Quote:
Originally Posted by 2MuchMark
I've never met anyone who is Gender Fluid, but I'm kind of nervous about it these days. If I see someone and call them Sir or Madam and I'm wrong about their gender, am I going to get screamed at and put on youtube?
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you'll be fine as long as you're not a dick about it, unless you meet an angry American in which case back away slowly regardless of chosen gender or political persuasion. there be dragons.
gender fluidity has a long history outside of the euro-centric constructs of identity and fam structure. in pre-colonial Native cultures for example it was no big deal, an identifiable difference like the difference between being tall or short but not one that was imbued with any social significance. in many cultures those who were gay, trans or gender-fluid were actually heralded (two-spirited).
even during colonial times a woman named Ahebi Ugbabe who identified as a man and reigned as king and took wives led an Igbo community in Nigeria
tl;dr, difference is as fussy as you choose it to be. never be afraid of other human beings. ask the person what they want you to call them and move on to important ish like what music they listen to
