Synonymous with sexual orientation . Preferred by some educators because it more clearly refers to the gender of people toward whom one feels attraction, whether one ever acts on those feelings sexually or not. To some degree, the qualities one finds attractive may be learned, probably in the first few years of life. Or a woman who falls in love with a man. When referring to people, as opposed to behavior, homosexual is considered derogatory and the terms gay and lesbian are preferred, at least in the Northwest.
Many lesbians feel invisible when the term gay is used to refer to men and women.
An inaccurate term sometimes used to describe the lives of gays, lesbians and bisexuals. Implies that the homes, careers, and relationships of all sexual minorities are identical. There is a GLBT culture , with its own performing arts and body of literature. There is no gay lifestyle, just as there is no straight lifestyle. A symbol originally used by the Nazis, who forced gay men to wear pink triangles on their clothing, imprisoned them in concentration camps, and put many thousands of gay men to death.