Awareness
May 19th is Agender Pride Day, an occasion for us all to learn about the Agender community, uplift Agender voices, and reaffirm the inextricable and incredibly valuable place Agender people have in the GSRD community.
The Agender label falls under the Non-Binary umbrella as a distinct identity. Where Bigender folks feel connected to both ‘man’ and ‘woman,’ and Third-Gender folks feel as though their gender cannot be categorized as either, Agender people feel as though they have no gender at all. This is often described as a disconnect to the concept of gender as a whole, or sometimes as a ‘void’ where gender would often be, although experiences will always vary across a community.
Agender people might use any set or combination of pronouns, including not only they/them but also he/him or she/her, or a set of neopronouns such as xe/xem or ze/hir, even if some of those may be considered ‘gendered.’ We must make sure to remember that the pronouns someone uses are not always dependent on their gender identity. Alternate labels that tend to belong to the Agender community include Gendervoid, Genderless, Ungendered, or Nullgender.
Although the Agender experience is by no means a new concept, the first use of the term actually occurred fairly recently, on an internet forum called UseNet in 2000. A user posted the following in a discussion titled “alt.messianic”: “God is amorphous, agender, […] so image can’t be a physical or gender or sexual thing.” In fact, the idea that divinities across religions have no gender is an old and established concept, particularly among the Islamic, Sikh, and Hindu faiths. In 2005 the word once again appeared on UseNet, but this time it was used to refer to people and a lived experience. Since then, the Agender label has been adopted by people across the world, and has gained increasing recognition. It was discussed in the 2013 New York Times article “Generation LGBTQIA,” and in 2017, a judge in Oregon granted a video game designer named Patch permission to legally identify as Agender. Of course, the legality of an identity has no bearing on its validity, but it was still an important ruling for those who feel connected to the experience or label of being Agender.
The Agender flag was created in 2014 by Salem X on Tumblr. Its seven stripes each have distinct meanings: black and white represent the absence of gender, grey represents those who are semi-genderless, and green represents Non-Binary genders, chosen because it is the inverse of purple. (which is often seen as representative of a combination of male and female genders)
Agender Folks You Might Know
Although Non-Binary representation in media has made massive leaps in recent years, there is unfortunately a severe lack of explicit Agender representation. This might be because Non-Binary characters are not often given official labels for their experience, and thus, although it may not be canonically confirmed, it’s very possible that any of the non-binary characters on our screens—such as Raine Whispers (The Owl House) or Jim Jimenez (Our Flag Means Death)—might identify with the Agender experience. Also on the topic of representation, it’s worth mentioning that the vast majority of explicitly Agender representation in media comes in the form of robots, aliens, or other non-humans, something that can be hurtful, if not dehumanizing, for Agender folks. Hopefully, as representation continues to be fought for and won, this pattern will shift, and we’ll see authentic Agender representation across the spectrum of media.
In the real world, a notable Agender individual was the 18th century evangelist and anti-slavery activist known only as the Public Universal Friend. Their fascinating story is well worth a Google!
Agender Pride Day is a wonderful occasion to once again celebrate the diversity of the GSRD community, and to remind ourselves that we still have a long way to go. Across the world, Non-Binary folks are still fighting for their rights, including accurate gender markers on official ID, bathroom access, freedom from brutality and legal discrimination, and countless other crucial issues. On Agender Pride Day, we reaffirm our commitment to support and uplift Agender voices, in service of a brighter future for us all.
