Image via Facebook Diversity page
Social networking giant Facebook has worked with LGBT groups, such as GLAAD, to create a list that allows users to choose a gender for their profile pages that isn’t just male or female.
The feature is only available in English to Facebook users in the US for now, but the company is working to bring the changes to different countries, The Wall Street Journal quoted a Facebook spokesperson as having said.
The new feature, implemented yesterday, now lets Facebook users identify themselves from more than 50 choices, which include agender, bigender, transgender, transsexual, cisgender, intersex or gender fluid.
Users can also select more than one gender identifier and whom to share that information with, and whether they want to be referred to as he, she or they on Facebook. The pronoun choice is a public setting, though.
A change of gender won’t generate an alert to a user’s Facebook friends, the same way changing a profile photo would, for example.
Image via The Wall Street Journal
Facebook revealed the changes yesterday on the Facebook Diversity page.
“When you come to Facebook to connect with the people, causes, and organizations you care about, we want you to feel comfortable being your true, authentic self,” the company said.
“An important part of this is the expression of gender, especially when it extends beyond the definitions of just ‘male’ or ‘female.’ So today, we’re proud to offer a new custom gender option to help you better express your own identity on Facebook.”
