What's the difference between 'is' and 'identifies as'?

[Juells]

Googled Michelle Visage because of something I saw elsewhere (about her being vegan) and came across this link
www.pinknews.co.uk/2018/04/11/who-is-michelle-visage-is-she-gay-rupauls-drag-race-judge-lgbt-ally/

"Visage identifies as a straight woman, and has had two children with screenwriter husband David Case." Why would the writer of the article say that? Is she a straight woman, or does she only identify as one?

If I'm being really really stupid and missing something obvious please tell me.

Mrs Jamin

I agree. I think the whole purpose of this “identify as” bullshit is to bring it into our language so that we all end up going along with it without really noticing the change.

I filled in an online form for a Young Carer referral last week. The child is 10 and the form asked for “gender”. As it was able to be edited I changed it to “sex”.

Every little helps

BJs (Butlerism Jihadis) grin

Sorry, that should be Butlerian Jihadis. Autocorrect fail.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Butlerian_Jihad

It's basically saying saying that identity is reality even if your identity = your physical reality.

If you read 'identifies as,' you know their physical reality is different. If everyone has to 'identify as,' then it hides those whose physical reality is not the same as their identity.

It's like using cis, but not actually using cis.

No it's not like using cis exactly but it's making everyone view identity feeling as the most important thing.

The cognitive dissonance is busting my sentence ability.

I agree that 'identify as' seems like claiming you are something you're not.

In expressing how you feel about certain labels (i.e. one may have a chronic health condition which is classified as a disability, but not see oneself as disabled), why can't you use identify with instead of identify as?

In expressing how you feel about certain labels (i.e. one may have a chronic health condition which is classified as a disability, but not see oneself as disabled), why can't you use identify with instead of identify as?

I don't think that works in that context. 'Identify with' connotes empathy, I think. 'I can identify with that'.

'Identify' is fine if used to specify a characteristic you actually have which is important to how you think about yourself. Or at least, was fine until people started to use it for characteristics you don't objectively have, and for this to be supposed to make a difference outside of your own self-perception.

I don't think that works in that context. 'Identify with' connotes empathy, I think. 'I can identify with that'.

You're probably right. To me, it means that you have a picture of something in your head, and the "identify" bit is a way to state how this resonates with you. I feel like maybe saying identify "with" allows you to comment without co-opting something that isn't yours, or conversely explain your feelings around why you dislike a descriptor that could be applied to you. Or something?

I just wondered if binning the phrase "identify as" and re-framing the discussion, perhaps to one with more empathy, could be one way of avoiding confusion.

So applied to gender, instead of saying "I identify as a woman/man", you could just say "I identify with feminity" or "I don't identify with masculinity."

Is = genuine
Identifies as = fake

It only makes sense if you like to pretend that we all live in the Matrix.

being versus seeming

The difference is verifiability (is that even a word?) if something IS it can be proven.

I had an argument on this board with someone who was adamant that Julie Burchill had no business speaking about lesbians because she doesn't identify as one - despite that whole leaving her husband for a woman thing

She is a lesbian isn’t she? I thought she was?

Bernard has shown in that anecdote the existence of people who presumably don't identify as idiots yet demonstrate that they are idiots.

I read 'identifies as' as pretends to be these days.

You cannot identify as something you are, only as something you are not. If its something you are..you just are..