"I identify as..."
I've been observing with interest the spread of "identify as" terminology when it comes to talking about membership of identity groups. For example, which of the following sounds more natural or commonplace to you?
"I am Native American" vs. "I identify as Native American"
"I am a woman" vs. "I identify as a woman"
"I am Jewish" vs. "I identify as Jewish"
"I am disabled" vs. "I identify as disabled"
"I am Welsh" vs. "I identify as Welsh"
"I am genderqueer" vs. "I identify as genderqueer"
"I am a feminist" vs. "I identify as a feminist"
Though I am fairly used to "identify as" terminology in some spheres, it often strikes me as oddly... tentative? "I identify as queer" sounds to me as if it's claiming less, confronting less, and less open to contradiction than "I *am* queer."
One thing to be said about "identify as" terminology is that it's about as far from essentialist as you can imagine, emphasising instead the subjective lived experience of the person concerned. There are some types of identity where that may make a lot of sense, for example gender, which is all about how you identify yourself, with other people's opinions on the subject neither relevant nor wanted. It also makes sense if you're focusing attention on the choice of terminology, for example "I identify as queer rather than gay."
But the phrasing is also extremely individualistic, one might say extremely Western, in how it constructs identity around personal viewpoint rather than membership in a community or shared experience. If you are the white South African creatively filling out your U.S. college application forms, you may identify as African-American, but you are inevitably going to get people disagreeing with you about the fact of the matter. If you call yourself fat, other people will assess that statement based on your physical being rather than your subjective beliefs. (Obviously there is some grey area here, but there's also a point at which you're clearly not fat.)
What do you think? Do you use "identify as" terminology, and if so, do you restrict it to certain areas of your identity? If you don't use it (I don't), why not? Do you think it's a phrasing that has a place in social justice conversations?
(I will try to watch this conversation as it unfolds but obviously I can't guarantee that this will be a safe space.)
This entry was originally posted at http://naraht.dreamwidth.org/550519.html. Please comment there using OpenID.
"I am Native American" vs. "I identify as Native American"
"I am a woman" vs. "I identify as a woman"
"I am Jewish" vs. "I identify as Jewish"
"I am disabled" vs. "I identify as disabled"
"I am Welsh" vs. "I identify as Welsh"
"I am genderqueer" vs. "I identify as genderqueer"
"I am a feminist" vs. "I identify as a feminist"
Though I am fairly used to "identify as" terminology in some spheres, it often strikes me as oddly... tentative? "I identify as queer" sounds to me as if it's claiming less, confronting less, and less open to contradiction than "I *am* queer."
One thing to be said about "identify as" terminology is that it's about as far from essentialist as you can imagine, emphasising instead the subjective lived experience of the person concerned. There are some types of identity where that may make a lot of sense, for example gender, which is all about how you identify yourself, with other people's opinions on the subject neither relevant nor wanted. It also makes sense if you're focusing attention on the choice of terminology, for example "I identify as queer rather than gay."
But the phrasing is also extremely individualistic, one might say extremely Western, in how it constructs identity around personal viewpoint rather than membership in a community or shared experience. If you are the white South African creatively filling out your U.S. college application forms, you may identify as African-American, but you are inevitably going to get people disagreeing with you about the fact of the matter. If you call yourself fat, other people will assess that statement based on your physical being rather than your subjective beliefs. (Obviously there is some grey area here, but there's also a point at which you're clearly not fat.)
What do you think? Do you use "identify as" terminology, and if so, do you restrict it to certain areas of your identity? If you don't use it (I don't), why not? Do you think it's a phrasing that has a place in social justice conversations?
(I will try to watch this conversation as it unfolds but obviously I can't guarantee that this will be a safe space.)
This entry was originally posted at http://naraht.dreamwidth.org/550519.html. Please comment there using OpenID.