The book Beyond the Gender Binary by Alok Vaid-Menon, gives the reader very detailed information. Growing up we were taught that male and female are the only genders out there. This concept is called the binary gender norm. I won’t lie and say that I knew all these different concepts then this class wouldn’t have made sense to take. While reading this book, I was able to gain a better understanding of being non- binary or a non- conforming person. According to the book, a non-binary person is someone who’s neither exclusively a man nor a woman. While a non-conforming is a person who visibly defies society’s understanding of what a man or a woman should look like. Effeminate is another word that I learned while reading this book. The meaning of effeminate is (with reference to a man) having characteristics and ways of behaving traditionally associated with women and regarded as inappropriate for a man. What I believe it means to move beyond the gender binary for Alok Vaid-Menon is to acknowledge that male and female aren’t the only genders a person could be referred to as. Don’t we have freedom of speech and expression? According to Beyond the Gender Binary, why are there trying to ban them from public accommodations, denying them access to legal protections at work, or barring their access to healthcare. It doesn’t stop there. In South Dakota they are attempting to ban transgender athletes in high school. They even go to the lengths to prohibit them from going to public places, highways, schools, and parks. We were taught that boys are strong, and girls are weak, boys are rational, and girls are emotional since we were young. Since our birth, we have been classified as either male or female. These are the two genders that society accepts. I feel that if we teach the young that there is more to being a male and female, things will change since they are the world’s future. Vaid-Menon is arguing that it shouldn’t matter how you represent yourself, whether it’s via your gender, how you dress, move, apply make-up, or whether you wear sweatpants or a hoodie. There is nothing greater than being yourself. Yes, there will be individuals who will criticize you, but this is because they lack the bravery to be themselves. The binary norm holds that there are only two genders. How does my gender identification differ from the norm? Women who dress in men’s clothing, on the other hand, are looked down upon by society. I’d rather wear men’s clothes, but I’d also wear dresses, I’m emotional and have “woman problems.” You only live once, so don’t worry about what others think of you. Instead, enjoy it for who you are.