Why I Do Not Identify as a Feminist

The most basic and universal definition of what it means to be a feminist--it is endorsed by none other than Gloria Steinem who, BTW, I am not a fan of for reasons that have nothing to do with the terms feminist nor feminism-- is this: A person who believes in the full social, economic, political equality of men and women. I completely agree with that sentiment. The issue for me is that I do not believe that men and women represent the only genders within human gender expression. It really is as simple as that for me. So for me, calling myself a feminist is simply too limiting a term, given my understanding of the fullness of gender expression for human beings. I figured this out about 15-20 years ago. At that time I stopped referring to myself as a feminist and have never looked back. Instead, I adopted the word "universalist" to describe my political stance with regard to gender equality among all genders on the planet. That's it. Nothing more. Nothing less. Some people may see this as being too nit picking or silly or politically incorrect, etc. Naturally, I am not at all concerned with any of that.