Internalized homophobia is a sense of shame or stigma members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and queer (LGBQ) community feel about their own sexual identity and that of others in the community.
Some people struggle to identify with the term "internalized homophobia." For this reason, alternative words like heterosexism, self-prejudice, homonegativity, and internalized sexual stigma may be used in its place.