Gender binary

The gender binary is a concept or social system that claims there are only two genders&mdash;female and male&mdash;that form a binary or pair. It generally assumes that it is "normal" for people to be cisgender; gender identity is expected to always align with the sex that was assigned at birth. The binary genders are also expected to conform with their culture's expectations regarding gender expressions and gender roles. Variations in identity or expression are not understood, recognized, or supported. The gender binary thus reinforces strict gender roles by treating gender essentialist beliefs as factual. It does not reflect the reality of people's experiences and has been disproven.