Glossary of Diversity-Related Terms

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Ableism

Prejudiced thoughts and discrimination against persons with mental and/or physical disabilities and/or social structures that favor able-bodied individuals
Accessibility

The extent to which a facility is readily approachable and usable by individuals with disabilities
Ageism

Prejudiced thoughts or discrimination against a particular age group, usually the very young or the elderly
Ally

A person of one social identity group who advocates for and stands up in support of members of another group; typically a member of the dominant group standing beside members of a targeted group
Anti-Semitism

Hatred of or prejudice against Jews and Judaism; Oppression of Jewish people based on their religion or ethnic identity
Asexual

A person who is not sexually attracted to anyone or who has low or absent interest in sexual activity with anyone
Bias

An inclination or preference, especially one that interferes with impartial judgment; A prejudice
Bigotry

Intolerance of cultures, religions, races, ethnicities, or political beliefs that differ from one’s own
Biphobia

Irrational fear and dislike of bisexual people. People who identify as bisexual may be stigmatized by heterosexual people as well as by lesbians, gay men and transgender people.
Bisexual

A person who is attracted to and may form emotional, romantic and/or sexual relationships with both men and women, though not necessarily equally or at the same time.
Categorization

The natural cognitive process of grouping and labeling people, things, etc. based on their similarities. Categorization becomes problematic when the groupings become oversimplified and rigid (e.g. stereotypes).
Cisgender

A person who conforms to gender- and/or sex-based expectations of society (also referred to as gender normative). A person who does not identify as transgender
Cisgenderism

Assuming every person to be cisgender, therefore marginalizing those who identify as transgender; believing cisgender people to be superior, and holding people to traditional expectations based on gender, or punishing or excluding those who do not conform to traditional gender expectations.
Classism

The subjugation or subordination of those from a lower socioeconomic class; biased attitudes and beliefs that result in and help to justify unfair treatment of individuals or groups because of their socioeconomic status; classism can be expressed as public policies and institutional practices that prevent people from breaking out of poverty rather than ensuring equitable economic, social, and educational opportunity.
Coming out

Recognizing one’s own sexual orientation or gender identity and being open about it with oneself and (or) with others. This often occurs in a significant moment as well as throughout one’s life, with each person to whom one chooses to come out.
Disability

A socially constructed concept defined by the social and functional criteria of a particular society; a physical, mental or cognitive impairment that substantially limits one or more of major life activities.
Discrimination

Unfavourable or unfair treatment towards an individual or group based on prejudicial attitudes and beliefs about their identity; Actions, based on conscious or unconscious prejudice, which favour one group over others.
Diversity

The wide variety of shared and different personal and group characteristics among human beings; Psychological, physical, and social differences that occur among any and all individuals, such as race, ethnicity, nationality, religion, economic class, age, gender, sexual orientation, mental and physical ability, and learning styles.

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Equality

The state, quality or ideal of being equal, aims to ensure that everyone gets the same thing; dealing fairly with all concerned without bias or favouritism; equality aims to promote fairness and justice, but it can only work if everyone starts from the same place and needs the same things
Equity

The state, quality or ideal of being just, impartial and fair, involves trying to give people what they need
Essentialism

The practice of categorizing an entire group based on assumptions about what constitutes the “essence” of that group; essentialism prevents individuals from remaining open to individual differences within groups
Ethnic Group

A group of people who share a sense of themselves as having a common heritage, ancestry, or shared historical past, which may be tied to identifiable physical, cultural, linguistic, and/or religious characteristics.
Ethnicity

The shared sense of a common heritage, ancestry, or historical past among an ethnic group (see Ethnic Group). Ethnicity is a distinct concept from race
Ethnocentrism

A belief in the superiority of one’s own race/ethnicity or culture; the practice of using a particular ethnic group as a frame of reference, basis of judgment, or standard criteria from which to view the world; ethnocentrism favours one group’s cultural norms and excludes the realities and experiences of other groups
Eurocentrism

The practice of using Europe and European culture as a frame of reference or standard criteria from which to view the world; Eurocentrism favors European cultural norms and excludes the realities and experiences of other cultural groups
Feminism

Theory and practice that advocates for educational and occupational equity between men and women and undermines traditional cultural practices that support the subjugation of women by men and the devaluation of women’s contributions to society
First Nations People

Individuals who identify as those who were the first peoples to live on the Western Hemisphere
Gay

A person whose primary sexual orientation is to members of the same sex or gender; Gay can refer to men and women (boys and girls), although many homosexual women (girls) prefer the term lesbian
Gender

A set of constructed behaviours defined by society as appropriate for men and women, solely on the basis of their sex; Classification based on the social construction of the categories of “men” and “women”; gender differs from one’s biological sex in that one can assume a gender that is different from one’s biological sex
Gender expression

The way in which a person expresses their gender identity through clothing, behaviour, posture, mannerisms, speech patterns, activities and more
Gender identity

One’s internal and psychological sense of oneself as male, female, both or neither
Genderism

The assumption that all people must conform to society’s gender norms, and specifically, the binary construct of only two genders, corresponding to the two sexes (female and male); This belief in the binary construct as the most normal and natural and a preferred gender identity does not include or allow for people to be intersex, transgender, transsexual, or genderqueer
Gender nonconforming

A person who does not conform to society’s expectations of gender expression based on the gender binary or traditional expectations of masculinity and femininity
Genderqueer

A person who does not identify as exclusively masculine or feminine and therefore identifies outside of the gender binary. They might identify as having two or more genders, having no gender, moving between genders or having a fluctuating gender identity (genderfluid) or being third-gender or other-gender
Gender variant

A synonym for gender nonconforming, which is preferred to gender variant because variance implies a standard normativity of gender

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Harassment

Unwelcome, intimidating, vexatious, or hostile comments and/or behavior
Hegemony

A form of oppression by which those in power legitimate their dominance; In contrast to physical force, hegemony flows through the power of taken-for-granted ideas and cultural values, which, when internalized by the masses of people, render them unconscious of the forces that structure their powerlessness
Heterosexual

Of, relating to, or characterized by a primary sexual orientation towards members of the other sex or gender; Heterosexual people are often referred to as straight
Heterosexism

The presumption that everyone is, and should be, heterosexual and that heterosexuality is inherently superior to and preferable to all other sexual orientations
Heterosexual privilege

Benefits derived automatically by being (or being perceived as) heterosexual that are denied to gay men, lesbians, bisexual men and women, queer people, and all other nonheterosexual sexual orientations
Homophobia

Irrational fear or hatred of, aversion to, and discrimination against homosexuality and/or people who identify (or are perceived as) lesbian or gay
Inclusion

The act of creating environments in which any individual or group feels welcomed, respected, supported, and valued; An inclusive and welcoming climate embraces differences and offers respect in words and actions for all people; Intentional policies and practices that promote the full participation and sense of belonging of everyone
Imperialism

The political, economic, and cultural domination and exploitation by one nation of other lands and peoples through military force as well as ideological hegemony
Integration

Active efforts to foster the representation and participation of groups that have historically faced institutional and social exclusion
Internalized homophobia

The experience of guilt, shame or self-hatred in reaction to one’s own feelings of attraction for a person of the same sex or gender as a result of homophobia and heterosexism
Internalized oppression

The process by which a member of a systematically oppressed group internalizes the negative characteristics attributed to the group
Intersectionality

The analytical framework through which the relationship among systems of oppression can be understood; aspects of diversity and identity do not occur in isolation; various aspects of diversity interact and intersect in varying ways, and each individual due to their various identities (see also Multiplicity) likely holds positions of power and privilege as well as oppression
Intersex

A person who has some mixture of female and male genetic and/or physical sex characteristics; Intersex people may have external genitalia that do not closely resemble typical male or female genitalia, the appearance of both female and male genitalia, the genitalia of one sex and the secondary sex characteristics of the other sex or have a chromosomal make-up that is neither XX nor XY
Institutional homophobia or heterosexism

Refers to the many ways that governments, businesses, religious institutions, educational institutions and other organizations set policies and allocate resources that discriminate against people based on sexual orientation.
Islamophobia

Hatred of or prejudice against Islam or Muslims; Oppression of Muslim people based on their religion or ethnic identity
Lesbian

A girl or woman whose primary sexual orientation is to other girls or women or who identifies as a member of the lesbian community
LGBTIQQ

An acronym for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex, Queer, and Questioning
Marginalized

Excluded, ignored, or relegated to the outer edge of a group, society, or community
Marginalization

The placement of minority groups and cultures outside mainstream society; All that varies from the mainstream is devalued and at times, perceived as deviant and regressive
Multiplicity

The quality of having multiple, simultaneous social identities (see also Intersectionality)

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Oppression

The use of power and privilege where one person or group benefits at the expense of another; Oppression is the use of power and the effects of domination
Pansexual (also referred to as omnisexuality or polisexuality)

A term referring to the potential for sexual attractions or romantic love toward people of all gender identities and biological sexes; the concept of pansexuality deliberately rejects the gender binary, and derives its origin from the transgender movement
Pluralism

An organization or state in which members of diverse racial, ethnic, or social groups maintain their own culture and traditions and differences are valued
Prejudice

A preconceived, unjustified or incorrect attitude toward an individual or group of people based solely on their membership in a social group
Privilege

A right, license, or exemption from duty or liability granted as a special benefit, advantage, or favour
Queer

In contemporary usage, queer is an inclusive, unifying, sociopolitical and self-affirming umbrella term encompassing a broad range of sexual and gender expression, including people who identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, intersex, genderqueer or any other nonheterosexual sexuality or nonconforming gender identity; Queer is a reclaimed term, which was previously seen as derogatory, but many people (though not all people) within the LGBTQ community are comfortable using this term
Questioning

A self-identification sometimes used by those exploring personal issues of sexual orientation and/or gender identity
Racism

The subjugation or subordination of a person or group of people based on their race; belief that one group of people are superior to another and therefore, have the right to dominate and the power to institute and enforce their prejudices and discriminatory practices on those deemed inferior
Reverse Discrimination

A term used by opponents to affirmative action who believe that these policies are causing members of traditionally dominant groups to be discriminated against
Sex

A system of categorizing persons according to their reproductive organs and chromosomal composition (often confused with the term gender)
Sexism

The subjugation or subordination of a person or group of people based on their sex; stereotyping of males and females on the basis of their sex; the treatment of people in society based on the belief that sex is an indication of ability or relative worth
Sexual identity

A person’s identification to self (and others) of one’s sexual orientation. It is not necessarily congruent with sexual attraction and/or sexual behaviour
Sexual orientation

How one thinks of oneself in terms of one’s emotional, romantic or sexual attraction, desire or affection for another person
Silencing

The conscious or unconscious processes by which the voice or participation of particular social identities is excluded or inhibited
Social Accountability of Medical Schools

Medical schools have an obligation to direct education, research and service activities towards addressing the priority health concerns of the community, region, and/or nation they have a mandate to serve. The priority health concerns are to be identified jointly by governments, health care organizations, health professionals and the public
Social Justice

A broad term for action intended to create genuine equity, fairness and respect among peoples
Social Responsibility

State of awareness of duties to respond to society’s needs
Social Responsiveness

A complementary concept to social responsibility by which one responds to societal needs and acts proactively to meet those needs
Stereotype

A relatively rigid and oversimplified conception of a group of people in which all individuals in the group are labeled and often treated based on perceived group characteristics
System of Oppression

Conscious and unconscious, non‐random, and organized harassment, discrimination, exploitation, prejudice and other forms of unequal treatment that impact different groups
Tokenism

The policy of making only a perfunctory effort or symbolic gesture toward the accomplishment of a goal, such as racial integration; the practice of hiring or appointing a token number of people from underrepresented groups in order to deflect criticism or comply with affirmative action rules
Transgender or trans

Someone whose gender identity or expression differs from conventional expectations of masculinity or femininity; It is often used as an umbrella term that includes people who identify as cross-dressers, transsexuals, two-spirit, intersex and genderqueer
Transphobia

Irrational fear or hatred of persons who are or are perceived to be transgender
Transsexual

A person who has a gender identity that is not in keeping with their physical body; Transsexual people typically experience discomfort with this disparity and seek to modify their body through hormones and/or surgical procedures to bring their bodies closer to their gender identity
Two-spirit

A term used by some North American Aboriginal communities to describe people in their cultures whose nature is comprised of both male and female spirits; People who identify as two-spirit may also identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, intersex, transsexual or have multiple gender identities
Unearned Privilege

Privileges accorded to some individuals because they possess or demonstrate certain characteristics associated with the dominant culture in society, such as being heterosexual, white, or male

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