If we want to diversify our workplaces (and who wouldn’t, given so much evidence that diversity is a Good Thing? China: "Chen yu iuo yan meaning "diving fish, swooping geese" is an elaborate way of calling someone beautiful. But as not everyone interprets it that way, probably the safest policy is to try to avoid it. I'm not a guy. - and like with the naming of all things, it matters. I work in IT. ( Log Out /  Mev mev AT litwomen.org ===== I know that progressive, descriptive dictionaries like Merriam-Webster state that both “guy” and “guys” are gender neutral, while Oxford still states that the singular form is male. People can worry about the “bigger” things and still care about this. We can avoid erasing women and nonbinary people from everyday conversations by using gender-neutral descriptions. Learn how your comment data is processed. Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. ‘Guys, as a gender-neutral term, may ease out mate.’ ‘Though it is often discussed in gender-neutral language, childcare is primarily a women's issue.’ ‘If they're using gender-neutral pronouns, it may be they simply don't want to tell you.’ Start your Independent Premium subscription today. People? Gender-neutral language or gender-inclusive language is language that avoids bias towards a particular sex or social gender. She took offense saying the word buddy is used only when referring to a man. View all posts by mattcen. It’s not done out of ignorance or sexism, it’s done for the sake of simplicity. Why "guys" isn't gender neutral in our community Why "guys" isn't gender neutral in our community. Post was not sent - check your email addresses! If you think of one, please get in touch as we’re not aware of any. I do think "you guys" might seem to have become gender-neutral -- but really, it's not, in the way we thought for so long that mankind supposedly included women! Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? The main issue with the informal greeting, as summed up by Garvey, is “I am not a guy.”. Problem/Motivation Many in the community don't understand why other people take exception to being called "guys". He/him. I also never said I was offended by this. Opinions mine. If … Ways Men In Tech Are Unintentionally Sexist, Open Source, Decentralised, and Federated Social Media Alternatives, Improving diversity and inclusion at tech (and other) events, Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. If you still would like to be convinced that “guys” isn’t gender neutral, A Guy Is A Man Is A Guy offers three exemplary thought experiments: Thought Experiment #1: Imagine a room full of men and women. It is 100% gender neutral, and always has been. I have largely settled on “folks” as my replacement word, and I still slip up after at least a year of trying. But for those that do notice, it’ll mean the world to them. To me "guys" is like "ellos" where you can use it for a group of both women and men but you wouldn't call just a group of women "ellos" or guys. The “guys” microagression is one of many ways equality is thwarted. Yes. The gender-neutral pronoun also appeared to improve positive feelings towards LGBT people. See you later guys. GLSEN, an education organization that advocates for policies designed to protect LGBTQ students and students of marginalized identities, advised defaulting to gender-neutral language such as “friends,” “folks,” “all” or “y’all” rather than “brothers and sisters” or “guys,” “ladies,” “ma’am” or “sir.” People who aren’t men can feel excluded when addressed as “guys,” even if that is not the intent. Linux sysadmin/advocate, @scoutsvic leader, @okfnau, bisexual/polyamorous geek. I don’t know many people who use “guy” singular, to refer to somebody who doesn’t identify as male. Yes. “Guys” to me can be both gendered and neutral depending on the context. Language only works when common definitions are accepted by all, this is unproductive and absolutely absurd.”. Gender-Neutral Parenting (GNP) Isn’t About Gender-Neutral Toys. Words do mean different things depending on who hears them. Read our full mailing list consent terms here. Change ). I must admit that I have a habit of using it as such. Gender neutrality is becoming a recognized and important term as industries and society as a whole begin to understand the diversity of their consumers. Even if guys is widely regarded as gender-neutral, there will still be a sizable contingent of conscientious objectors. Note the expression on her face. Someone stands at the front and says, “I want all the guys to stand up.” What happens next? Other gender-neutral pronouns include 'them', 'this person', 'everyone', 'Ze', or 'Hir'. Using Gender-Neutral Language Can Help Undo Sexism — Here’s How. In a blog post on the subject, Cameron elaborated, suggesting that using guys as a greeting gives insight to the speaker’s broader grasp of the situation. In English, this includes use of nouns that are not gender-specific to refer to roles or professions, formation of phrases in a coequal manner, and discontinuing the blanket use of male terms. Log in to Reply. In response to her suggestion, many people agreed with her stance - sharing their own issues with the use of the term. ( Log Out /  People will often say things like “you guys,” “dude, it would be…”, or “thanks man” around me out of habit, quickly realize their potential faux pas, and clarify that they meant it in a gender neutral way. PGP: DB91 CFEF 322D C608 385F 563C 2F88 1AC6 4A16 1033 You tell her you think she’s such a guy, a great guy, the smartest guy you’ve ever known. I may used to have been something like a guy, in a past life, but I'm not now. “Common parlance among the young isn’t it? I don’t know many people who use “guy” singular, to refer to somebody who doesn’t identify as male. In my experience, "guys" and "dude" are inoffensive as gender-neutral terms except for when used on people who have experience being misgendered for real. Some examples include: Folks, folx , or everybody instead of guys … Understanding the vocabulary Gender-neutral is a vague term, and that is purposeful. According to Garvey, using the traditionally gender-neutral “people” is more appropriate when addressing a mixed group - a sentiment early stated by the Australian Diversity Council, who warned against the use of the terms “girls” and “guys” at work in 2016. Some argue that male-generic terms such as this reinforce androcentric bias and male privilege. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. - nullify 'guys is gender-neutral' counter-arguments (as justafish's replies did in slack) - suggest better ways to greet people (as @dorf did in slack) Remaining tasks * Blog post to Words mean different things to different people. As the event was remembered year to year, men, women, and children who marched in the parade carrying Guy Fawkes effigies were referred to as guys. Jane Garvey says never use 'hi guys' (Getty), Polish: 'kruzynko' is a term of endearment meaning 'breadcrumb'. ), we need to stop using language that may make people feel excluded or uncomfortable. Want an ad-free experience?Subscribe to Independent Premium. How many words can you think of that are considered gender-neutral today that have historically been used to refer to women? A reference to two of the most famous ancient beauties of China: one so beautiful that when she looked into a pond the fish forgot to swim and sank to the bottom; the other, made the geese forget to flap their wings. ( Log Out /  I invite you to consider this, though. So, let’s put aside the argument of whether or not you consider “guys” to be gender neutral, and ask a different question: If you knew that your language, this single word, “guys,” was making a person you’re addressing uncomfortable, wouldn’t you want to change it?