Even individually - some people took is as insincere, when a President stated that his own daughters informed his opinion on gay marriages.
Yet, I can definitely say (maybe because I was a “late” parent), that my own opinion on the matter was directly influenced by having another (fairly young) person chipping in at dinner table conversations.
Her stance challenged me to admit to myself over time, that other than the comfortable familiarity of the status quo, I truly had no personal stake in that matter. In contrast, being able to marry was a major source of personal and lifelong happiness to other people, their friends and families - against which my “familiarity” truly should weigh very little.
(Now, I will try to stand my ground on They/Them being a plural – at least for now )
They/them actually becomes so much easier when you get used to it. No more of those awkward “Pat” (the old SNL skit) moments. I tend to just use it for everyone now for the most part.
And as a teacher that often has to do direct work on pronouns, I’d love to see he/she fade away. Mainly because my kids only get it right about 50% of the time anyway AND when I have to reteach I need to point to stupid things like "Is their hair long? ", “Are they wearing a dress?” that don’t apply to most of the women they see on a daily basis.
I had lots of trouble getting used to they/them, but I eventually got over it. Like anything, practice makes things easier. I was fortunate to work in an environment where I met and grew to care greatly about people who chose to use the pronouns they/them. As I said, it was tough at first - I am a stickler for proper grammar - but my affection for the people who asked me to use those pronouns for them (in this case, plural, as I was asked by more than one person) made it an act of love. Like so many things in our lives, we may have trouble adjusting, but change is inevitable, and we’ll deal with it as it comes our way.
As someone that has always hated verb conjugation, I find the all-purpose “they” so much easier than the neopronouns
"Neopronouns are a category of new (neo) pronouns that are increasingly used in place of “she,” “he,” or “they” when referring to a person. Some examples include: xe/xem/xyr, ze/hir/hirs, and ey/em/eir . "
As someone who has trouble learning new languages, learning to use “completely new” pronouns would definitely challenge me. But I do learn new words regularly, so I’d eventually be able to do it fluently.
Does it make you feel any better that “you” can be either singular or plural, and people generally manage to make it understood who (whom?) they’re talking about or to?
Since “they” is already in common use for a person of unknown gender, or someone whose gender the speaker doesn’t want to disclose, it doesn’t seem like too much of a stretch to extend it a little bit more.
Yep. Here in the South we say y’all (you all), but we also say “all y’all” when we mean the whole gang.
No reason not to clarify the “they/them” in the same way. You could say ‘both of them’ or ‘all of them’ or if you really don’t understand just ask, “how many people will be coming?” That’s not going to offend anyone.
I just call people by their first name. I don’t understand the “they/them” wording and who it was that decided this is what someone who didn’t want to be identified as he/she would be called. It in my head doesn’t make sense as its plural. I have no issues not using he/she him/her… doesn’t bother me. I just don’t understand the “they/them” and would prefer just to call someone by their first name that they use in order to not cause offense if I mess up.
I do not believe the Florida law/legislation is aimed at students asking questions or bringing up topics in class. It is about school curriculum and faculty teaching topics in the classroom.
One poster upstream mentioned elementary kids asking about gender or sexuality in school. As a parent I would hope that teacher would defer to the parents. In my opinion it is inappropriate for anyone other than a parent or someone designated by the parent to impart their opinion in sexual or religious matters… not their job. Also not their job to judge a kids family unless there is obvious abuse.
I urge posters that agree with this bill to read the other posts on CC written by trans/ LGBTQ students or their parents to get a sense of the constant worry about safety and acceptance. These are not struggles any student should have to worry about when picking a college, let alone when attending k-12 schools.
So if a student wonders why another would have two dads or anything similar, you think it’s better for the teacher to say, “You need to go home and talk with your parents about that?” As if that’s not awkward or putting any kid into a bad situation? Or making it seem like such a thing isn’t normal?
There are quite easy explanations (more than one) that simply answer the question.
ETA: There is no question a kid might ask that I won’t answer - even if the answer is, “I don’t know - good question!” If I were ever told I couldn’t answer some kid’s question I know that would be the time to retire. It’s not a public school any longer at that point IMO.
Answering that question isn’t a personal opinion at all. It’s factual. Some kids have step families. Some have two dads due to gay marriage. Some have no dads due to death or other things leading to single parenting.
No opinion whatsoever because I’m not slipping what I believe about any of those into the conversation. I’m stating facts. I’m teaching.
I don’t support the 10 commandment proposal. I think it is likely unconstitutional in any event, so it won’t matter in any event. But I am also really not interested in you sharing your personal opinions with kids, and the fact that you feel entitled to do so explains a lot about why some parents are concerned.
At the workplace, employees generally do not share their personal religious or political views. Doing so can create a hostile work environment for others. Most employers have rules against wearing or displaying such statements-neither MAGA hats ( thank God) or pro-choice pins. The job is to represent the employer, not further your agenda.
The answer to why someone has two dads has nothing to do with an opinion. “There are all kinds of families. Some kids have a mom and a dad. Some have 2 moms. Some have two dads. Some have only one parent.”
What you do not do is give any kind of an answer that “others” ANYONE.
Same sex marriage isn’t a personal opinion. It’s legal in all 50 states. Some people have two moms and some have 2 dads and some have one mom or one dad and some have one mom and one dad and some have a grandparent or other adult in their lives is just a fact. Not an opinion.
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