If a person has never had to worry use for you. about which pronoun others use for • Your singular and visible To understand the importance of pronouns, them, gender pronouns might not gender identity is a privilege let’s go back in time. They clearly forgot that you What are That change had also met seem important. For most, their • Not everybody has this was a plural pronoun that had become singular as with some resistance. In singular and visible gender identity privilege Since forms may exist in Pronouns? well. In the 17th century 1660, George Fox, the founder is a privilege. Not everybody has • Those that are referred to with speech long before they’re Pronouns are words that The modern feminine “she” written, it’s likely that singular you replaced of Quakerism, wrote a book that privilege; those that are referred the wrong pronoun can feel So what Hopelessly PRONOUNS 12th appears in the mid-12th singular they was common thou, thee, and thy, except labeling anyone who used refer to either the people to with the wrong pronoun can disrespected, invalidated, and 1375 happened? out of date Century century to seemingly, at even before the late 14th for some dialect use. You singular you an idiot or fool. talking (like you or me) or feel disrespected, invalidated, and alienated. least in part, fi ght against century. That makes an old had functioned as a polite This is similar to how singular someone or something that alienated. You can’t assume what • Knowing and using someone’s ambiguity over gender. form even older. singular for centuries. they is ridiculed by some today. CAN WORK! is being talked about (like someone’s gender pronouns are by gender pronouns is a positive she, they, and this). Gender looking at them. Knowing and using way to support the people you someone’s gender pronouns is a work with. pronouns (like he or them) positive way to support the people you According to the Oxford The Oxford English Dictionary Grammarians (mostly men) 18th century grammarians specifi cally refer to people work with. Is the introduction of a English Dictionary, by the traces singular they to 1375 began warning that singular like Robert Lowth and singular nonbinary pronoun The Did you that you are talking about. 12th century masculine and where it appears in the And it’s they was an error because a Lindley Murray enforced modern know that 1660 In other words... THEY the invention of feminine pronouns developed medieval romance William probably plural pronoun can’t take a the use of thou as singular feminine you was a As a Cisgender (non-transgender millennial special snowfl akes? to where they were, “almost and the Werewolf. Except for singular antecedent. and you as plural, even “she” older pronoun? person), heteronormative (Straight), NO! As a matter of fact... or wholly indistinguishable the old-style language, its use than that! though anyone who said binary person (Male of Female), by The singular gender-nonspecifi c in pronunciation,” beginning of singular they to refer to an thou and thee was seen using the correct pronoun you are they has been around since the 13th as “He (Hay), Heo (Hayo) unnamed person seems very as a fool and an idiot, acknowledging the privilege you have: century, and it was only as recently as and Hit (Hit). The H’s slowly modern. a Quaker, or at least Here’s why they’re important. • You’ve never had to worry the 1850’s that it began, at the biding grew silent, rendering them hopelessly out of date. about which pronoun others of academics, to disappear. neutrals. Among today’s existing words, the singular they Gender Grammar Primer Were is winning popularity as a And in 2018, the Diversity Tennessee, the state that To avoid being Use inclusive greetings there other gender neutral pronoun. Offi ce at the University of banned the teaching of This INCORRECT CORRECT REASON gender neutral Even those The American Dialect Tennessee suggested that evolution in 1925, also hopelessly out of date Here’s a glimpse words Both the Oxford English change is who don’t respect Society named it “Word How to teachers ask their students, failed to stop the evolution “transgendered” transgender Only adjectives that are derived from of the future: that already Dictionary and Joseph other people’s avoid being irreversible try using pronouns in your daily “Thanks, existed? of the Year” in 2015, even “What’s your pronoun?” of English 100 years later, (adjective) nouns and/or verbs (unlike transgender) Wright’s English Dialect pronouns use though the word fi rst hopelessly since some students might because the fi ght against introductions, and add them to friends.” “Good Ze/Hir singular they. end in “–ed”. Dictionary included the use surfaced as a neutral out of use a recent nonbinary singular they was already lost email signatures, business cards, morning, Tyler ate hir food because of “a” for “he”, “she”, “it”, date ze was hungry singular pronoun as far pronoun like zie or something by the time the 18th century name tags, etc. folks!” “transgendered” transition Only verbs can have “–ed” added YES! “they” and even “I”. back as the 17th century. more convential, like critics began objecting to it. “Hi, (verb) onto the end of the word to become a Ze pronounced like “zee” Everyone” participle. Transgender is an adjective. and hir as “here” HELLO “And One does not “transgender”, they MY NAME IS I know, I know, In The New Fowler’s Dictionary for you?” transition. In 1789 William H. Even people who object Not everyone is down with singular they. In response, the it’s diff erent, it’s unfamiliar... of Modern English Usage, Marshall recorded the to singular they as a singular they. The well- Tennessee state legislature “Can I “a transgender”, a transgender person, Transgender is not a noun. “Jo is a and that’s ok! Robert Burchfi eld dismisses existence of the singular People grammatical error use it 2015 respected Chicago Manual passed a law banning the use get you all “transgenders” transgender people transgender” is not only grammatically objections to singular they as AND I USE PRONOUNS something?” “ou,” as in “Ou (ooh) will.” who want to themselves when they’re Word of Style still rejects singular of taxpayer dollars for gender- incorrect, it can also be off ensive. Thank you for going on the be inclusive and Failed unsupported by the historical It expressed “He will,” not looking. This is a sure of the Year they for formal writing. In neutral pronouns, despite the HOW ABOUT YOU? pronouns journey with us! respectful use to stop record. He observes that “She will” or “It will.” There sign that anyone who 2019, a transgender Florida fact that no one knows how “sex change”, gender confi rmation Surgery does not change one’s sex or This tool was made possible the singular the construction is ‘passing are references to “ou” as pronoun they. objects to singular they, if teacher was removed from much a pronoun actually costs. “sex/gender surgery gender, only genitalia by a grant from the City of unnoticed’ by speakers of Please avoid: an intermediate pronoun not a fool or an idiot, is at their fi  h-grade classroom It’s no surprise that reassignment” West Hollywood. standard English as well as Acknowledge that evolution is not stopping. Ladies, Gentlemen, as early as 1792, but it least hopelessly out of date. for asking students to refer by copy editors. He concludes didn’t widely catch on. to them with the gender- Be open to how Ma’am, Sir, Girls, Guys, etc. “intersexed” intersex Only adjectives that are derived from that this trend is “irreversible”. neutral singular they. language is evolving. Instead say “Thanks, Friends.” nouns and/or verbs (unlike intersex) end in “–ed”.

City of West Hollywood California 1984