First of all: Thank you for taking the time to read what follows. The visibility of non-binary people has dramatically increased in the last few years, and you may well feel overwhelmed with how to respond to this among your own students. However, studies have shown that when marginalized students feel respected, they feel safer and…
Author: Clio
Martin Luther King and Children’s Books
Recently, there was criticism of the “Who Was…” book on Harriet Tubman, based on its depiction of a young enslaved Harriet as being happy despite her situation. At the time, it was pointed out that the author of the book is White. I researched the “Who Was…” series in general and found that most of…
A Tale of Two Pronouns
There are two pronoun discussions that are common in non-binary conversation spaces. One is obvious, but the other is not so obviously about pronouns. The first: “They/them” or other gender-neutral pronouns. While neopronouns like “zie/zim” and “xie/xem” are still used by some people, “they/them” seems to be the most common choice these days. The advantage: These aren’t new…
“Okay, Boomer” and Ageism
It’s become a common complaint these days: “Okay, boomer!” is ageist. No, it’s not. It’s a rebuttal to ageism. Full disclosure: I’m from Generation X, but I’m only a few years too young to be a Boomer. I got my Bachelors Degrees on a full ride, and my student loan debt and early career wheel-spinning…
Moving On From Mr. Know-It-All
When I was a man, I had a lot of opinions that I presented as facts. I had a firm, detached, imperious voice with which I presented these facts. This is a voice I can still lean back on. I am well-trained in it. I hear it speaking when I read my “Gender Neutral: Author”…
Turning in my Man Card
Hi, yes, I’m here to turn in my Man Card. I’m not planning to use it anymore. What’s that? An exit survey? I thought I could just, you know, turn it in and that would be that. Well, okay, I do understand that there are processes that need to be followed. I mean, that’s a…
Gender Neutral: Actor
I was responding on Facebook to an article about non-binary entertainer Indya Moore. The article, correctly identifying that Moore uses “they” pronouns, referred to them as an “actress”. My comment was that a gendered term ought not to be used with a non-binary entertainer (unless they specifically request it), and suggested “actor” instead. This led…
Gender Neutral: Aunt/Uncle
For the most part, English can be spoken and written without references gender, although there are cases where it sounds stiff. “Spouse” can replace “husband” and “wife”; “sibling” can replace “brother” and “sister”. There are a few problematic pairings, though. Among the most common of these are niece/nephew, aunt/uncle, and sir/ma’am. For niece/nephew, “nibling” is…
Coming Out for Christmas
Twice in my life, I had a conversation with my father that I worried might end in my ostracism. In one case, I spent an entire meal beating around the bush, but ultimately lost my nerve. The meal ended without the big reveal. Hours after I’d gotten home, my spouse convinced me to just call…
The Day I Lost My Best Friends
When I was a child, I had a bed full of stuffed animals. I did not have a happy childhood. I lost my left eye when I was a toddler. According to my father, that delayed my talking for months; I would communicate with grunts and pointing, and refuse to talk. It was only when…