Human sexuality as a subject has been around from time immemorial. Back then, though, sexualities were not as diverse, and discussions on sexualities was not as open.
We currently live in an open world, with discussions on human sexuality a quotidian affair. And we people adopting whatever sexuality they think mirrors their personalities, it becomes vital to not only openly acknowledge the disparity in sexualities but to respect these differences as well. The world is moving, and people have to move with the times as well.
This wasn’t the case at the outset. In the beginning, people who had identified with a sexuality that wasn’t mainstream (read: heterosexual) were discriminated against and even attacked. Although discriminations still happen now and then, governments around the world are trying to check this by establishing laws to protect minority sexualities.
At the moment, there are so many sexualities that people often get confused what they are, and what differences they have. Heterosexuals might be in the majority, but there are other sexualities out there, and they have to be acknowledged.
In this post, we’re going to treat several sexualities, as well as the differences they have.
Pansexual
“Pansexual” might appear like a newish term to some people, but the term itself has been around for decades, with people are calling themselves pansexual, or encouraging debate on the sexuality.
Pansexual is taken from the Greek word “pan,” which means “all,” and sexual. A pansexual is a person who is emotionally, romantically or sexually attracted to people regardless of their genre identity.
The term pansexual gained resonance in the 1970s and has managed to remain a front burner in the discussion of sexualities around the world.
Like every other sexuality which took time to become mainstream, pansexuals suffered discrimination for many years. For instance, the feminist writer Rita Mae Brown claimed to have be expelled from the university because of her pansexuality.
Demisexual
Unlike other sexual orientations, demisexual as a term first came to light in 2006, according to The Independent. A demisexual is a person who is attracted to another after and only after they have an emotional connection or bond.
What makes the demisexual pretty intriguing is that the demisexual can be attracted to either a man or a woman, so long as they have an emotional connection. Without that connection, nothing goes on. In that case someone can be a demisexual without even knowing it. They only have to be told.
Bisexual
This sexual identity bears close closer resemblance to pansexuality than it does to asexuality. For one, as the American Psychological Association puts it, the term describes a “person who experiences emotional, romantic and/or sexual attractions to, or engages in romantic or sexual relationships with, more than one sex or gender.”
A key takeaway from this definition is that a bisexual can be attracted to people of the same gender and any other gender [you can include the whole list of genders here] . In the past, though, the term was used (erroneously apparently) to describe a person who his attracted to “both genders.” Of course, as you probably already know, there are more than two genders now.
Asexual
The term Asexual describes a person whose sexual interest in others is pretty low at best ―or nonexistent. Being asexual in no way means the person is devoid of romantic feelings. Far from it. Asexuals can be romantic. Also, despite what is being peddled out there, being asexual is not a medical concern. Being asexual is not the same as being scared of intimacy. In rare instances, asexuals feel sexual attraction.
The sexual orientations given here are but a few of many. And with the world’s tolerance threshold increasing, these sexual orientation with certainly increase ― with new names sprouting in the lexicon to describe them.
Most peeps who have lived centuries back, were they alive today, would be surprised and probably pleased at how much the world has evolved and how it has embraced other sexualities with open arms.
With the world currently embracing almost every sexual orientation out there, one can imagine Oscar Wilde fuming in his grave and threatening to sue the United Kingdom government which had jailed him more than a century ago for “gross indecency with men.” He was gay.
Anyway, whenever you’re filling a form online and come across the “sex” field, you shouldn’t be surprised to see the hefty list of choices ―as well as the option to write what you identify as.
Whereas centuries ago people would hide their sexual orientations for fear of being victimized, they are now pretty open about it. Gay. Lesbian. Queer. Pansexual. Demisexual. Bisexual. Asexual. People can identify as they please.
In all of these, one truth stands out: the blessedness of tolerance will never go out of style, and the world is better off embracing people for who they are, so long as they are not a threat to others, to the community, to global peace.
