DEIA Dictionary

Terms and Definitions

• Ableism: Discrimination against people with disabilities.
• Accessibility: The practice of ensuring that all people have equal access to opportunities and resources, regardless of their abilities or disabilities; requires removing physical and attitudinal barriers that prevent people with disabilities from accessing and participating in society.
• Accountability: The obligation to answer for one's actions.
• Advocacy: The act of publicly supporting a particular cause or group.
• Affirmative Action: Policies and practices that are designed to increase opportunities for historically underrepresented groups.
• Ageism: Discrimination against people based on their age.
• Ally Development: The ongoing process of learning about and challenging oppression, and using that knowledge to take action to support marginalized groups.
• Allyship: The act of actively supporting and advocating for marginalized groups. Allies can be anyone, regardless of their own social identity. 
• Anti-racism: The belief that racism is a system of oppression that can be dismantled through intentional action. Anti-racism work can include things like challenging racism, educating others about racism, and supporting organizations that are working to dismantle racism.
• Apartheid: A system of racial segregation and discrimination in South Africa that was in place from 1948 to 1994.
• Asexuality: The lack of sexual attraction to anyone.
• Assimilation: The process of adapting to a dominant culture by giving up one's own cultural identity.
• Authenticity: The quality of being true to oneself. It is the ability to be genuine and sincere, even when it's difficult.
• Belonging: The feeling of being accepted and valued for who you are. It is the sense of being part of something larger than yourself.
• Bias: A preference for one thing over another, often unfairly. It can be conscious or unconscious, and it can influence our thoughts, decisions, and actions.
• BIPOC: An acronym for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color.
• Bisexuality: The romantic attraction to men and women.
• Cisgender: A person whose gender identity aligns with the sex they were assigned at birth.
• Cisnormativity: The assumption that everyone is cisgender.
• Classism: Prejudice against or discrimination based on social class.
• Climate Justice: The movement for fair and equitable solutions to climate change that address the needs of the most vulnerable communities.
• Colonization: The process of one group of people taking control of another group of people and their land.
• Colorblindness: The belief that race is not a factor in people's lives and that we should all be treated equally regardless of our race.
• Colorism: The prejudice or discrimination against people of color based on the lightness or darkness of their skin.
• Critical Race Theory (CRT): A cross-disciplinary examination of society and culture that considers the role of race and racism in shaping institutions and systems. CRT has been used to analyze a wide range of issues, including education, criminal justice, and housing. 
• Cultural Appropriation: The act of taking or using elements of a culture that is not your own, especially without understanding or respecting that culture.
• Culturally Competent Care: Healthcare that is sensitive to the cultural beliefs, values, and practices of patients. It involves providing care in a way that is respectful and responsive to the patient's individual needs.
• Deadnaming: The act of referring to a transgender person by their birth name, rather than their chosen name.
• Disability: A physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities.
• Disability Justice: A movement that advocates for the rights of people with disabilities and challenges the ableist assumption that people with disabilities are less than capable.
• Diversity: The variety of human experiences, perspectives, and identities. Diversity can be based on factors such as race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, religion, age, disability, and socioeconomic status.
• Environmental Justice: The fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income with respect to the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies.
• Environmental Racism: The disproportionate placement of environmental hazards in communities of color.
• Equality: The equal treatment of all people regardless of their differences.
• Equity: The fair and just distribution of resources and opportunities in consideration of the different needs and experiences of people to ensure that everyone has an equal chance to succeed.
• Ethnicity: A shared cultural heritage, including language, religion, and traditions.
• Ethnocentrism: The belief that one's own ethnic group is superior to others.
• Food Insecurity: The lack of consistent access to enough affordable, nutritious food.
• Gender Binary: The idea that there are only two genders, male and female.
• Gender Expression: The way a person presents their gender to the world through their appearance, behavior, and mannerisms.
• Gender Identity: A person's internal sense of their own gender.
• Gender Spectrum: A range of gender identities that are not necessarily male or female.
• Gender-neutral Pronouns: Pronouns that do not specify the gender of the person being referred to (e.g., they/them).
• Genderfluid: A person whose gender identity changes over time.
• Health Access: The ability to get the healthcare services you need, including preventive care, treatment, and medication.
• Health Disparities: The unequal distribution of health outcomes across different populations; can be based on race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, geography, and/or other factors.
• Health Equity: The state where everyone has a fair and just opportunity to attain their highest level of health.
• Health Inequities: Avoidable differences in health outcomes between different groups of people often linked to social determinants of health.
• Health Literacy: The ability to understand, access, and use health information.
• Hegemony: The dominance of one group over another.
• Heteronormativity: The assumption that heterosexuality is the only normal or natural sexual orientation.
• Heterosexism: The belief that heterosexuality is the only normal and natural form of sexual orientation.
• Homophobia: The fear or hatred of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people.
• Homosexuality: The romantic attraction to people of the same sex.
• Housing Insecurity: The state of being unsure of having a safe and affordable place to live.
• Human Rights: The basic rights and freedoms that belong to every person in the world, from birth until death.
• Implicit Bias: Unconscious prejudices that can influence healthcare decisions and lead to unequal treatment.
• Inclusion: The act of welcoming and accepting people from all backgrounds and experiences. Inclusion is about creating a space where everyone feels safe, respected, and valued.
• Intersectionality: The way that different forms of oppression, such as racism, sexism, and classism, intersect to create unique experiences for individuals.
• Intersectionality Matrix: A framework used to illustrate how different forms of oppression can intersect and create unique experiences for individuals.
• Intersex: A person who is born with sex characteristics that do not fit neatly into the categories of male or female.
• LGBTQ+: An acronym for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and other sexual and gender minorities.
• Marginalization: The process of pushing people to the edges of society and denying them access to power and resources.
• Marginalized Groups: Groups of people who are systematically excluded from power and resources. Marginalized groups can be based on factors such as race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, religion, age, disability, and socioeconomic status.
• Microaggressions: Everyday verbal, nonverbal, and environmental slights, insults, put-downs, and insults that communicate hostile, derogatory, or negative messages to members of marginalized groups.
• Microinequities: The everyday, subtle ways in which people are treated differently because of their race, gender, or other social identities.
• Misgendering: Accidentally or intentionally referring to someone with a pronoun or term that does not reflect their gender identity.
• Misogyny: The hatred of women.
• Multiculturalism: The belief that all cultures are equally valuable and should be respected.
• Neurodiversity: A term used to describe the natural variation in human brains. This variation includes conditions such as autism spectrum disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), dyslexia, and dyspraxia, among others.
• Neurotypical: A term used to describe people whose brains function in a way that is considered to be "normal" or "typical."
• Non-binary: A person whose gender identity does not fit neatly into the categories of male or female.
• Oppression: The systematic mistreatment of a group of people based on their race, gender, or other social identities.
• Pansexuality: The ability to be attracted to people regardless of their gender identity.
• Patient Advocacy: The act of speaking up for a patient's rights and needs.
• Patriarchy: A system of social organization in which men hold the power and women are subordinate.
• Pay Equity: The state of being paid the same amount for doing the same work, regardless of gender, race, or other protected characteristics.
• Power: The ability to influence or control people or situations.
• Privilege: Unearned advantages that people have based on their social identity, such as race, gender, or class.
• Pronoun Sets: A set of pronouns a person uses to identify themselves (e.g., she/her, he/him, they/them).
• Queer: An umbrella term that refers to people who are not cisgender or heterosexual.
• Race: A social construct that is used to categorize people based on physical characteristics, such as skin color, hair texture, and facial features.
• Racism: The belief that one race is superior to another, and the prejudice and discrimination that results from this belief.
• Respect: The act of showing regard or consideration for someone or something. It is the willingness to accept someone or something for who or what they are, regardless of their differences
• Sexism: The belief that one sex is superior to another, and the prejudice and discrimination that results from this belief.
• Sexual Orientation: A person's enduring physical, romantic, or emotional attraction to another person.
• Social Capital: The networks of relationships, trust, and reciprocity that can be used to access resources and support.
• Social Identity: The groups that a person identifies with, such as their race, gender, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, and class.
• Social Construct: An idea or practice that is created by society and does not necessarily reflect any natural reality (e.g., race, gender).
• Social Determinants of Health: The economic and social conditions, like poverty, education, access to healthcare, discrimination, and social support networks, that influence individual and community health outcomes.
• Social Justice: The pursuit of fair and equitable treatment for all members of society.
• Socialization: The process of learning the norms and values of a society.
• Socioeconomic Status (SES): A combination of a person's education, income, and occupation.
• Solidarity: Unity or agreement of feeling or action, especially among individuals with a common interest; mutual support within a group.
• Stereotype: A generalized belief about a group of people that is often inaccurate and harmful.
• Systemic Racism: The ways in which racism is embedded in the fabric of society, such as through laws, policies, and institutions.
• Transgender: A person whose gender identity does not match the sex they were assigned at birth.
• Transphobia: Discrimination against transgender people.
• Tolerance: The ability to accept people or things that are different from you. It is the willingness to see things from another person's perspective and to respect their beliefs and values, even if you don't agree with them
• Unconscious Bias: Biases that people hold without being aware of them.
• White Privilege: The unearned advantages that white people have in society because of their race.
• White Washing: White washing is the act of making something appear whiter than it is through the use of language, images, or other forms of representation. White washing can be used to erase or minimize the experiences of people of color.
• Woke: A slang term that refers to being aware of and actively engaged in social justice issues. The term has been used to describe people who are critical of racism, sexism, and other forms of oppression.