THEGAYUK.com has polled readers numerous time on whether the term queer is an acceptable term to describe themselves and each time the majority has rejected the term.

In July 2017 we asked over 200 people whether they thought queer as an umbrella term for the LGBT+ community was acceptable and sixty percent did not. Some commented that the word was “triggering” and “deeply offensive”, particularly to men who identified as gay.

The word queer is still used as a slur against many people in the community, particularly gay and bisexual men, and although some may refer to themselves in this way, it’s probably best not to use language that causes offence to others.

Only seven percent of men surveyed thought that the term queer was acceptable.

THEGAYUK.com own style guide suggests: “For the time being, we should use LGBT+ when describing the community for which we write. Past readers’ surveys have shown that British audiences tend to find the term “queer” offensive – we will keep an eye on what the public feels about applying terms to the overall community and update”.

Equally gay and bisexual people surveyed disapproved of the MSM terminology. MSM stands for “Men Who Have Sex With Men”. The term’s use has become more and more prevalent by health organisations, pharmaceutical companies, educational establishments and other specialists when talking about the health or sexual issues that concern gay and bisexual men. Read more via Gay UK