Educators in the Volunteer State are very concerned that students might be offended by the usage of traditional pronouns like she, he, him and hers, according to a document from the University of Tennessee – Knoxville’s Office of Diversity and Inclusion.
“With the new semester beginning and an influx of new students on campus, it is important to participate in making our campus welcoming and inclusive for all,” wrote Donna Braquet in a posting on the university’s website. “One way to do that is to use a student’s chosen name and their correct pronouns.”
Braquet, who is director of the university’s Pride Center, suggested using a variety of gender neutral pronouns instead of traditional pronouns.
For all you folks who went to school back when there were only him and her – here’s a primer: some of the new gender neutral pronouns are ze, hir, zir, xe, xem and xyr.
“There are dozens of gender-neutral pronouns,” she declared.
For all you folks who went to school back when there were only him and her – here’s a primer: some of the new gender neutral pronouns are ze, hir, zir, xe, xem and xyr.
“These may sound a little funny at first, but only because they are new,” Braquet explained. “The ‘she’ and ‘he’ pronouns would sound strange too if we had been taught ‘ze’ when growing up.”
Somehow I sincerely doubt that, but whatever. Anything goes for the sake of inclusivity, right?
“Instead of calling roll, ask everyone to provide their name and pronouns,” she wrote. “This ensures you are not singling out transgender or non-binary students.”
For example, the birth certificate might say that Big Earl is a male. But what if Big Earl identifies as a lady who wants to be called Lawanda?
According to the procedures outlined by the folks at the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, the professor is obligated to call Big Earl – Lawanda – or whatever name makes Big Earl feel more included.
“We should not assume someone’s gender by their appearance, nor by what is listed on a roster or in student information systems,” Braquet wrote. “Transgender people and people who do not identify within the gender binary may use a different name than their legal name and pronouns of their gender identity, rather than the pronouns of the sex they were assigned at birth.”
It’s all so confusing, right? So thankfully, the Office for Diversity and Inclusion has devised a way to prevent students and professors from calling “sir” a “ma’am.”
“You can always politely ask,” she wrote. “’Oh, nice to meet you (insert name). What pronouns should I use?’ is a perfectly fine question to ask.”
Let’s just say that not everyone is on board with the new gender neutral pronouns. Lots of folks in Big Orange Country are turning blood red.
“It’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard,” Republican State Sen. Mae Beavers told me. “If you must interview a student before you greet the student, that’s not acceptance – that’s just absurd.”
Beavers represents a “very conservative” district and she said her constituents are enraged over how their tax money is being spent by the university.
“The idea a child would want to be called by a gender neutral term is absolutely ridiculous,” she said. “It’s getting so crazy in this country.”
Julie West has two children at the university – not to mention a family dog named after the Volunteer’s revered coach – General Neyland.
“This isn’t inclusion,” she said. “This is the radical transformation of our lives and language.”
I reached out to the vice chancellor for tolerance and diversity (yes they really do have such a thing) – but I’m still waiting for him or her or ze or xyr to call me back.
There you have it, folks. His and Hers is no longer good enough at the University of Tennessee – where they are willing to sacrifice anything for the sake of gender inclusivity – including common sense.
I wonder if they’ve got a gender neutral word for idiot?
“You may shoot me with your words, you may cut me with your eyes, you may kill me with your hatefulness, but still, like air, I'll rise!” ― Maya Angelou
A flock of flirting flamingos is pure, passionate, pink pandemonium-a frenetic flamingle-mangle-a discordant discotheque of delirious dancing, flamboyant feathers, and flamingo lingo.
Because 0.01% of the population is somehow "offended" by the rest of the world, the rest of the world is always supposed to cave to whatever they want. I watched Dr. Drew's transgender report and the audience was full only of transgendered. THEY couldn't even agree with each other on how people should address them, talk to them, blah, blah.
I have often wanted a singular gender neutral pronoun, I wouldn't mind this, there are lots of applications.
You mean other than it both sounding and being stupid?
I will never understand why it is so hard to call a spade a spade.
People need to get over themselves.
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A flock of flirting flamingos is pure, passionate, pink pandemonium-a frenetic flamingle-mangle-a discordant discotheque of delirious dancing, flamboyant feathers, and flamingo lingo.
I have often wanted a singular gender neutral pronoun, I wouldn't mind this, there are lots of applications.
You mean other than it both sounding and being stupid?
I will never understand why it is so hard to call a spade a spade.
People need to get over themselves.
You do understand that this word is offensive to some people, right? (To ME it's a gardening tool made of wood and steel. Or something in a deck of cards.)
To some others ...
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The Principle of Least Interest: He who cares least about a relationship, controls it.
I have often wanted a singular gender neutral pronoun, I wouldn't mind this, there are lots of applications.
You mean other than it both sounding and being stupid?
I will never understand why it is so hard to call a spade a spade.
People need to get over themselves.
You do understand that this word is offensive to some people, right? (To ME it's a gardening tool made of wood and steel. Or something in a deck of cards.)
To some others ...
2 things.
I didn't mean it racist.
If someone finds it racist, I don't care.
Call a duck a duck.
That better?
Again. People need to get over themselves.
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A flock of flirting flamingos is pure, passionate, pink pandemonium-a frenetic flamingle-mangle-a discordant discotheque of delirious dancing, flamboyant feathers, and flamingo lingo.
This is so stupid it is offensive. Thankfully English isn't like Spanish or French where every noun is male or female. These fools would have us tear apart the whole spoken language.
I have often wanted a singular gender neutral pronoun, I wouldn't mind this, there are lots of applications.
You mean other than it both sounding and being stupid?
I will never understand why it is so hard to call a spade a spade.
People need to get over themselves.
You do understand that this word is offensive to some people, right? (To ME it's a gardening tool made of wood and steel. Or something in a deck of cards.)
To some others ...
THIS is the absolute perfect example of someone getting offended over NOTHING. Of CHOOSING to find something wrong with what someone says for no damn reason whatsoever. It's the EXACT thing Gaga is talking about on the other thread.
In other words - you have chosen to be the perfect example of a leftest being the damn politically correct word police over NOTHING.
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LawyerLady
I can explain it to you, but I can't understand it for you.
I have often wanted a singular gender neutral pronoun, I wouldn't mind this, there are lots of applications.
You mean other than it both sounding and being stupid?
I will never understand why it is so hard to call a spade a spade.
People need to get over themselves.
You do understand that this word is offensive to some people, right? (To ME it's a gardening tool made of wood and steel. Or something in a deck of cards.)
To some others ...
2 things.
I didn't mean it racist.
If someone finds it racist, I don't care.
Call a duck a duck.
That better?
Again. People need to get over themselves.
Fortunately, I never use either of those expressions.
And when I had a co-worker named Jack, and ran into him in an airport, I was VERY careful about the language I used in greeting him.
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The Principle of Least Interest: He who cares least about a relationship, controls it.
A flock of flirting flamingos is pure, passionate, pink pandemonium-a frenetic flamingle-mangle-a discordant discotheque of delirious dancing, flamboyant feathers, and flamingo lingo.
I don't want to say "Hi, Jack!" in an airport. Or on an airplane. Even if he sits down next to me.
That's ridiculously paranoid.
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A flock of flirting flamingos is pure, passionate, pink pandemonium-a frenetic flamingle-mangle-a discordant discotheque of delirious dancing, flamboyant feathers, and flamingo lingo.
I believe that we need a gender neutral pronoun too. Not for use in this crazy "I may have a penis, but I'm really a woman" world that we seem to be evolving into, but for situations where the gender of the person is either unknown or irrelevant to the subject being mentioned.
Perfect example of a good place for a gender neutral pronoun: "I need to speak to the Manager, is >gender neutral pronoun< in?"
Or when asking about a baby of unknown gender, (calling unborn babies 'it' has always rubbed me the wrong way), for referring to animals, for when you need to talk to someone and you simply don't know their gender. It would just generally be useful.
I believe that we need a gender neutral pronoun too. Not for use in this crazy "I may have a penis, but I'm really a woman" world that we seem to be evolving into, but for situations where the gender of the person is either unknown or irrelevant to the subject being mentioned.
Perfect example of a good place for a gender neutral pronoun: "I need to speak to the Manager, is >gender neutral pronoun< in?"
" s/he " is easy to write, but challenging to pronounce, imho.
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The Principle of Least Interest: He who cares least about a relationship, controls it.
But, then if we do a have another one, there are still going to be groups who then decide that doesn't apply to them either because they are soooo special in their brand of whatever it is and of course going to be offended at the world anyway. I mean, I am sure we won't be able to call people human beings soon either as some will decide they are a vampire or a reincarnated zombie or whatever.
I believe that we need a gender neutral pronoun too. Not for use in this crazy "I may have a penis, but I'm really a woman" world that we seem to be evolving into, but for situations where the gender of the person is either unknown or irrelevant to the subject being mentioned.
Perfect example of a good place for a gender neutral pronoun: "I need to speak to the Manager, is >gender neutral pronoun< in?"
I need to speak to the manager, are they in?
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I'm not arguing, I'm just explaining why I'm right.
Well, I could agree with you--but then we'd both be wrong.
This is so stupid it is offensive. Thankfully English isn't like Spanish or French where every noun is male or female. These fools would have us tear apart the whole spoken language.
I don't understand the problem when gender isn't a known factor.
It's masculine until you know otherwise.
No. It doesn't slight a female gender in any way.
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A flock of flirting flamingos is pure, passionate, pink pandemonium-a frenetic flamingle-mangle-a discordant discotheque of delirious dancing, flamboyant feathers, and flamingo lingo.
This is so stupid it is offensive. Thankfully English isn't like Spanish or French where every noun is male or female. These fools would have us tear apart the whole spoken language.
This is so stupid it is offensive. Thankfully English isn't like Spanish or French where every noun is male or female. These fools would have us tear apart the whole spoken language.
There are three genders in the Russian language.
Oh! Well if the Russians are doing it.....
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A flock of flirting flamingos is pure, passionate, pink pandemonium-a frenetic flamingle-mangle-a discordant discotheque of delirious dancing, flamboyant feathers, and flamingo lingo.
This is so stupid it is offensive. Thankfully English isn't like Spanish or French where every noun is male or female. These fools would have us tear apart the whole spoken language.
There are three genders in the Russian language.
Oh! Well if the Russians are doing it.....
I see you didn't reference the Spanish or French in the quote.
This is so stupid it is offensive. Thankfully English isn't like Spanish or French where every noun is male or female. These fools would have us tear apart the whole spoken language.
There are three genders in the Russian language.
Oh! Well if the Russians are doing it.....
I see you didn't reference the Spanish or French in the quote.
You like to nit pick.
There are two genders.
You are either DNA, genetically male or DNA, genetically female.
We have gender neutral pronouns. They, them, we, us.
Saying what they do in other countries is a lot like a kid using "but my friends get to" as an argument.
There are men and women. And no matter how drastically a person alters their outside, the inside will always be what it is.
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A flock of flirting flamingos is pure, passionate, pink pandemonium-a frenetic flamingle-mangle-a discordant discotheque of delirious dancing, flamboyant feathers, and flamingo lingo.
Nitpick? I was talking to Lexxy about languages. Nowhere did I imply that because the Russians are doing it, then everyone should do it. I don't see why Husker replied in that snarky fashion.
In any case, things like chairs and mountains and frying pans don't have DNA. Or genetics, for that matter. Russian is a complicated language.
A flock of flirting flamingos is pure, passionate, pink pandemonium-a frenetic flamingle-mangle-a discordant discotheque of delirious dancing, flamboyant feathers, and flamingo lingo.
I believe that we need a gender neutral pronoun too. Not for use in this crazy "I may have a penis, but I'm really a woman" world that we seem to be evolving into, but for situations where the gender of the person is either unknown or irrelevant to the subject being mentioned.
Perfect example of a good place for a gender neutral pronoun: "I need to speak to the Manager, is >gender neutral pronoun< in?"
I need to speak to the manager, are they in?
Using "they" when referring to a singular person is not grammatically correct. You need a singular pronoun not a plural pronoun.
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Out of all the lies I have told, "just kidding" is my favorite !
A flock of flirting flamingos is pure, passionate, pink pandemonium-a frenetic flamingle-mangle-a discordant discotheque of delirious dancing, flamboyant feathers, and flamingo lingo.
I believe that we need a gender neutral pronoun too. Not for use in this crazy "I may have a penis, but I'm really a woman" world that we seem to be evolving into, but for situations where the gender of the person is either unknown or irrelevant to the subject being mentioned.
Perfect example of a good place for a gender neutral pronoun: "I need to speak to the Manager, is >gender neutral pronoun< in?"
I need to speak to the manager, are they in?
Using "they" when referring to a singular person is not grammatically correct. You need a singular pronoun not a plural pronoun.
What is fundamentally wrong with saying him?
__________________
A flock of flirting flamingos is pure, passionate, pink pandemonium-a frenetic flamingle-mangle-a discordant discotheque of delirious dancing, flamboyant feathers, and flamingo lingo.
I believe that we need a gender neutral pronoun too. Not for use in this crazy "I may have a penis, but I'm really a woman" world that we seem to be evolving into, but for situations where the gender of the person is either unknown or irrelevant to the subject being mentioned.
Perfect example of a good place for a gender neutral pronoun: "I need to speak to the Manager, is >gender neutral pronoun< in?"
I need to speak to the manager, are they in?
Using "they" when referring to a singular person is not grammatically correct. You need a singular pronoun not a plural pronoun.
What is fundamentally wrong with saying him?
If you don't think there is anything fundamentally wrong with it, nothing I say will convince you otherwise.
A lot of women find it rude to assume that the person in charge is male. Male pronouns are NOT gender neutral. Just like female pronouns are not neutral.
-- Edited by Mellow Momma on Sunday 30th of August 2015 12:51:47 PM
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Out of all the lies I have told, "just kidding" is my favorite !
I believe that we need a gender neutral pronoun too. Not for use in this crazy "I may have a penis, but I'm really a woman" world that we seem to be evolving into, but for situations where the gender of the person is either unknown or irrelevant to the subject being mentioned.
Perfect example of a good place for a gender neutral pronoun: "I need to speak to the Manager, is >gender neutral pronoun< in?"
I need to speak to the manager, are they in?
Using "they" when referring to a singular person is not grammatically correct. You need a singular pronoun not a plural pronoun.
What is fundamentally wrong with saying him?
If you don't think there is anything fundamentally wrong with it, nothing I say will convince you otherwise.
A lot of women find it rude to assume that the person in charge is male. Male pronouns are NOT gender neutral. Just like female pronouns are not neutral.
-- Edited by Mellow Momma on Sunday 30th of August 2015 12:51:47 PM
I believe that we need a gender neutral pronoun too. Not for use in this crazy "I may have a penis, but I'm really a woman" world that we seem to be evolving into, but for situations where the gender of the person is either unknown or irrelevant to the subject being mentioned.
Perfect example of a good place for a gender neutral pronoun: "I need to speak to the Manager, is >gender neutral pronoun< in?"
I need to speak to the manager, are they in?
Using "they" when referring to a singular person is not grammatically correct. You need a singular pronoun not a plural pronoun.
What is fundamentally wrong with saying him?
If you don't think there is anything fundamentally wrong with it, nothing I say will convince you otherwise.
A lot of women find it rude to assume that the person in charge is male. Male pronouns are NOT gender neutral. Just like female pronouns are not neutral.
-- Edited by Mellow Momma on Sunday 30th of August 2015 12:51:47 PM
So? It isn't an insult.
I will never understand why any woman would be insulted over something so trivial.
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A flock of flirting flamingos is pure, passionate, pink pandemonium-a frenetic flamingle-mangle-a discordant discotheque of delirious dancing, flamboyant feathers, and flamingo lingo.
I believe that we need a gender neutral pronoun too. Not for use in this crazy "I may have a penis, but I'm really a woman" world that we seem to be evolving into, but for situations where the gender of the person is either unknown or irrelevant to the subject being mentioned.
Perfect example of a good place for a gender neutral pronoun: "I need to speak to the Manager, is >gender neutral pronoun< in?"
I need to speak to the manager, are they in?
Using "they" when referring to a singular person is not grammatically correct. You need a singular pronoun not a plural pronoun.
What is fundamentally wrong with saying him?
If you don't think there is anything fundamentally wrong with it, nothing I say will convince you otherwise.
A lot of women find it rude to assume that the person in charge is male. Male pronouns are NOT gender neutral. Just like female pronouns are not neutral.
-- Edited by Mellow Momma on Sunday 30th of August 2015 12:51:47 PM
I dont find it offensive at all. And people that do are seriously insecure...
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America guarantees equal opportunity, not equal outcome...
I have a strange name, and A LOT of people assume it is a man's name. And I hate that. I just do.
We are looking for a Mr Be Happy, is he in? We are looking for D Worry, when will he be back? Is Mr Dona available?
I hate it. Hate it hate it hate it. Couldn't even explain why, other than it is like fingernails on a chalkboard to me.
I would much rather a gender neutral pronoun than all of these ridiculous people assuming I am male all the time.
It's the correct way of speaking when you don't know the gender.
My dad has a feminine name. Both his first and middle names and he gets referred to as she until they are told otherwise.
Doesn't bother him.
Matter of fact, if they ask for her, ms, or anything like it, he has the opportunity to deny it is him.
People get offended by the dumbest things.
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A flock of flirting flamingos is pure, passionate, pink pandemonium-a frenetic flamingle-mangle-a discordant discotheque of delirious dancing, flamboyant feathers, and flamingo lingo.
Well, everyone assumes I'm black when they hear my name. I guess I should be offended.
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“You may shoot me with your words, you may cut me with your eyes, you may kill me with your hatefulness, but still, like air, I'll rise!” ― Maya Angelou
And, because you say you have a name mistaken for a guy, it makes it safer for you to have your number in a phone booth.
You also have the advantage of saying the person is unable to come to the phone when a stranger calls.
If it is assumed you are a guy, you have an advantage.
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A flock of flirting flamingos is pure, passionate, pink pandemonium-a frenetic flamingle-mangle-a discordant discotheque of delirious dancing, flamboyant feathers, and flamingo lingo.
Well, everyone assumes I'm black when they hear my name. I guess I should be offended.
Probably.
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A flock of flirting flamingos is pure, passionate, pink pandemonium-a frenetic flamingle-mangle-a discordant discotheque of delirious dancing, flamboyant feathers, and flamingo lingo.