What is the benefit and/or harm of using increasingly specific classifications to identify subpopulations of diverse people? Is the use of one umbrella term more effective and inclusive?
Diverse communities of people are not monolithic. Subpopulations of diverse people can flourish within diverse environments which gives way to an exponential growth in our classification lexicon. The positive aspect of this is that when people can identify with a term, they feel included, recognized, and heard. That’s a huge step in subconsciously validating marginalized people. The negative aspect of this is that as these terms increase in number, it’s more likely that terms will get excluded – either accidentally or on purpose. Also, diverse groups begin to appear more segmented and exclusive which is counterproductive when trying to build an inclusive environment. As the limitless expansion of I&D vernacular continues, it’s important to keep these juxtaposing effects in mind because no one likes to feel “other”. Check out this article on Toronto’s acronym “LGBTTIQQ2SA” to encompass the LGBTQ+ community (click here).