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People have long used a variety of terms to describe their gender expression and their sexual desires, activities, and identities. The Pink Triangle Legacies Project aims to be intentional in the language we use to describe LGBTQ+ people in the past and present. Throughout this essay and our website, we use the terminology individuals used for themselves whenever possible. When that information is not available, we describe their actions. When referring collectively to LGBTQ+ people, we use the phrase queer and trans. While some use “queer” as an umbrella term that includes gender identity, we choose to name trans, nonbinary, and gender-expansive people explicitly—especially at a moment when their histories and lives are being targeted and erased. We recognize that some LGBTQ+ people find the term queer offensive because of its use as a slur, and they may never identify as queer. We respect that. In the spirit of transforming the pink triangle from a badge of imprisonment into a symbol of liberation, we join those who have reclaimed the term queer to destigmatize it, take away its power from those who use it as an insult, and fill it instead with respect, affirmation, and self-empowerment. We employ it as an inclusive and expansive term that encompasses gay, lesbian, bi, asexual, pansexual, and additional sexual identities, as well as people whose identities shift over time or who reject fixed categories altogether. If you are uncomfortable using the term queer, we invite you to use LGBTQ+ instead. Above all, we ask that we treat one another’s identities with respect.