Pansexuality
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Pansexuality, anthrosexuality (anthro- literally meaning human, human sexual), or omnisexuality[1] is a sexual orientation characterized by the potential for aesthetic attraction, romantic love, or sexual desire for people, regardless of their gender identity or biological sex. Thus, pansexuality includes potential attraction to people who do not fit into the gender binary of male/female. Some pansexuals suggest that they are gender-blind; that gender and sex are insignificant or irrelevant in determining whether they will be sexually attracted to others.[2]
The word pansexual is derived from the Greek prefix pan-, meaning "all". "All" is specifically in reference to human genders. In its simplest form, pansexuality denotes the potential of sexual attraction to all genders. It is intended to negate the idea of two genders (as expressed by bi-).
Because pan- refers only to human genders, and not to sexual practices or people in general, pansexuality does not signify automatic attraction to all people. Similarly, it also does not signify acceptance of all sexual behaviors, such as paraphilias (for example, incest, bestiality, or necrophilia) or fetishes. As with more common sexual identities such as homosexuality and heterosexuality, pansexuality refers to the role of gender in sexual attraction, and not to the role of sexual acts and behaviors.
The adjective pansexual may also be applied to organizations or events. In this context, the term usually indicates an openness to the involvement of people of all genders and sexual orientations in said organization/event, and not to the pansexual sexual identity.
[edit] Pansexuality versus bisexuality
Bisexuality is a sexual orientation characterized by attraction to both men and women. Unlike pansexuality, it does not specifically include people who fall outside the gender binary. Pansexuality has been described as a "means to skip the binaries and essentialism of 'bi'."[3]
However, many people who identify as bisexual are actually attracted to people who fall outside the gender binary. These people, who could be described as pansexual, have a variety of reasons for identifying as bisexual, including widespread unfamiliarity with the term "pansexual" as well as its negative connotations for some people.
In the widespread sociological community, pansexuality is used as a synonym for bisexuality, due to the lack of physical or neurological proof for genders outside the gender binary.[citation needed]
