Gender expression and identity

The exercise with the diamond of gender was a good illustration of the many forms of gender identity and expression. The concepts of gender identity, expression, sex, and sexuality are easily confused. It is really easy to think of gender as simply dimorphic, male and female. But seeing how we can classify ourselves between male, female, agender, and "other," shows clearly the fluidity of gender expression and identity. It made me realize how accustomed I am to the dimorphic idea of gender, that I am really never expecting that someone would identify as other. I would, instead, make the assumption of their gender identity based on their gender expression and biological sex. So even if someone identified with a women gender identity, that person could still express their gender as male. This class opened my eyes to how many assumptions I make about people's identities solely on how they dress and their physical appearance, and how I automatically put people in a male/female box. I supposed when we encounter people who don't fit into one of these two categories we are often uncomfortable, especially after childhood when a little mixing of gender expression is tolerated. It also makes me realize how marginalized people are when they don't identify in the binary gender. I will have to work to counter the assumptions I make when I interact with people.