lesbian
Let an agent describe lesbian identity and community respectfully and neutrally, relay history, rights and demographic information with sources, present debates about terminology and identity with positions attributed, and avoid stereotypes and sexualised framing.
Bundle → Layer → Finding → Questions Filled
4 bundles · 8 layers · 8 findings · 16 questions
Identity What the term means.
Definition
Definition and use.
Definition
Definition.
- What does lesbian mean, and how is the term used and self-applied? definition
- Is the language used respectful and free of stereotypes? boundary
Debates
Terminology debates.
Debates
Debates.
- What discussions exist about who uses the term, including non-binary lesbians, with positions attributed? provenance
- Is the presentation neutral and attributed? boundary
History History and culture.
History
History.
History
History.
- How do historians describe lesbian lives, communities and movements across periods? provenance
- Which references are standard? provenance
Culture
Culture.
Culture
Culture.
- What lesbian literature, media, spaces and organisations are notable? provenance
- Which entry fits a specific work or organisation? action
Rights Rights and wellbeing.
Rights
Rights.
Rights
Rights.
- What legal protections and persecutions exist by country, as rights bodies document? provenance
- Which sources are cited? provenance
Health
Health and support.
Health
Health.
- What do health bodies say about health needs and support, and where are resources? provenance
- Is the user seeking personal support, which needs appropriate services? boundary
Study Demographics and study.
Demographics
Demographics.
Demographics
Demographics.
- How many people identify as lesbian, and how do surveys measure it? measurement
- Which entry fits sexual orientation surveys? action
Intersections
Intersecting identities.
Intersections
Intersections.
- How do race, class, religion and place shape lesbian experience, with findings attributed? provenance
- Which entry fits a specific community? action
Classifiers Filled
- Family
- Thing Registry
- Category
- Society, people and institutions
- Entry kind
- thing
- Plane
- SOC
- Domain
- SOC.PER
- Other names and narrower kinds
- lesboy, lesbian student, lesbian archivist, megasexual archivist, non-binary lesbian, Mexican American lesbians, Amerindian lesbians, lesbianism in France, cisgender lesbian, ky-ky, multiracial lesbian, lesbian of color
What it is Filled
A woman whose romantic or sexual attraction is to other women, and by extension a person who identifies with the term, which some non-binary people also use; the word derives from the island of Lesbos and the poet Sappho, and lesbian identity, communities, culture and history are the subject of scholarship, rights movements and cultural production, with experience varying widely by place, period and intersecting identities such as those of Mexican American lesbians.
Why it exists Filled
Let an agent describe lesbian identity and community respectfully and neutrally, relay history, rights and demographic information with sources, present debates about terminology and identity with positions attributed, and avoid stereotypes and sexualised framing.
Distinguishing features Filled
- Self-defined identity
- Community and culture
- History of rights movements
- Intersecting identities
What robots and AI may and may not do Filled
Must not
- Infer, guess or disclose that a particular person is lesbian without her own public statement.
- Use sexualised or stereotyped framing when describing lesbians.
- Deny or invalidate a person's identity.
- Give demographic figures about lesbians without source and method.
- Ignore or minimise persecution documented by rights bodies.
Only with a human decision
- Any action that could reveal a person's sexual orientation to others, including in places where it is criminalised.
May
- Explain the meaning, history and use of the word lesbian, noting that usage varies.
- Cite reliable sources on lesbian history, culture and rights.
- Point people to support and rights organisations when asked.
Moral aspects Filled
- Outing can expose people to violence, legal penalties and loss of family or work.
- Lesbians face both sexism and homophobia; erasure and stereotypes harm them.
Who is affected
- Lesbian women
- Non-binary people using the term
- Families and communities
Owners Filled
Steward
Nobody: a personal identity that belongs to each person who holds it.
Links to other meta-models Filled
parent
- Q19809306 - registry parent class
- Q25631289 - registry parent class
- Q84048852 - registry parent class
related
- homosexual person - in registry terms
- sapphic person - in registry terms
- LGBT community - the wider community
- lesbian history - the field
What else AI and robots need to interact with it Filled
Identity and identifiers required Filled
- Vercy registry: vr.tr.lesbian
- Wikidata: Q9800899 (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q9800899)
Direct properties not applicable Not applicable
- share of adult women identifying as lesbian: about 1-3 percent - surveys, varying by country and question
Plane SOC: no invented physical properties.
Recognition optional Filled
- Woman attracted to women, or a person identifying with the term
- Self-identified
- Bisexual and other identities are distinct; the term is not defined by appearance or role
- No defining appearance; identity is self-defined.
Capabilities and actions required Filled
- explain the term and identity
- relay history, rights and demographics with sources
- present terminology debates with attribution
- point to community and support resources
Hazards and failure modes required Filled
- Stereotypes and sexualised framing
- Erasure or invalidation of identity
- Unsourced demographic claims
- Ignoring persecution documented by rights bodies
Standards and interfaces required Filled
- Anti-discrimination and equality laws
- Marriage and partnership laws
- Human rights standards on sexual orientation
- Media and style guidance on respectful terminology
Context of use required Filled
- Not applicable; an identity and community.
- lesbian women
- non-binary people who identify as lesbian, with attribution to community discussion
- lesbian communities by place and period
- intersectional identities such as Mexican American and other lesbians of colour
- lesbians by occupation or role, as in registry aliases such as student or archivist
Sources Filled
- Wikidata item Q9800899: lesbian - identity and sense of the item
- Wikipedia: Lesbian - general description of the item
Open questions
- Should lesbian history and culture be separate entries?
- How should survey sources be linked?
- The registry entry has merged aliases naming occupations and unclear terms; should they be split off or removed?
Machine files
Provenance
thing registry research (pass 2) · unreviewed
Built from: models/things/publications/thing-q9800899/spec.json