May 6, 2022
“Polyamory” stems from the Greek word “poly,” meaning many, and the Latin “amor,” meaning love. As the name suggests, a polyamorous relationship is where people engage in multiple relationships. These relationships can be sexual, emotional, or both. It is one of the most prevalent forms of consensual non-monogamous relationships.
Even under the umbrella term polyamory, there are still numerous subsets such as polyfidelitous relationships, where groups decide not to become involved with people outside their existing relationship networks; or even parallel polyamory, where individual relationships are largely independent of each other.
“There are so many different styles of non-monogamy,” said Gina Westfall*. “Different people do it in different ways depending on how they naturally connect.”
Even though Westfall is a proud member of the polyamorous community, she wasn’t comfortable with her name being attached to it on the internet, as there is still immense stigma even in our sex-positive society. There are very few legal protections for those in the community against discrimination from their employers.
