Hi, my name is Laura, and my pronouns she/her
Pronouns are used in place of a proper noun, such as a person's name. In the English language, our most common pronouns refer to a person's gender. These can be she/her, he/him, they/them
For someone who is gender fluid, transgender or non binary, it can be quite distressing to express pronouns, or for people to get them wrong
So, let's get a few facts out the way:
Sex - label assigned at birth by your chromosomes
Gender - how you label yourself based on what you do or don't align with
Cis-gendered - when your gender matches your sex at birth
Transgender - when your gender if different to what your sex was at birth
Non-binary - a spectrum of identities that are not exclusively feminine, or exclusively masculine. Often neither
Genderfluid - when your gender changes over time or at different times
It's really important to normalise asking for pronouns, as it respects a person's gender identity, though please be aware not everyone will feel comfortable providing this information, so we need to create as safe a space as possible. To assume their pronouns would go against this, so we must learn to normalise asking for them.
There's some really simple ways to do this:
1️⃣ Include your pronouns in your social media bio
2️⃣ Have your pronouns in your email signature
3️⃣ Wear a badge stating your pronouns. This was something that was encouraged by the LGBT+ society at the uni I went to
4️⃣ Ask for people to state their pronouns when giving talks/lectures/interviews/meetings
All genders are valid, and everyone deserves to be respected.