UT Culture Building Institute
Office of Equity and Diversity
Reference Terms
Ethnic and Racial Diversity
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White- “A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle
East, or North Africa. It includes people who indicate their race as "White" or report
entries such as Irish, German, Italian, Lebanese, Near Easterner, Arab, or Polish.”
Black or African American- “A person having origins in any of the Black racial groups of
Africa. It includes people who indicate their race as "Black, African Am.,” or provide
written entries such as African American, Afro American, Kenyan, Nigerian, or Haitian.”
Asian –“A person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast
Asia, or the Indian subcontinent including, for example, Cambodia, China, India, Japan,
Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippine Islands, Thailand, and Vietnam. It includes
‘Asian Indian,’ ‘Chinese,’ ‘Filipino,’ ‘Korean,’ ‘Japanese,’ ‘Vietnamese,’ and ‘Other
Asian.’”
American Indian and Alaska Native- “A person having origins in any of the original
peoples of North and South America (including Central America) and who maintain
tribal affiliation or community attachment.”
Hispanic/Latino- Individuals who “classified themselves in one of the specific Spanish,
Hispanic, or Latino categories –‘Mexican, Mexican Am., Chicano,’ ‘Puerto Rican’, or
‘Cuban’ -as well as those who indicate that they are "other Spanish/Hispanic/Latino."
Persons who indicated that they are "other Spanish/Hispanic/Latino" include those
whose origins are from Spain, the Spanish-speaking countries of Central or South
America, the Dominican Republic or people identifying themselves generally as Spanish,
Spanish-American, Hispanic, Hispano, Latino. According to the census (after 2000) the
category is not a race but an ethnicity.
All above data collected from http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/meta/long_68178.htm and
http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/meta/long_RHI725200.htm
Following terms provided by the UT LGBT Taskforce and LGBT Initiatives Program
Sexual Orientation – A person’s set of emotional, romantic, sexual and relational attractions
toward another person.
Lesbian – A woman who is emotionally, romantically, sexually and relationally attracted to
other women.
UT Culture Building Institute
Office of Equity and Diversity
Gay – A male who is emotionally, romantically, sexually and relationally attracted to other
males. The term is also often used to refer to the LGBTQ community as a whole, or as an
individual identity label for anyone who does not identify as Heterosexual.
Bisexual – A person emotionally, romantically, sexually and relationally attracted to both men
and women, though not necessarily simultaneously. A Bisexual person may not be equally
attracted to both sexes, and the degree of attraction may vary as sexual identity develops over
time.
Queer – A term used to refer to Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and often Transgender people.
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Some use “Queer” as an alternative to LGBT in an effort to be more inclusive, since it
doesn’t convey a sense of gender.
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Depending on the user, the term has either a derogatory or an affirming connotation, as
many have sought to reclaim the term that was once widely used in a negative way.
Questioning – An identity of a person who is uncertain of their sexual orientation/identity
and/or their gender orientation/identity.
Asexual – A person who is not sexually attracted to anyone or does not have a sexual
orientation.
Heterosexual – A person who is emotionally, romantically, sexually and relationally attracted to
a person of a different sex. Often referred to as “Straight.”
Sex – The physical and biological characteristics that differentiate males and females.
Gender – The behavioral, cultural, or psychological traits typically associated with one sex.
Gender Identity – A person’s innate, deeply-felt psychological identification as male or female,
which may or may not correspond to the person's body or designated sex at birth (meaning
what sex was originally listed on a person's birth certificate).
Gender Expression – One’s external presentation in manner of behavior, clothing, haircut,
voice or body characteristics, etc. regardless of their biological sex.
Transgender - An umbrella term for people who transcend traditional gender boundaries and
chose not to conform to their culture’s gender norms.