I am at a loss to discern the purpose behind Lee Elci's column, “Maybe I’m too old for a politically correct, non-binary world,” (Feb. 5), denying the long-acknowledged reality that sexuality is not always a binary choice. Is it a disingenuous denial of a reality that Lee finds discomfiting? Is it a rationalization of bigotry against a misunderstood and vulnerable minority? Or is it simply political tribalism?

I am a generation older than Lee and a proud fellow graduate of Waterford Public Schools, and I do not use those facts to avoid the sometimes uncomfortable complexity of humanity. When I was in school, homosexuality was an unspoken topic, and my gay classmates were relegated to a life of secrecy and unnecessary shame. That is our disgrace, one we should strive not to repeat.

Thankfully, the world we live in has progressed and our gay brethren can, for the most part, acknowledge their identity and live honestly and openly without repercussion. Lee celebrates his scholarship. Perhaps he should update it and peruse the social and physiological literature on sexuality. He may be surprised to find a long social, literary, and scientific history supporting the reality of non-binary gender rather than, as he dismissively characterizes it, "a leap into the abyss of political correctness".

Lawrence Tytla

Waterford