Queer
Queer – an umbrella term used to refer to sexual orientations, gender identities, and forms of gender expression that fall outside dominant heterosexual and cisgender norms.
In English, the word queer originally meant “strange,” “unusual,” or “peculiar.” By the late nineteenth century, it had acquired a new connotation and began to be used as a derogatory label for people perceived as homosexual, particularly gay men.
From the late twentieth century onward, the term was reclaimed by some LGBTQIA+ people, activists, and scholars and transformed into a positive form of self-identification, as well as a political and theoretical category that challenges rigid distinctions between heterosexuality and homosexuality, women and men, and normative and non-normative identities.
The contemporary use of the term queer remains contested. Some people use it as an inclusive and empowering self-designation, while others reject it because of its history as a slur. Therefore, it should not automatically be applied to every person belonging to a sexual or gender minority.
See also: Queer Theory, Genderqueer, LGBTQIA+ Community.
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