Basically, a while back, deviantART removed the "other" option from gender choices for new accounts, and people were forced to choose between "male" and "female" only. A user complained, and was treated to not just one, but multiple horribly non-binary-phobic dismissals. The reporter (who identifies as Neutrois and prefers the pronoun "it") went through as many channels as it could think of, and when responses remained pretty much the same, went public with the entire mess.
DA responded first with continued rude dismissals, then slightly less rude dismissals and changing "gender" to "sex" (which helps in no way what-so-ever), and then finally adding an "other" option to the newly re-classed "sex" choice - after the internet has blown up at them.
DA has backed down pretty well by now, and reportedly will be offering a "gender" option with more than two choices in the near future. (Though it still insists that knowing what's between a user's legs is important. I can't imagine how, except in the unlikely event that one paints with it (It's not that kind of brush, people!) - unless it has to do with advertising, which means that it's the ad companies as well that are conflating sex with gender.) However, this whole thing leaves many with a bad taste in their mouth, and some have left the site for good over this, even after DA's apology and promise to include the "gender" category.
There's another good summary (probably better) here by Megan Rosalarian Gedris, and her damn fantastic essay on why she's leaving DA is here.
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Basically, a while back, deviantART removed the "other" option from gender choices for new accounts, and people were forced to choose between "male" and "female" only. A user complained, and was treated to not just one, but multiple horribly non-binary-phobic dismissals. The reporter (who identifies as Neutrois and prefers the pronoun "it") went through as many channels as it could think of, and when responses remained pretty much the same, went public with the entire mess.
DA responded first with continued rude dismissals, then slightly less rude dismissals and changing "gender" to "sex" (which helps in no way what-so-ever), and then finally adding an "other" option to the newly re-classed "sex" choice - after the internet has blown up at them.
DA has backed down pretty well by now, and reportedly will be offering a "gender" option with more than two choices in the near future. (Though it still insists that knowing what's between a user's legs is important. I can't imagine how, except in the unlikely event that one paints with it (It's not that kind of brush, people!) - unless it has to do with advertising, which means that it's the ad companies as well that are conflating sex with gender.) However, this whole thing leaves many with a bad taste in their mouth, and some have left the site for good over this, even after DA's apology and promise to include the "gender" category.
There's another good summary (probably better) here by Megan Rosalarian Gedris, and her damn fantastic essay on why she's leaving DA is here.