Having so many labels for genders and sexuality is good.

Hello everyone, my name is dtien and my opening stance is that having so many labels for gender and sexuality is good. First of all, I will define the word "good" in a way that makes sense for the debate. According to the Oxford Dictionary, "good" means "to be desired of or approved of" and/or "pleasing and welcome" (1). Some synonyms would include "acceptable" and/or "positive" as of thesaurus.com (2). (Con, if you disapprove of these definitions and synonyms, please address it in the comments and we can come to a consensus there) Now to my arguments. Labels can be liberating. Many LGBT+ people have to spend much of their lives in the closet, knowing that they may be rejected or even attacked by others for their gender and/or sexuality (3) (4). Even in fairly progressive nations, LGBT+ people are assaulted and even killed at disproportionate rates to the rest of the population (4). Therefore, many queer people are ashamed of who they are, especially those who grow up in religious families (not all religious families are like this of course) (5) (6). Being able to identify with a label can provide people with a sense of freedom, as many feel they are truly able to express themselves because they have a more developed sense of self. Labels can give people a sense of community. Many LGBT+ people feel alone in the world, especially those who live in less progressive communities where non-cis and non-straight people are ostracized. Because of this, many LGBT+ people are in the closet (6) (7) (3). When people group under a label, they have a sense of belonging somewhere. This is similar to the way people born on Leap Day, or "Leaplings," often seek each other out outline or meet in real life (8). Now, in no way does this suggest you can't be liberated or have a sense of community without giving yourself a label; however, giving yourself a label does help some LGBT+ people do just that, especially if they were having difficulty before. Liberating yourself and/or giving yourself a sense of community can be pleasing and welcome, and is positive, and can be something to be desired; therefore, giving your gender/sexuality a label can be good. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ As for Con's arguments, they center around these key points: 1. Some labels are unnecessary, or uncomfortable. Just because a label isn't necessary or makes some people uncomfortable doesn't mean it can't help someone feel better about themselves. 2. Some people use labels to be "special snowflakes." Where does the problem lie, with the labels or with those people? 3. Many people get unreasonably angry at being misgendered or labelled incorrectly, and blast these problems when they should be focusing on more important issues like workplace discrimination. Where does the problem lie, with the labels or with those people? 4. Many people force labels onto others and pressure them to "live up to it." Where does the problem lie, with the labels or with those people? Most of Con's argument is not actually attacking the labels themselves, but the people behind the labels. It is not the labels who get angry at being misgendered/labelled incorrectly, it is not the labels that pressure others, it is not the labels that are special snowflakes - it is some of the people behind them. Con is not proving labels are bad, he is proving that some of the people who use LGBT+ labels are bad. Con's only point that directly shows that labels are bad is that some labels are unnecessary and make others uncomfortable. Technically, calling yourself "black" or "white" is unnecessary in many cases - most people can tell that by looking at you (yes some people are not white but pass as white, and vice versa, but I am not talking about them). Should people stop calling themselves black and/or white? As for labels being uncomfortable to some, some people find other people to be ugly. Should ugly people hide because some people do not enjoy looking at them? To say labels shouldn't be used because they make others uncomfortable is to say ugly people should stay out of sight because they "hurt" the eyes of others. As for my last point: Con has used no citations. Technically, he cannot prove any of his points are correct without using evidence to back it up. Therefore, all of my refutations of his points are just hypothetical, because claims made without evidence can be dismissed without evidence (Hitchen's Razor). Citations: (1) http://www.oxforddictionaries.com... (2) http://www.thesaurus.com... (3) http://www.theatlantic.com... (4) https://www.fbi.gov... (5) http://www.pbs.org... (6) http://www.hrc.org... (7) http://www.medscape.com... (8) http://leapyearday.com...