Originally meant as a slur against individuals with gender critical beliefs, it has now been appropriated by those it targeted. Gender critical advocates -- those who believe only two genders exist and/or sex is determined at birth and cannot be changed - now typically use the word as a "badge of honor," including it as a self-descriptor in social media bios, etc.
The general public as a whole is beginning to redefine the term completely. Whereas it was originally as an acronym for "Trans Exclusionary Radical Feminist," many people now consider the acronym to stand for "Trans Exclusionary Rational Feminist" or "Trans Exclusionary Reasonable Factualist." These alternative acronyms reflect the growing scientific consensus that gender is binary and one sex cannot transitioned into the other sex.
She was attacked for her gender critical beliefs, but she defiantly declared, "This TERF won't relent. A woman is an adult human female."
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