Race: A social construct that artificially divides people into distinct groups based on characteristics such as physical appearance (particularly color), ancestral heritage, cultural affiliation, cultural history, ethnic classification, and the social, economic, and political needs of a society at a given period of time. Although race is a social construct, it has real impact on everyday lives.  

Color: A person’s skin color; defined by the federal government as pigmentation, complexion, or skin shade or tone.  

Ethnicity: A social construct which divides people into smaller groups based on characteristics such as a shared sense of group membership, values, behavioral patterns, language, political and economic interest, history, and ancestral geographical base.  

Age: Measured by years from birth.  

Sex: The physiological makeup of a human being; assigned at birth and most often based on the child's external anatomy. 

Gender Identity: One’s innermost concept of self as male, female, a blend of both or neither – how individuals perceive themselves and what they call themselves. One's gender identity can be the same or different from their sex assigned at birth. 

Gender Expression: External appearance of one’s gender, usually expressed through behavior, clothing, body characteristics or voice, which may or may not conform to socially defined behaviors and characteristics typically associated with being either masculine or feminine. 

Sexual Orientation: An inherent or immutable enduring emotional, romantic or sexual attraction to other people.  

Neurodiversity: The diversity of human brains and minds – the infinite variation in neurocognitive functioning within our species. Neurodiversity covers a multitude of neurological differences including but not limited to: Dyspraxia, Dyslexia, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Dyscalculia, Autistic Spectrum, Tourette Syndrome, and others. 

Physical and Mental Ability: A person’s physical or mental ability to engage in one or more major life activities (e.g., seeing, hearing, speaking, walking, breathing, performing manual tasks, learning or caring for oneself). 

Nationality: A specific legal relationship between a person and a state, whether by birth or naturalization in the case of an immigrant. National origin is not something an individual can change, though origin can change through the generations of family.  

Faith & Religion: A formal or informal set of beliefs concerning cause, nature, and purpose, sometimes including devotional and ritual observances or containing a moral code that governs behavior.  

Socioeconomic Status: A relative social ranking based on income, wealth, education, status, and power.  

Cultural Background: A set of values, beliefs, customs, norms, perceptions, and experiences shared by a group of people. An individual may identify with or belong to many different cultural groups. Culture is passed to others through communication, learning, and imitation. 

Military/Veteran Status: A person’s connection to serving in the military. 

Thank you to the following sources:

https://www.hrc.org/resources/glossary-of-terms 

https://www.adl.org/education/resources/glossary-terms/disability-glossary  

https://neuroqueer.com/neurodiversity-terms-and-definitions/

https://ofm.wa.gov/sites/default/files/public/shr/Diversity/SubCommit/DEI-Glossary.pdf