Goddessakes, this clumsy language. Why does the @WomenEqualities Govt. Equalities Office acknowledge that 'gender' = masculinity & femininity for example, and is about stereotypes, then in the same breath talk about 'legal gender' and 'acquired gender'. It also talks about...
...individuals who have a different gender identity to the sex that was recorded at birth - but by their own definition these are two completely different things, so how could they possibly be the same? Babies aren't born macho, camp, effeminate, femme etc...they do not present..
..as any of the rainbow of gendered presentations, identities, roles etc currently recognised. So, 'gender' is not recorded on birth certificates or passports, but sex is - as in intersex, female, male. Or rather, intersex isn't, because our phallocentric conservative context...
...insists on forcing human beings into male or female boxes. So, sex is recognised as male or female, but that is different to gender identity, though the two are conflated and assumed to be 'congruent' male should = masculine, female should = feminine. The problem with...
..conflating bodily sex and inner/socially influenced gender is that gender becomes further naturalised, which means further scaffolding of harmful gender stereotypes which dictate that women be one way and men be another. Stereotypes are not innate, in the brain, hardwired etc.
It is ironic that further entrenching gender stereotypes has the effect of further marginalising the many ppl who do not or do not wish to 'measure up' to gender stereotypes, plus those ppl whose gender presentation is not seen to be 'congruent' as in, suitable, for their sex.
