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More pronoun options, please
Apr. 1st, 2015 12:23I finally figured out the exact nature of why I object to applying singular "they" to a specific individual. Its plural origin makes me automatically assume that the person referred to is more than one person, i.e. has multiple personalities.
I've known a few multiples. That actually makes me less inclined to mislabel anyone that way, as multiples have their own experiences that should be respected. Also, multiples have their own problems with stigma: a lot of people, including medical professionals, still consider it to be pathological by nature, never mind that the people I knew who lived in that state didn't feel they needed "fixing".
Heaping what amounts to a mental illness (in many people's minds) onto the experience of being transgender adds to the difficulties with social acceptance, and reinforces the notion that perhaps non-binary trans people are just confused. Maybe I'm the only one who conflates singular "they" with multiple personalities in that way, but it makes me uncomfortable enough that I'd rather not use it. There are several original pronoun sets we can use instead, and that would leave "they/them" to those who really feel like they have more than one identity, such as multiples and binary genderfluid folk.
I've known a few multiples. That actually makes me less inclined to mislabel anyone that way, as multiples have their own experiences that should be respected. Also, multiples have their own problems with stigma: a lot of people, including medical professionals, still consider it to be pathological by nature, never mind that the people I knew who lived in that state didn't feel they needed "fixing".
Heaping what amounts to a mental illness (in many people's minds) onto the experience of being transgender adds to the difficulties with social acceptance, and reinforces the notion that perhaps non-binary trans people are just confused. Maybe I'm the only one who conflates singular "they" with multiple personalities in that way, but it makes me uncomfortable enough that I'd rather not use it. There are several original pronoun sets we can use instead, and that would leave "they/them" to those who really feel like they have more than one identity, such as multiples and binary genderfluid folk.
