#GreetNeutrally Newsletter (11.13.19)

Generally speaking, gender is the only demographic identifier we use in our greetings. In our social interactions, we do not use race or ethnicity to greet others. Why do we use gender? The pitfall of using gendered language is that it unconsciously plants the seeds for beliefs and behaviors that perpetuate gender inequalities.

Gender-unequal beliefs and behaviors typically begins in childhood. Developing children are rapidly absorbing what they see and hear around them; their beliefs and behaviors are shaped by their environment. As such, we encourage you to adopt gender-neutral language and in particular to go into every interaction without assuming the other person’s gender. This is the crux of what our action #GreetNeutrally calls on us to do: to adapt our language to reflect the inclusive society that we seek.

The movement to remove unnecessarily-gendered language is global. Progressive activists of Hispanic descent, both in the United States and Spain, have propelled a conversation around the word “Latinx,” which was developed to remove the masculine and feminine reference to the word. The adoption of Latinx in the U.S. has sparked debate about how the term is gender-neutral yet not inclusive of monolingual Spanish speakers’ natural speech.

Terry Blas of Vox compiled a comic that provides valuable context, and puts forth his solution while for both neutrality and natural speech by introducing another alternative: Latine. This piece is worth a read! We couldn't agree more with Terry's closing sentiments: "I would never tell anyone how to define themselves. Use whatever you like to be more inclusive."