URLF Project: PromotingQueerLiteracy

PRONOUNS

Pronouns are a type of words that can be used to describe either the person saying the word or a person being talked about. 'I' is a pronoun as is 'no one', in some instances 'that' can be a pronoun. Pronouns are simply words that replace proper nouns to represent a thing or group of things. In the english language, gendered pronouns are often used to refer to people of gender groups. Someone who is a man might use 'he' and 'him' as his pronouns, someone who is a woman might use she/her.
In the queer community people utilize pronouns to present themselves to the world how they would like to be viewed. A trans woman accustomed to being called 'he' for most of her life might find it incredibly affirming to be referred to as 'she' after coming out. For people who exist outside of the gender 'binary' other pronouns, whether it be they/them, e/em/eir, ey/em/eir, or fae/faer can provide feelings of gender euphoria.  Just like the clothes we wear and the names we go by, pronouns present an extra layer of how we present ourselves to the world and we should always try actively to use someones preferred pronouns when referring to them.While these may seem new or complicated, spivak pronouns (e/em/eir) have existed in some form since the late 1800's and they has been used as a singular pronoun for about as long as humans have been writing english.
Regardless of this, a person doesn't have to prove the validity of their pronouns or their historical pedigree for you to respect them and work to make others feel comfortable interacting in society, you don't always have to be perfect but actively trying to get someone's pronouns right will always mean the world.
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