality and Transgend" /> Although identical in meaning, ''LGBT'' may have a more [[feminist]] connotation than ''GLBT'' as it places the "L" (for "lesbian") first.<ref name="Bisexuality and Transgend" /> ''LGBT'' may also include additional Qs for "[[queer]]" or "[[questioning (sexuality and gender)|questioning]]" (sometimes abbreviated with a question mark and sometimes used to mean anybody not literally L, G, B or T)  producing the variants ''LGBTQ'' and ''{{dfn|LGBTQQ}}''.<ref name="In-Between Bodies">{{cite book | last=Bloodsworth-Lugo | first=Mary K. | title=In-Between Bodies: Sexual Difference, Race, and Sexuality | publisher=SUNY Press | year=2007|isbn= 978-0-7914-7221-7 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=Ph74JKY_5dwC}}</ref><ref name="Girls' Violence">{{cite book | last1=Alder | first1=Christine | first2=Anne |last2=Worrall | title=Girls' Violence: Myths and Realities | publisher=SUNY Press | year=2004|isbn=978-0-7914-6110-5 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=O0ye93mW0eUC}}</ref><ref name="Advocacy Research in ">{{cite book | last1=Cherland | first1=Meredith Rogers | first2= Helen J. |last2=Harper | title=Advocacy Research in Literacy Education: Seeking Higher Ground | publisher=Routledge | year=2007|isbn= 978-0-8058-5056-7 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=ct_5Cf1aH0kC}}</ref> In the United Kingdom, it is sometimes stylized as ''{{dfn|LGB&T}}'',<ref>{{cite news |title=Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender couples urged to research honeymoon destinations|url=http://ilga.org/lesbian-gay-bisexual-transgender-couples-urged-research-honeymoon-destinations/ |access-date=14 April 2015|publisher=International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association|date=26 September 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=The National LGB&T Partnership|url=http://lgbt.foundation/policy-research/The-National-LGB-T-Partnership/|publisher=The National LGB&T Partnership|access-date=14 April 2015|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150525203730/http://lgbt.foundation/policy-research/The-National-LGB-T-Partnership/|archive-date=25 May 2015}}</ref> whilst the [[Green Party of England and Wales]] uses the term ''LGBTIQ'' in its manifesto and official publications.<ref name=LGBTIQGreens>{{cite web |url=http://lgbtiq-greens.greenparty.org.uk/ |title=Green Party LGBT Group Website |publisher=Lgbtiq-greens.greenparty.org.uk |date=17 May 2011 |access-date=25 May 2011}}</ref><ref name=EqualityForAll>{{cite web|title=EQUALITY FOR ALL|url=https://www.greenparty.org.uk/resources/LGBTIQ_Manifesto_v4%20FINAL.pdf |publisher=Green Party of England and Wales|access-date=3 May 2015}}</ref><ref name=PinkNewsLGBTIQGreen>{{cite news|last1=Duffy|first1=Nick|title=Green Party wants every teacher to be trained to teach LGBTIQ issues |url=http://www.pinknews.co.uk/2015/05/01/green-party-wants-every-teacher-to-be-trained-to-teach-lgbtiq-issues/ |access-date=3 May 2015 |work=[[PinkNews]] |date=1 May 2015}}</ref>

The order of the letters has not been standardized; in addition to the variations between the positions of the initial "L" or "G", the mentioned, less common letters, if used, may appear in almost any order.<ref name="Bisexuality and Transgend"/> Longer initialisms based on ''LGBT'' are sometimes referred to as "[[alphabet soup (linguistics)|alphabet soup]]".<ref name="pugetsoundoff.org">{{cite web|url=http://pugetsoundoff.org/blog/lgbtqqiaap-alphabet-soup-101|title=LGBTQQIAAP - 'Alphabet Soup 101'|publisher=PugetSoundOff.org|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141009110256/http://pugetsoundoff.org/blog/lgbtqqiaap-alphabet-soup-101|archive-date=October 2014|url-status=dead|access-date=6 October 2014}}</ref><ref name="DeMarco2012">{{cite web|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/linda-demarco/no-more-alphabet-soup_b_1527958.html |title=No More Alphabet Soup |work=The Huffington Post |date=18 July 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150203014445/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/linda-demarco/no-more-alphabet-soup_b_1527958.html |archive-date= 3 February 2015 |url-status=live |first1=Linda |last1=DeMarco |first2=Sylvain |last2=Bruni |orig-year=1st pub. 18 May 2012 |id=1527958 }}</ref> Variant terms do not typically represent political differences within the community, but arise simply from the preferences of individuals and groups.<ref name="Narrative Therapy">{{cite book | last1=Brown | first1=Catrina | first2=Tod |last2=Augusta-Scott | title=Narrative Therapy: Making Meaning, Making Lives | publisher=Sage Publications Inc | year= 2006|isbn= 978-1-4129-0988-4 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=STMieEKGGikC}}</ref>

The terms ''[[pansexual]]'', ''omnisexual'', ''fluid'' and ''queer-identified'' are regarded as falling under the umbrella term ''bisexual'' (and therefore are considered a part of the [[bisexual community]]).

Some use ''LGBT+'' to mean "LGBT and related communities".<ref name="udayton.edu"/> '''''{{dfn|LGBTQIA}}''''' is sometimes used and adds "queer, intersex, and [[asexuality|asexual]]" to the basic term.<ref>{{cite web|title=Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex, Asexual Resource Center|url=http://lgbtqia.ucdavis.edu/index.html|publisher=University of California, Davis|access-date=2017-01-20|date=September 21, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170202112709/http://lgbtqia.ucdavis.edu/index.html|archive-date=February 2, 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref> Other variants may have a "U" for "unsure"; a "C" for "curious"; another "T" for "[[transvestism|transvestite]]"; a "TS", or "2" for "[[two-spirit]]" persons; or an "SA" for "[[straight ally|straight allies]]".<ref name="Oberlin">{{cite book | last1=Lebaron  | first1=Sarah | first2=Jessica |last2=Pecsenye | first3=Becerra |last3=Roland |first4=Jon |last4=Skindzier | title=Oberlin College: Oberlin, Ohio | publisher= College Prowler, Inc | year=2005|isbn= 978-1-59658-092-3|url = https://books.google.com/books?id=T3RFabY6chcC}}</ref><ref name="Teaching about Asian">{{cite book | last1=Chen | first1=Edith Wen-Chu| first2=Glenn |last2=Omatsu | title=Teaching about Asian Pacific Americans: Effective Activities, Strategies, and Assignments for Classrooms and Communities (Critical Perspectives on Asian Pacific Americans) | publisher=Rowman & Littlefield | year=2006|isbn=978-0-7425-5338-5 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=JqLOnyU081kC}}</ref><ref name="After Revolution: M">{{cite book | last=Babb | first=Florence E. | title=After Revolution: Mapping Gender and Cultural Politics in Neoliberal Nicaragua | publisher=University of Texas Press | year=2001|isbn= 978-0-292-70900-3| url = https://archive.org/details/afterrevolution00flor| url-access=registration }}</ref><ref name="Gay and Lesbian Righ">{{cite book | last=Padilla | first=Yolanda C. | title=Gay and Lesbian Rights Organizing: Community-based Strategies | publisher=Haworth Press | year=2003|isbn= 978-1-56023-275-9 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=DN2KGHnYN0EC }}</ref><ref name="From Hate Crimes t">{{cite book | last1=Swigonski | first1=Mary E. | first2=Robin S. |last2=Mama |first3=Kelly |last3=Ward |first4=Matthew |last4=Shepard | title=From Hate Crimes to Human Rights: A Tribute to Matthew Shepard | publisher=Haworth Press | year=2001|isbn=978-1-56023-257-5|url = https://books.google.com/books?id=fzp9QP0h6bAC}}</ref> However, the inclusion of straight allies in the LGBT acronym has proven controversial as many straight allies have been accused of using LGBT advocacy to gain popularity and status in recent years,<ref name="Becker2006">{{cite journal|last=Becker|first=Ron|title=Gay-Themed Television and the Slumpy Class: The Affordable, Multicultural Politics of the Gay Nineties|journal=Television & New Media|date=2006|volume=7|pages=184–215|doi=10.1177/1527476403255830|issue=2|s2cid=145717408|issn=1527-4764}}</ref> and various LGBT activists have criticised the heteronormative worldview of certain straight allies.<ref name="DeTurk2011">{{cite journal|last=DeTurk|first=Sara|title=Allies in Action: The Communicative Experiences of People Who Challenge Social Injustice on Behalf of Others|journal=Communication Quarterly|date=2011|volume=59|issue=5|pages=569–590|doi=10.1080/01463373.2011.614209|issn=0146-3373|doi-access=free}}</ref> Some may also add a "P" for "[[polyamorous]]", an "H" for "[[HIV|HIV-affected]]", or an "O" for "other".<ref name="Bisexuality and Transgend"/><ref name="Peace Kills">{{cite book | last=O'Rourke | first=P. J. | title=Peace Kills: America's Fun New Imperialism | publisher=Grove Press | year=2001|isbn= 978-0-8021-4198-9 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=IqivmWcKYZEC}}</ref> Furthermore, the initialism ''{{dfn|LGBTIH}}'' has seen use in [[India]] to encompass the [[Hijra (South Asia)|hijra]] [[third gender]] identity and the related subculture.<ref name="Pune Mirror">{{cite web|last1=Gurjar|first1=Kaumudi|title=Maiden stage act by city's LGBT face gets censor's chop|url=http://www.punemirror.in/pune/cover-story/Maiden-stage-act-by-citys-LGBT-face-gets-censors-chop/articleshow/45312884.cms|website=punemirror.in|publisher=Pune Mirror|access-date=22 December 2014}}</ref><ref name=GayLeeds>{{cite web|last1=McCusker|first1=Ros|title=Gay Leeds&nbsp;— Your comprehensive guide to all things gay in Leeds|url=http://www.gayleeds.com/editors/article/_LGB-or-LGBT-or-LGBTQ-or-What/|website=gayleeds.com|access-date=22 December 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150109003322/http://www.gayleeds.com/editors/article/_LGB-or-LGBT-or-LGBTQ-or-What/|archive-date=9 January 2015}}</ref>

The initialism ''{{dfn|LGBTTQQIAAP}}'' (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, transsexual, queer, [[Questioning (sexuality and gender)|questioning]], intersex, asexual, ally, pansexual) has also resulted, although such initialisms are sometimes criticized for being confusing and leaving some people out, as well as issues of placement of the letters within the new title.<ref name="pugetsoundoff.org"/> However, adding the term "allies" to the initialism has sparked controversy,<ref name=ISD>{{cite web|last1=Kelly|first1=Morgan|title=Adding 'allies' to LGBT acronym sparks controversy|url=http://www.iowastatedaily.com/news/article_50e5e8f6-5edc-11e4-a17f-f77a797314c5.html|website=iowastatedaily.com|publisher=Iowa State Daily|access-date=29 December 2014}}</ref> with some seeing the inclusion of "ally" in place of "asexual" as a form of [[asexual erasure]].<ref name=Maroon1>{{cite web|last1=Richard |first1=Katherine |title=Column: "A" stands for asexuals and not allies |url=http://www.loyolamaroon.com/2.6713/column-a-stands-for-asexuals-and-not-allies-1.2833151 |website=loyolamaroon.com |publisher=The Maroon |access-date=29 December 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131206150654/http://www.loyolamaroon.com/2.6713/column-a-stands-for-asexuals-and-not-allies-1.2833151 |archive-date= 6 December 2013 |quote=That "A" is not for allies[,] [t]hat "A" is for asexuals. [...] Much like bisexuality, asexuality suffers from erasure. |url-status=dead }}</ref> There is also the [[acronym]] ''{{dfn|QUILTBAG}}'' (queer and questioning, unsure, intersex, lesbian, transgender and two-spirit, bisexual, asexual and aromantic, and gay and genderqueer).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.apex-magazine.com/reaching-into-the-quiltbag-the-evolving-world-of-queer-speculative-fiction/|title=Reaching into the QUILTBAG: The Evolving World of Queer Speculative Fiction|work=Apex Magazine|access-date=6 October 2014|date=2012-03-06}}</ref>

{{anchor|LGBTIQA+}} Similarly ''{{dfn|LGBTIQA+}}'' stands for "lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, queer/questioning, asexual and many other terms (such as non-binary and pansexual)".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.latrobe.edu.au/students/support/wellbeing/lgbtiqa-services/what-lgbtiqa-means|title=What does LGBTIQA+ mean|last=University|first=La Trobe|website=www.latrobe.edu.au|language=en|access-date=13 October 2018}}</ref> The ''+'' after the "A" may denote a second "A" representing "allies".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://diversity.utexas.edu/genderandsexuality/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/Handout-LGBTQA-Definitions-2016.pdf|title=Concepts & Categories of LGBTQA+Identities|last=University|first=Texas|website=www.utexas.edu//|language=en|access-date=29 June 2020}}</ref>

In Canada, the community is sometimes identified as LGBTQ2 (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer and Two Spirit).<ref>{{cite web |url=https://pm.gc.ca/eng/news/2017/11/28/government-canada-initiatives-support-lgbtq2-communities-and-promote-diversity-and |title= Government of Canada initiatives to support LGBTQ2 communities and promote diversity and inclusion |date=28 November 2017 |website=JUSTIN TRUDEAU, PRIME MINISTER OF CANADA |access-date=8 January 2019}}</ref> Depending on the which organization is using the acronym the choice of acronym changes. Businesses and the [[Canadian Broadcasting Corporation|CBC]] often simply employ ''LGBT'' as a proxy for any longer acronym, private activist groups often employ ''LGBTQ+'',<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rainbowrefugee.com/|title=Rainbow Refugee|access-date=8 January 2019}}</ref> whereas public health providers favour the more inclusive ''LGBT2Q+'' to accommodate twin spirited [[indigenous peoples]].<ref>{{cite web |title=LGBT2Q+ |url=http://www.vch.ca/public-health/health-topics-a-z/topics/lgbt2q+ |website=www.vch.ca}}</ref>  For a time the [[Pride Toronto]] organization used the much lengthier acronym ''{{dfn|LGBTTIQQ2SA}}'', but appears to have dropped this in favour of simpler wording.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Szklarski |first1=Cassandra |title=Is it time to drop LGBTQ's 'infinitely expanding alphabet' for something simpler? {{!}} CBC News |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/lgbtq-queer-sexual-diversity-pride-labels-acronym-1.3661094 |access-date=8 January 2019 |work=CBC |publisher=CBC |date=2016-07-02 |language=en}}</ref>

=== Transgender inclusion ===
The term trans* has been adopted by some groups as a more inclusive alternative to "transgender", where trans (without the asterisk) has been used to describe [[trans men]] and [[trans women]], while trans* covers all non-cisgender ([[genderqueer]]) identities, including transgender, transsexual, transvestite, genderqueer, genderfluid, [[Non-binary gender|non-binary]], [[genderfuck]], genderless, [[agender]], non-gendered, third gender, two-spirit, [[bigender]], and trans man and trans woman.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.slate.com/blogs/outward/2014/01/10/trans_what_does_it_mean_and_where_did_it_come_from.html |title=What Does Trans* Mean, and Where Did It Come From?' | first=Hugh|last= Ryan| date=10 January 2014 |work=[[Slate (magazine)|Slate]]|access-date=21 May 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://vadenprd.stanford.edu/special-topics/lgbtq-health/glossary |title=Glossary of Transgender Terms |date=14 February 2014 |work=Vaden Health Center Stanford University |access-date=21 May 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140521105407/http://vadenprd.stanford.edu/special-topics/lgbtq-health/glossary |archive-date=21 May 2014 }}</ref> Likewise, the term ''transsexual'' commonly falls under the umbrella term ''transgender'', but some transsexual people object to this.<ref name="Bisexuality and Transgend" />

When not inclusive of transgender people, the shorter term ''LGB'' is used instead of ''LGBT''.<ref name="Bisexuality and Transgend" /><ref name="Psychology and Sexu">{{cite book | last=Bohan | first=Janis S. | title= Psychology and Sexual Orientation: Coming to Terms | publisher= Routledge | year=1996|isbn=978-0-415-91514-4| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=v5IzSjeq1S8C}}</ref>

=== Intersex inclusion ===
{{main|Intersex and LGBT}}
The relationship of [[intersex]] to lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans, and queer communities is complex,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Dreger |first=Alice |title=Reasons to Add and Reasons NOT to Add "I" (Intersex) to LGBT in Healthcare |date=4 May 2015 |access-date=May 8, 2021 |url=https://www.aamc.org/download/431576/data/reasonsdeck.pdf |publisher=[[Association of American Medical Colleges]]}}</ref> but intersex people are often added to the LGBT category to create an LGBTI community. Some intersex people prefer the initialism ''LGBTI'', while others would rather that they not be included as part of the term.<ref name="Challenging Lesbian Nor">{{cite book | last=Aragon | first=Angela Pattatuchi | title=Challenging Lesbian Norms: Intersex, Transgender, Intersectional, and Queer Perspectives | publisher=Haworth Press | year=2006|isbn= 978-1-56023-645-0 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=usruybRjfMUC |access-date= 2008-07-05 }}</ref><ref name="Fenway Guide">{{cite book | last1= Makadon | first1=Harvey J. | first2=Kenneth H. |last2=Mayer |first3=Jennifer |last3=Potter |first4=Hilary |last4=Goldhammer | title=The Fenway Guide to Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Health | publisher=ACP Press | year=2008|isbn=978-1-930513-95-2 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=VsRwtwb-He8C}}</ref> Emi Koyama describes how inclusion of intersex in ''LGBTI'' can fail to address intersex-specific human rights issues, including creating false impressions "that intersex people's rights are protected" by laws protecting LGBT people, and failing to acknowledge that many intersex people are not LGBT.<ref>{{cite web| last = Koyama| first = Emi| title = Adding the "I": Does Intersex Belong in the LGBT Movement?| work = Intersex Initiative| url = http://www.intersexinitiative.org/articles/lgbti.html | access-date = 18 May 2016}}</ref> [[Organisation Intersex International Australia]] states that some intersex individuals are same sex attracted, and some are heterosexual, but "LGBTI activism has fought for the rights of people who fall outside of expected binary sex and gender norms".<ref>{{cite web | title = Intersex for allies | url = http://oii.org.au/allies | date = 21 November 2012 | access-date = 18 May 2016}}</ref><ref>[http://gaynewsnetwork.com.au/news/oii-releases-new-resource-on-intersex-issues-13999.html OII releases new resource on intersex issues] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140606202143/http://gaynewsnetwork.com.au/news/oii-releases-new-resource-on-intersex-issues-13999.html |date=2014-06-06 }}, ''Intersex for allies'' and ''Making services intersex inclusive'' by Organisation Intersex International Australia, via Gay News Network, 2 June 2014.</ref> [[Julius Kaggwa]] of SIPD Uganda has written that, while the gay community "offers us a place of relative safety, it is also oblivious to our specific needs".<ref name="Kaggwa2016">{{Cite news| issn = 0261-3077| last = Kaggwa| first = Julius| title = I'm an intersex Ugandan – life has never felt more dangerous| work = [[The Guardian]]| access-date = 2016-10-03| date = September 19, 2016| url = https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/sep/16/intersex-ugandan-lgbt-gay-rights-life-never-felt-more-dangerous?}}</ref>

Numerous studies have shown higher rates of same sex attraction in intersex people,<ref name="mb1991" /><ref name="hast2010">{{Citation| publisher = The Hastings Center Bioethics Forum| last1 = Dreger| first1 = Alice| last2 = Feder| first2 = Ellen K| last3 = Tamar-Mattis| first3 = Anne| title = Preventing Homosexuality (and Uppity Women) in the Womb?| date = 29 June 2010 | access-date = 18 May 2016| url = http://www.thehastingscenter.org/Bioethicsforum/Post.aspx?id=4754}}</ref> with a recent Australian study of people born with atypical sex characteristics finding that 52% of respondents were non-heterosexual,<ref name="oiijones">{{cite web | url = https://oii.org.au/30313/intersex-stories-statistics-australia/ | title = New publication "Intersex: Stories and Statistics from Australia" | work = [[Organisation Intersex International Australia]] | date = February 3, 2016 | access-date = 2016-08-18 | archive-date = 2016-08-29 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160829033933/https://oii.org.au/30313/intersex-stories-statistics-australia/ | url-status = dead }}</ref><ref name="jones2016">{{Cite book|publisher=Open Book Publishers |isbn=978-1-78374-208-0 |last1=Jones |first1=Tiffany |last2=Hart |first2=Bonnie |last3=Carpenter |first3=Morgan |last4=Ansara |first4=Gavi |last5=Leonard |first5=William |last6=Lucke |first6=Jayne |title=Intersex: Stories and Statistics from Australia |location=Cambridge, UK |date=2016 |access-date=2 February 2016 |url=http://oii.org.au/wp-content/uploads/key/Intersex-Stories-Statistics-Australia.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160914152729/http://oii.org.au/wp-content/uploads/key/Intersex-Stories-Statistics-Australia.pdf |archive-date=14 September 2016 }}</ref> thus research on intersex subjects has been used to explore means of preventing homosexuality.<ref name="mb1991">{{Cite journal| doi = 10.1089/cap.1990.1.279| issn = 1044-5463| volume = 1| issue = 4| pages = 279–283| last = Meyer-Bahlburg| first = Heino F.L.| title = Will Prenatal Hormone Treatment Prevent Homosexuality?| journal = Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychopharmacology| date = January 1990| quote = human studies of the effects of altering the prenatal hormonal milieu by the administration of exogenous hormones lend support to a prenatal hormone theory that implicates both androgens and estrogens in the development of gender preference ... it is likely that prenatal hormone variations may be only one among several factors influencing the development of sexual orientation}}</ref><ref name="hast2010" /> As an experience of being born with sex characteristics that do not fit social norms,<ref name="unfe-fact">{{cite web| author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> | publisher = United Nations [[Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights]] | title = Free & Equal Campaign Fact Sheet: Intersex| date = 2015| url = https://unfe.org/system/unfe-65-Intersex_Factsheet_ENGLISH.pdf | access-date = 28 March 2016 }}</ref> intersex can be distinguished from transgender,<ref name="coeres1952">[http://www.assembly.coe.int/nw/xml/XRef/Xref-XML2HTML-en.asp?fileid=20057&lang=en Children's right to physical integrity], [[Council of Europe]] Parliamentary Assembly, Report Doc. 13297, 6 September 2013.</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://interactyouth.org/post/100048044990/laverne-cox-is-on-this-weeks-faking-it-in-honor |title=Trans? Intersex? Explained! |publisher=[[Advocates for Informed Choice#Inter/Act|Inter/Act]] |access-date=2013-07-10}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://oii.org.au/18194/differences-intersex-trans/ |title=Basic differences between intersex and trans |publisher=[[Organisation Intersex International Australia]] |access-date=2013-07-10|date=2011-06-03 }}</ref> while some intersex people are both intersex and transgender.<ref>{{Citation| publisher = Intersex Day| last = Cabral Grinspan| first = Mauro|author-link1 = Mauro Cabral| title = The marks on our bodies| date = October 25, 2015 | url = http://intersexday.org/en/mauro-cabral-marks-bodies/}}</ref>

{{anchor|Criticism}}

== Criticism of the term ==
[[File:Were a gay and happy family wagon.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|LGBT families, like these in a 2007 [[LGBT culture in Boston|Boston]] [[pride parade]], are labeled as ''[[non-heterosexual]]'' by researchers for a variety of reasons.<ref name="The Spectre of Promiscuity">{{cite book | last = Klesse | first = Christian | title= The Spectre of Promiscuity: Gay Male and Bisexual Non-Monogamies and Polyamories | publisher=Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. | isbn = 978-0-7546-4906-9 | year= 2007 | url =https://books.google.com/books?id=_UR77Hw2WLYC }}{{clarify |reason=Does this source really claim that trans individuals are "non-heterosexual"? This needs a page number, and an excerpt. |date=May 2018}}{{better source needed |reason=As the title of the reference indicates, this book is about gay males and bisexuals; an assertion about "LGBT families" would be better off in a book covering all facets of LGBT. |date=May 2018}}</ref>]]
The initialisms ''LGBT'' or ''GLBT'' are not agreed to by everyone that they encompass.<ref name="Counseling Lesbian, G" /> For example, some argue that transgender and transsexual causes are not the same as that of lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) people.<ref name="Coming Out in Christi">{{cite book | last=Wilcox | first=Melissa M. | title= Coming Out in Christianity: Religion, Identity, and Community | publisher=Indiana University Press | year=2003|isbn= 978-0-253-21619-9|url = https://books.google.com/books?id=yjdhpMnHEIMC}}</ref> This argument centers on the idea that being transgender or transsexual have to do more with gender identity, or a person's understanding of being or not being a man or a woman irrespective of their sexual orientation.<ref name="Bisexuality and Transgend"/> LGB issues can be seen as a matter of sexual orientation or attraction.<ref name="Bisexuality and Transgend"/> These distinctions have been made in the context of political action in which LGB goals, such as [[same-sex marriage]] legislation and [[human rights]] work (which may not include transgender and intersex people), may be perceived to differ from transgender and transsexual goals.<ref name="Bisexuality and Transgend"/>

A belief in "lesbian & gay separatism" (not to be confused with the related "[[lesbian separatism]]"), holds that lesbians and gay men form (or should form) a community distinct and separate from other groups normally included in the LGBTQ sphere.<ref name="Gays/Justice">{{cite book
 | last=Mohr | first=Richard D. | title=Gays/Justice: A Study of Ethics, Society, and Law | publisher=Columbia University Press
 | year=1988|isbn= 978-0-231-06735-5 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=dfUw8Zl0kPEC | access-date= 2008-07-05 }}</ref> While not always appearing of sufficient number or organization to be called a [[social movement|movement]], separatists are a significant, vocal, and active element within many parts of the LGBT community.<ref name="Sexual Identities, Queer Politi"/><ref name="Gays/Justice"/><ref name="Gay and Lesbian Polit">{{cite book
 | last=Blasius | first=Mark | title=Gay and Lesbian Politics: Sexuality and the Emergence of a New Ethic | publisher=Temple University Press | year=1994|isbn=978-1-56639-173-3 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=89C9DGEertsC}}</ref> In some cases separatists will deny the existence or right to equality of bisexual orientations and of transsexuality,<ref name="Sexual Identities, Queer Politi" /> sometimes leading public [[biphobia]] and [[transphobia]].<ref name="Sexual Identities, Queer Politi" /><ref name="Gays/Justice"/> In contrasts to separatists, [[Peter Tatchell]] of the LGBT human rights group [[OutRage!]] argues that to separate the transgender movement from the LGB would be "political madness", stating that:<ref name="LGB but Why T?">{{cite web|last1=Tatchell|first1=Peter|title=LGB - but why T?|url=http://www.mother-ship.com/blog/lgbt-lesbian-gay-bisexual-but-why-transgender-1721|website=mother-ship.com|publisher=Mothership Blog|access-date=18 March 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090703020520/http://www.mother-ship.com/blog/lgbt-lesbian-gay-bisexual-but-why-transgender-1721|archive-date=3 July 2009|date=24 June 2009|quote=To try and separate the LGB from the T, and from women, is political madness. Queers are, like transgender people, gender deviant. We don't conform to traditional heterosexist assumptions of male and female behaviour, in that we have sexual and emotional relationships with the same sex. We should celebrate our discordance with mainstream straight norms. The right to be different is a fundamental human right. The idea that we should conform to straight expectations is demeaning and insulting.|url-status=dead}}</ref> 
<blockquote>
Queers are, like transgender people, gender deviant. We don't conform to traditional heterosexist assumptions of male and female behaviour, in that we have sexual and emotional relationships with the same sex. We should celebrate our discordance with mainstream straight norms.[...]  </blockquote>

The portrayal of an all-encompassing "LGBT community" or "LGB community" is also disliked by some lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people.<ref name="That's Revolting">{{cite book
 | last=Sycamore | first=Matt Bernstein | title=That's Revolting!: Queer Strategies for Resisting Assimilation | publisher= Soft Skull Press | year=2005|isbn= 978-1-932360-56-1
 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=4moAP04OpPIC
 | access-date=2008-07-05}}</ref><ref name="The Political Edge">{{cite book | last=Carlsson | first=Chris | title=The Political Edge | publisher=City Lights Books | year=2005|isbn=978-1-931404-05-1|url = https://archive.org/details/politicaledge00carl
| url-access=registration |access-date=2008-07-05 }}</ref> Some do not subscribe to or approve of the [[LGBT rights|political and social solidarity, and visibility and human rights campaigning]] that normally goes with it including [[gay pride]] marches and events.<ref name="That's Revolting"/><ref name="The Political Edge"/> Some of them believe that grouping together people with non-heterosexual orientations perpetuates the myth that being gay/lesbian/bi/asexual/pansexual/etc. makes a person deficiently different from other people.<ref name="That's Revolting"/> These people are often less visible compared to more mainstream gay or LGBT activists.<ref name="That's Revolting"/><ref name="The Political Edge"/> Since this faction is difficult to distinguish from the heterosexual majority, it is common for people to assume all LGBT people support LGBT liberation and the visibility of LGBT people in society, including the right to live one's life in a different way from the majority.<ref name="That's Revolting"/><ref name="The Political Edge"/><ref name="Class Matters: Cr">{{cite book | last=Leondar-Wright | first=Betsy | title=Class Matters: Cross-Class Alliance Building for Middle-Class Activists
| publisher=New Society Publishers | year=2005|isbn= 978-0-86571-523-3
| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aD4yphfHBWMC}}</ref> In the 1996 book ''Anti-Gay'', a collection of essays edited by [[Mark Simpson (journalist)|Mark Simpson]], the concept of a 'one-size-fits-all' identity based on [[LGBT stereotypes]] is criticized for suppressing the individuality of LGBT people.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.marksimpson.com/pages/anti_gay.html |title=Anti-Gay |publisher=Marksimpson.com |access-date=2011-10-23 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110927113556/http://www.marksimpson.com/pages/anti_gay.html |archive-date=September 27, 2011 }}</ref>

{{Anchor|Drop the T<!--redirect target-->}}Writing in the [[BBC News Magazine]] in 2014, [[Julie Bindel]] questions whether the various gender groupings now, "bracketed together" ... "share the same issues, values and goals?"  Bindel refers to a number of possible new initialisms for differing combinations and concludes that it may be time for the alliances to be reformed or finally go "our separate ways".<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-28130472|title=Viewpoint: Should gay men and lesbians be bracketed together?|author=Julie Bindel|date=2 July 2014|work=[[BBC News Magazine]]|access-date=4 July 2014|author-link=Julie Bindel}}</ref> In 2015, the slogan "Drop the T" was coined to encourage [[LGBT rights organization|LGBT organizations]] to stop support of [[transgender]] people; while receiving support from [[TERF|some feminists]]<ref>{{cite news | last=Glover | first=Katie | title=Why it's time to take the T out of LGBT | website=The Independent | date=2015-09-10 | url=http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/why-its-time-to-take-the-t-out-of-lgbt-10493352.html | access-date=2019-10-23}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | last=McCloy | first=Spencer | title=Why the LGBT Alliance Could Be on the Brink of Schism | website=The Heritage Foundation | date=2018-07-27 | url=https://www.heritage.org/gender/commentary/why-the-lgbt-alliance-could-be-the-brink-schism | access-date=2019-10-23}}</ref> as well as transgender individuals,<ref>{{cite web | title=Why it's time to remove the T from LGBT | website=Metro News | date=2015-04-06 | url=https://metro.co.uk/2015/04/06/why-its-time-to-remove-the-t-from-lgbt-5116737/ | access-date=2019-10-23}}</ref> the campaign has been widely condemned by many [[List of LGBT-related organizations and conferences|LGBT groups]] as [[transphobic]].<ref name=adv>{{cite web|url=http://www.advocate.com/transgender/2015/11/06/lgbt-groups-respond-petition-asking-drop-t|title=LGBT Groups Respond to Petition Asking to 'Drop the T'|date=6 November 2015|website=www.advocate.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.pinknews.co.uk/2015/11/12/drop-the-t-counter-petition-surpases-original/|title=Signatures for 'Drop The T' counter-petition surpass original - PinkNews · PinkNews|website=www.pinknews.co.uk|date=2015-11-12}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.teenvogue.com/story/drop-the-t-petition-backlash|title=Why More Than 1,000 People Have Signed a Petition to Drop the "T" From LGBT|first=Condé|last=Nast|website=Teen Vogue}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/gay-transphobia-2015-styl_b_8546278|title=Gay Transphobia, 2015 Style|first1=Dana|last1=Beyer|first2=ContributorExecutive|last2=Director|first3=Gender Rights|last3=Maryl|date=12 November 2015|website=HuffPost}}</ref>

In December 29, 2020, the [[Women's Liberation Front]], an organisation noted for its opposition to [[gender identity]] legislation,<ref name=Haywood2016>{{cite news |url=http://www.santafenewmexican.com/news/local%20news/radical-feminists-sue-obama-administration-in-new-mexico-court-over/article/53f86667-80aa-58dd-8d8c-299ca8b533d1.html |title=Radical feminists sue Obama administration in New Mexico court over bathroom directive |first=Phaedra |last=Haywood |date=August 12, 2016 |work=[[The Santa Fe New Mexican]] |access-date=March 7, 2019 }}</ref> published a media [[style guide]], in part as a response to the [[Trans Journalists Association]]'s guide having been adopted by the [[Society of Professional Journalists]].<ref name="Style guide release">{{Cite web |url=https://www.womensliberationfront.org/news/wolf-media-style-guide |title=WoLF Media Style Guide |publisher=Women's Liberation Front |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201231133126/https://www.womensliberationfront.org/news/wolf-media-style-guide |date=December 29, 2020 |archive-date=December 31, 2020 |access-date=December 31, 2020 }}</ref> Amongst other advice, the style guide recommended avoiding the term "LGBT" unless discussing topics relevant to "trans-identified individuals" as well as "lesbians, gays [and] bisexuals".<ref name="WoLF style guide">{{Cite web |url=https://www.womensliberationfront.org/s/Media-Style-Guide.pdf <!-- redirects to https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5f232ea74d8342386a7ebc52/t/5feca1b5ff4ef250d3f33570/1609343414215/Media+Style+Guide.pdf --> |title=2021 Media Style Guide |publisher=Women's Liberation Front |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201230214153/https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5f232ea74d8342386a7ebc52/t/5feca1b5ff4ef250d3f33570/1609343414215/Media+Style+Guide.pdf |date=December 29, 2020 |archive-date=December 30, 2020 |access-date=December 31, 2020 }}</ref>

== Alternative terms ==

=== Queer ===
Many people have looked for a generic term to replace the numerous existing initialisms.<ref name="Sexual Identities, Queer Politi">{{cite book | last=Atkins | first=Dawn | title= Looking Queer: Body Image and Identity in Lesbian, Bisexual, Gay, and Transgender Communities | publisher=Haworth Press | year=1998|isbn= 978-0-7890-0463-5|url = https://books.google.com/books?id=Rd31TPHaxdEC}}</ref> Words such as ''[[queer]]'' (an umbrella term for sexual and gender minorities that are not heterosexual, or gender-binary) and ''[[rainbow flag (LGBT movement)|rainbow]]'' have been tried, but most have not been widely adopted.<ref name="Sexual Identities, Queer Politi" /><ref name="Forging Gay Identities">{{cite book
 | last=Armstrong | first=Elizabeth A. | title=Forging Gay Identities: Organizing Sexuality in San Francisco, 1950–1994
 | publisher=University of Chicago Press | year=2002|isbn= 978-0-226-02694-7 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=jnYy6hSdocAC
 | access-date=2008-07-05 }}</ref> ''Queer'' has many negative connotations to older people who remember the word as a taunt and insult and such (negative) usage of the term continues.<ref name="Sexual Identities, Queer Politi" /><ref name="Forging Gay Identities" /> Many younger people also understand ''queer'' to be more politically charged than ''LGBT''.<ref name="Forging Gay Identities" /><ref name="It's Your World">{{cite book | last=Halpin | first=Mikki | title=It's Your World—If You Don't Like It, Change It: Activism for Teenagers
 | publisher=Simon and Schuster | year=2004|isbn= 978-0-689-87448-2
 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=Ud3Zzo2-VMsC}}</ref>

=== Rainbow ===
"Rainbow" has connotations that recall [[hippies]], [[New Age]] movements, and groups such as the [[Rainbow Family]] or [[Jesse Jackson]]'s [[Rainbow/PUSH|Rainbow/PUSH Coalition]]. ''SGL'' ("[[same gender loving]]") is sometimes favored among gay male [[African American]]s as a way of distinguishing themselves from what they regard as [[white people|white]]-dominated LGBT communities.<ref name="The Politics of Gay Rights">{{cite book | last1=Rimmerman | first1=Craig A. | first2=Kenneth D. |last2=Wald |first3=Clyde |last3=Wilcox | title=The Politics of Gay Rights | publisher=University of Chicago Press | year=2006|isbn= 978-1-4129-0988-4|url = https://books.google.com/books?id=AlErV-3RpDEC }}</ref>

=== SGM/GSM ===
{{Main|Sexual minority}}
SGM, or GSM,<ref>{{Cite web|last=Besanvalle|first=James|date=2018-07-20|title=Five alternative terms you can use instead of LGBT|url=https://www.gaystarnews.com/article/five-alternative-terms-instead-lgbt/|access-date=2021-01-20|website=Gay Star News|language=en-GB}}</ref> an abbreviation for Sexual and Gender Minorities, has gained particular currency in government, academia, and medicine. It has been adopted by the [[National Institutes of Health]];<ref>{{Cite web|title=Sexual & Gender Minority Research Office|url=https://dpcpsi.nih.gov/sgmro|access-date=2020-11-23|website=National Institutes of Health}}</ref> the [[Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services]];<ref>{{Cite web|title=Sexual and Gender Minority Clearinghouse|url=https://www.cms.gov/About-CMS/Agency-Information/OMH/resource-center/hcps-and-researchers/data-tools/sgm-clearinghouse|access-date=2020-11-23|website=Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services}}</ref> and the UCLA [[Williams Institute on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Law and Public Policy|Williams Institute]], which studies SGM law and policy.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Park|first=Andrew|date=July 2016|title=A Development Agenda for Sexual and Gender Minorities|url=https://williamsinstitute.law.ucla.edu/publications/development-agenda-sgm/|access-date=2020-11-23|website=Williams Institute|language=en-US}}</ref> An NIH paper recommends the term SGM because it is inclusive of "those who may not self-identify as LGBT … or those who have a specific medical condition affecting reproductive development,"<ref>{{Citation|title=Strategic Plan to Advance Research on the Health and Well-being of Sexual and Gender Minorities|date=<!-- c. 2015 -->|url=https://www.edi.nih.gov/sites/default/files/EDI_Public_files/sgm-strategic-plan.pdf|publisher=National Institutes of Health|access-date=2020-11-23}}</ref> while a UK government paper favors SGM because initials like LGBTIQ+ stand for terms that, especially outside the [[Global North]], are "not necessarily inclusive of local understandings and terms used to describe sexual and gender minorities."<ref>{{Citation|title=Gender and Strategic Communications in Conflict and Stabilisation Contexts|date=January 2020|url=https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/866351/How_to_Guide_on_Gender_and_Strategic_Communication_in_Conflict_and_Stabilisation_Contexts_-_January_2020_-_Stabilisation_Unit.pdf|publisher=HM Government|access-date=2020-11-23}}</ref> An example of usage outside the Global North is the [[Constitution of Nepal]], which identifies "gender and sexual minorities" as a protected class.<ref>{{Citation|title=Constitution of Nepal|year=2015|url=http://www.lawcommission.gov.np/en/archives/981|publisher=Nepal Law Commission|access-date=2020-11-24}}</ref>

=== Further umbrella terms ===
Some people advocate the term "minority sexual and gender identities" (MSGI, coined in 2000), so as to explicitly include all people who are not [[cisgender]] and [[heterosexual]]; or ''gender, sexual, and romantic minorities'' (GSRM), which is more explicitly inclusive of [[Romantic orientation|minority romantic orientations]] and [[polyamory]]; but those have not been widely adopted either.<ref name="Bradford Uni">{{cite web | title=Welcome to the Bradford University Minority Sexual and Gender Identity Site! | publisher=Bradford Uni MSGI Society | year=2008 | url =http://lgbt.wikidot.com/ | access-date=2008-09-09 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.acronymfinder.com/Gender,-Sexual,-and-Romantic-Minorities-%28GSRM%29.html|title=GSRM - Gender, Sexual, and Romantic Minorities|publisher=acronymfinder.com|access-date=6 October 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ron-suresha/diversities-may-enrich-lgbtqiap-alphabet-soup_b_3929870.html|title='Diversities' May Enrich 'LGBTQIAP' Alphabet Soup|date=19 September 2013|work=The Huffington Post|access-date=6 October 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=LGBT? LGBTQ? Queer? QUILTBAG? GSM? GSRM?|url=http://queerumich.com/post/25021141159/lgbt-lgbtq-queer-quiltbag-gsm-gsrm-whats|website=queerumich.com|publisher=[[University of Michigan]] (on [[Tumblr]])|access-date=12 March 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Gender and Sexual Minority Students (LGBTIQA)|url=http://www.derby.ac.uk/campus/support/gender-and-sexual-minority-students/|publisher=University of Derby|access-date=12 March 2015}}</ref> Other rare umbrella terms are [[Gender and Sexual Diversity|Gender and Sexual Diversities]] (GSD),<ref>[http://www.pinknews.co.uk/2013/02/25/organisation-proposes-replacing-the-limiting-term-lgbt-with-more-inclusive-gsd/ Organisation proposes replacing the 'limiting' term LGBT with 'more inclusive' GSD], February 25, 2013</ref> MOGII (Marginalized Orientations, Gender Identities, and Intersex) and MOGAI (Marginalized Orientations, Gender Alignments and Intersex).<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/25/gender-and-sexual-diversities-gsd-lgbt-label-_n_2758908.html|title='Gender And Sexual Diversities,' Or GSD, Should Replace 'LGBT,' Say London Therapists|date=25 February 2013|newspaper=The Huffington Post|access-date=6 October 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.dal.ca/news/2014/08/01/pride-on-the-prowl.html|title=Pride on the prowl|work=Dalhousie News|access-date=6 October 2014}}</ref>

=== Clinical ===
In public health settings, ''MSM'' ("[[men who have sex with men]]") is clinically used to describe men who have sex with other men without referring to their sexual orientation, with ''WSW'' ("[[women who have sex with women]]") also used as an analogous term.<ref>Young, R M & Meyer, I H (2005) The Trouble with "MSM" and "WSW": Erasure of the Sexual-Minority Person in Public Health Discourse American Journal of Public Health July 2005 Vol. 95 No. 7.</ref><ref>Glick, M Muzyka, B C Salkin, L M Lurie, D (1994) Necrotizing [[Periodontitis|ulcerative periodontitis]]: a marker for immune deterioration and a predictor for the diagnosis of [[AIDS]] Journal of Periodontology 1994 65 p. 393–397.</ref>

== LGBT+ pride flags==
{{See also|LGBT symbols}}
Various flags represent specific identities within the [[LGBT movement]], from sexual or romantic orientations, to gender identities or expressions, to sexual characteristics.

{{gallery|mode=nolines|whitebg=y|height=60
|Gay Pride Flag.svg|[[Rainbow flag (LGBT)|Rainbow flag]] (Gay and LGBT+)
|Aromantic Pride Flag.svg|[[Aromantic]]
|Asexual Pride Flag.svg|[[Asexuality|Asexual]]
|Bisexual Pride Flag.svg|[[Bisexual]]
|Trans-inclusive Gay Men's Flag.png|[[Gay men]]
|Genderqueer flag-pride.svg|[[Genderqueer#Symbols|Genderqueer]]
|Intersex Pride Flag.svg|[[Intersex]]
|Winning Orange-Pink Lesbian Pride Flag.png|[[Lesbian]]
|Labrys Lesbian Flag.svg|[[Lesbians]] of [[labrys]]
|Nonbinary_flag.svg|[[Non-binary]]
|Pansexuality Pride Flag.svg|[[Pansexual]]
|Transgender Pride flag.svg|[[Transgender]]       
}}

== See also ==
{{Portal|LGBT}}
{{Div col|colwidth=16em}}
* [[Androphilia and gynephilia]]
* [[Bi erasure]]
* [[Biphobia]]
* [[Gender and sexual diversity]]
* [[Gender neutrality]]
* [[Gender roles in non-heterosexual communities]]
*[[Homophobia]]
* [[Intersex human rights]]
* [[LGBT ageing]]
* [[LGBT billionaires]]
* [[LGBT community]]
* [[LGBT culture]]
* [[LGBT History Month]]
* [[LGBT marketing]]
* [[LGBT music]]
* [[LGBT people in prison]]
* [[LGBT retirement issues]]
* [[LGBT rights by country or territory]]
* [[LGBT rights opposition]]
* [[LGBT social movements]]
*[[LGBT student movement]]
* [[LGBT symbols]]
* [[List of largest LGBT events]]
* [[List of LGBT periodicals]]
* [[List of LGBT-related organizations and conferences]]
* [[List of LGBT rights activists]]
* [[List of transgender-related topics]]
* [[Sexual diversity]]
* [[Transphobia]]
{{Div col end}}

== Notes ==
{{reflist}}

== References ==
* Religious institute [http://www.religiousinstitute.org/sites/default/files/study_guides/timetoseekfinal.pdf Time to Seek]
* Safe Schools Coalition [https://web.archive.org/web/20110515204547/http://www.safeschoolscoalition.org/glossary.pdf Glossary]

== External links ==
{{Commons category|LGBT}}
{{wiktionary|LGBT|QUILTBAG}}
{{Wikiquote|LGBT}}
* [http://www.glbtqarchive.com/ Archives] of [[glbtq.com]], the GLBTQ encyclopedia
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20081010152330/http://directory.lgbtcenters.org/ Directory of U.S. and international LGBT Community Centers]
* [http://www.apa.org/pi/lgbt/index.aspx American Psychological Association's Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Concerns Office]

{{LGBT|main=expanded}}
{{Intersex}}
{{Sexual revolution}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lgbt}}
[[Category:LGBT| ]]
[[Category:LGBT terminology|LGBT]]
[[Category:Bisexuality]]
[[Category:Initialisms]]
[[Category:Lesbianism]]
[[Category:Male homosexuality]]
[[Category:Same-sex sexuality]]
[[Category:Transgender]]
[[Category:1990s neologisms]]
[[Category:Intersex]]
[[Category:Queer]]