Radical CUNTS

Radical College Undergraduates Not Tolerating Sexism is a Columbia/Barnard student group that aims to fight sexist oppression from an intersectional perspective. This means that we understand that issues of gender cannot be understood without an analysis of the way gender intersects with race, class, sexuality, religion, and all other forms of identity. Our aim is to provide a space in which we can discuss these issues and mobilize around them.

We are officially affiliated with the IRC (Intercultural Resource Center), which is run under the umbrella of the OMA (Office of Multicultural Affairs).
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Posts tagged "pronouns"
The thing is, I’m not looking for people to mindlessly force themselves to call me ‘he’ in order to avoid making me uncomfortable. If comfort was my goal, I could probably have found a smoother path than the one I’m on, right? I haven’t chosen this word ‘he’ because it means something true to me, or it feels all homey and delicious. No pronoun feels personal to me. I’ve chosen it because the act of saying it, of looking at the body I’m in and the way that my gender has been identified since birth and then calling me ‘he,’ disrupts oppressive processes that fix everyone’s gender as ‘real,’ immutable, and determinative of your station in life. I’m not hoping that people will see that I’m different, paste a fake smile on their faces and force themselves to say some word about me with no thought process. I’m hoping that they will feel implicated, that it will make them think about the realness of everyone’s gender, that it will make them feel more like they can do whatever they want with their gender, or at least cause a pause where one normally would not exist. Quite likely, this will be uncomfortable for all of us, but I believe that becoming uncomfortable with the oppressive system of rigid gender assignment is a great step toward undoing it.
Dean Spade on pronouns in “once more… with feeling.” (via accumulatedephemera)

(via heavenrants)

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Um actually I don’t “prefer” my pronouns, I demand them.

(via heavenrants)

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How to Use “They” as a Singular Pronoun

handingoutstars:

As a non-binary trans* person, I have been very apologetic in my life about pronouns. That’s my own issue, thinking that non-binary pronouns are too difficult for cisgender or binary-identified trans people to understand. I didn’t give those people enough credit.

I have no personal pronoun preference as of this point in my life, as long as those pronouns are non-binary. (I have said that I prefer male pronouns over female pronouns, just to show that there is difference between my assigned gender and identity. Male pronouns are still a way lower preference from me than non-binary ones.)

For a while, I chose to use “they”, because I felt like that was easier for some people, because it was at least a word they’ve heard before. You should never feel pressured to choose a pronoun because it’s easier for others to use, but I did, especially because I felt like I had to, based upon my gender presentation. 

I quickly realized that I was wrong; “they” is surprisingly difficult for people to use in the singular form, especially after they’ve seen someone. Something about our culture means that, unless there are visual “clues” that you don’t identify with the gender you were assigned at birth (or even if there are clues), you will be given a pronoun based on your appearance.

[Edit: of course there are issues with grammar, which is why I’ve included resources in that arena.] 

But, until we see someone, or have been told other pronouns to use, “they” comes naturally (unless of course it’s involving a profession or otherwise where we use sexism to assume the male default). 

Example 1: 
I have to go to an internist about my blood work. I wonder what they will say. I need to have them send a letter to my endocrinologist, stating their opinion on my how my medications interact. I hope they’ll do that soon.

  Congrats! You’ve just used “they” in the singular form!

Example 2 (courtesy of my friend, Ethan; this takes place behind the counter at a grocery store deli): 
Mike answers the phone. It is his first day at work, so he passes the phone to Cameron: “I have a customer on the phone who would like to order a cake.” Cameron replies, “Okay, just ask her …(corrects self)… them what they would like on it.” Cameron corrected himself because he realized he doesn’t know the customer’s gender.

  Cameron used “they” in the singular.

So why is it so difficult to use when people request it? Because you’ve seen them. That is beyond hurtful to non-binary identified people. When people request a pronoun, even if they give you another option, go with the one they prefer. Always. You can do it, with practice. 

Resources: 

(via handingoutstars-deactivated2011)

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The solution is to not gender others when you don’t know their gender. If you see someone, you don’t just think you know their name right? Like, if you saw someone walking down the street, you wouldn’t just be like, “Their name is definitely Mark.” Genders/pronouns/etc. (as much as people want to argue that this isn’t true) work the same way.

thelacydisease (via radicalqueery)

so on point!!! Whenever we introduce ourselves, or take roll in class, or any other situation like this, why dont we ask for people’s names and their preferred gender pronouns?

(via thatneedstogo)

(via heavenrants)

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