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Justin Trudeau Sparks Confusion After Referring To The 2SLGBTQQIA+ Community

Justin Trudeau Sparks Confusion After Referring To The 2SLGBTQQIA+ Community

His government eventually explained what the extra letters meant.

Stewart Perrie

Stewart Perrie

Canada's Prime Minister has sparked a flurry of confusion for people on social media after using a new acronym for the community of non-heterosexual people.

People all around the world use the term LGBT or LGBTQIA+ if they're wanting to be inclusive of more people under the rainbow umbrella.

However, Justin Trudeau added a few extra letters and it left many scratching their heads.

He said: "People across the country are lighting candles to honour Indigenous women, girls, and 2SLGBTQQIA+ people who are missing or have been murdered.

"We must continue to work together, raise awareness, and advocate to end this ongoing national tragedy."

People flocked to comment about how the acronym for the community was becoming a little too long and even joked that it now resembles one of those auto-generated passwords.

One person wrote: "So is this 'inclusive' group going to just keep expanding until it covers everybody except for straight white people?"

Another added: "I too pray for the all the missing 2SLGBTDQQ*IA+ and for the letters and symbols that have yet to be recognized."

A third said: "Very serious subject matter. However I just can't get over this s**t, like what?! I remember just LGB and then T and then from there infinite expansion, kinda loses the point of an acronym."

Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations Carolyn Bennett eventually cleared up the confusion by explaining the new term means Two Spirit, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Questioning, Intersex, Asexual and everyone else (the plus symbol).

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Two Spirit is a term used by some indigenous North Americans to describe the existence of a third gender.

The term has been criticised by some within the indigenous community as they already have a word for the third-gendered person who has a ceremonial and social role in their culture.

The creation of Two Spirit was designed to distance 'themselves from non-Native gays and lesbians'.

It was also brought in to replace the outdated anthropological term 'berdache' which means 'passive partner in sodomy, boy prostitute'.

Two Spirit doesn't fall under the Western understandings and definitions of sexuality and gender identity as it's not a self-confirming notion of identity.

Instead, it's a 'sacred, spiritual and ceremonial role, that has to be recognised and confirmed by the Elders of the Two Spirit's ceremonial community before one can call themselves Two Spirited.

Featured Image Credit: REUTERS/Blair Gable

Topics: News