International Asexuality Day (IAD) takes place each year on April 6th. IAD is a coordinated worldwide campaign promoting the asexual umbrella, including demisexual, grey-asexual and other ace identities.
The purpose of IAD is to bring awareness to the asexuality identity, through advocacy, education, solidarity, and of course... celebration.
As an LGBTQIA+ business, we are often asked to define each identity. So, today lets dive into Ace... or Asexuality.
Asexuality is the lack of sexual attraction to others, or low or absent interest in or desire for sexual activity. It may be considered a sexual orientation or the lack thereof. In addition, it may also be categorized more widely, to include a broad spectrum of asexual sub-identities.
Asexuality is distinct from abstention from sexual activity and from celibacy, which are behavioral and generally motivated by factors such as an individual's personal, social, or religious beliefs. Sexual orientation, unlike sexual behavior, is believed to be "enduring". Some asexual people engage in sexual activity despite lacking sexual attraction or a desire for sex, for a number of reasons, such as a desire to physically pleasure themselves or romantic partners, or a desire to have children.
Acceptance of asexuality as a sexual orientation and field of scientific research is still relatively new, as a growing body of research from both sociological and psychological perspectives has begun to develop. While some researchers assert that asexuality is a sexual orientation, other researchers disagree. Asexual individuals represent approximately one percent of the world population.
Despite lacking sexual attraction, some asexuals might engage in purely romantic relationships, while others may not. Some who identify as asexual report that they experience sexual attraction, though lack the inclination to act on it, citing no desire to engage in sexual activity—some asexuals also lack the desire to engage in non-sexual physical activity such as cuddling or hand-holding, while others choose to do so. Asexual people may seek relationships without romantic or sexual activity, known as "queer-platonic relationships". Certain asexuals may participate in sexual activity out of an intellectual curiosity. Some may masturbate as a form of solitary release, while others may not feel a need to do so. The desire for masturbation or other sexual activity is often referred to as sex drive by asexuals, who disassociate it from sexual attraction and being asexual; asexuals who masturbate generally consider it to be a normal product of the human body rather than a sign of latent sexuality, and others do not find it pleasurable. Some asexual men are unable get an erection and are unable to attempt penetration. Asexuals also differ in their views on performing sexual acts—some are indifferent and may engage in sexual activity for the benefit of a romantic partner, while others are more strongly averse to the idea, though they are not typically against sex as a whole.
Many who identify as asexual also choose to adopt other identities, which often include gender identity and classification of romantic orientation. These are often integrated with a person's asexual identity, and asexuals may still identify as heterosexual, lesbian, gay, or bisexual regarding romantic or emotional aspects of sexual orientation or sexual identity in addition to identifying as asexual. The romantic aspects of sexual orientations may also be indicated by a variety of romantic identities, including biromantic, heteroromantic, homoromantic, or panromantic, and those who do not experience romantic attraction may identify as aromantic. Individuals who are both aromantic and asexual are sometimes known as "aro-ace" or "aroace". The term "gray asexuality" refers to the spectrum between asexuality and non-asexuality (also referred to as allosexuality). Individuals who identify as gray asexual may occasionally experience sexual attraction, or only experience sexual attraction as a secondary component once a reasonably stable or large emotional connection has been formed with the target, known as demisexuality.
Asexuals face prejudice from the LGBT community. Many LGBT people assume that anyone who is not homosexual or bisexual must be straight and frequently exclude asexuals from their definitions of queer. Although many well-known organizations devoted to aiding LGBTQ communities exist, these organizations generally do not reach out to asexuals and do not provide literature about asexuality. Upon coming out as asexual, activist Sara Beth Brooks was told by many LGBT people that asexuals are mistaken in their self-identification and seek undeserved attention within the social justice movement. Other LGBT organizations, such as The Trevor Project and the National LGBTQ Task Force, explicitly include asexuals because they are non-heterosexual and can therefore be included in the definition of queer. Some organizations now add an A to the LGBTQ acronym to include asexuals; however, this is still a controversial topic in some queer organizations.
At Pegasus Pride, we believe that we are #StrongerTogether as a community. We not only support aces, but we embrace the differences of all people.