Inkwell | The Social Justice Issue | April 2021

Labels can be used to express one’s identity and also tie them to the communities they are a part of. Graphic by Sofia Guerra.

A look at labels by Sofia Guerra

Upsides

For some people, labels are a useful tool in understanding and expressing their identity. In a supportive, educated and understanding community, labels can be helpful for those who like to use them. One positive of the use of various labels is finding a community that has gone through similar struggles and has dealt with the same insecurities. A Upper School for Girls (USG) student who asks to remain anonymous, and will be referred to as “Lydia” stated, “As someone who identifies as asexual, I find labels to be very helpful. In my experience, the asexual community gets a lot of “you’re broken” and “you’re too young to know yet.” These comments are certainly common in other LGBTQIA+ communities as well, but we have to deal with it a significant amount–because ‘how would [someone young] know what sexual attraction is yet? Maybe you’re just a late bloomer.’ That concept in particular really stuck in my head for a while. After I learned what being asexual is and heard about other people’s experiences with it, so much about the way I saw the world made sense.” Jay Keltner, a high school student, described their experience: “When it comes to connecting with other people, labels are helpful for me because it’s something I can have in common with them. They help me feel like part of a community, and remind me that I’m not alone.” Labels can be helpful as someone tries to navigate their identity. Lucien Amundson, a high school student at Todd Beamer, said, “[Labels] have allowed me to explore myself and my identity and find what feels right for me. Overall, I think labels are very helpful when you’re trying to figure yourself out and getting to know yourself better.” Additionally, labels are flexible. People are allowed to be questioning, to tentatively identify one way. Labels can change.

INKWELL | APRIL 2021

“At first, I was still hesitant to actually accept I could be asexual because maybe my attraction just hadn’t kicked in yet. It wasn’t until I realized labels don’t have to be permanent that I started saying I was asexual. Because labels are broad terms that vary for everyone, and it’s rare that someone finds one label and sticks with it for the rest of their life. Sometimes you have to switch things up, and that’s okay, because for me it’s

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