Pronoun Resource Guide

Sharing your pronouns is a respectful way to indicate how you should be addressed. Here are some ways you can share your pronouns:

• When introducing yourself, you can include your pronouns. For example, “Hi, I’m Janet, and my pronouns are she/hers.” or “Hello, I’m Evan, I use they/them pronouns.”
• You can also include pronouns in your email signature, your social media profiles, business cards and professional bios (like LinkedIn).

• Research! Check if they list their pronouns on their website/email/social media/business cards.
• If you don’t have a person’s pronouns or don’t have a way to find them, then use just a person’s last name or name to refer to them. Stories can be edited in that way. 
• Use their name until you learn their pronouns.
• Ask! It’s perfectly acceptable to ask someone what pronouns they use.

Asking someone for their pronouns can be done respectfully and straightforwardly. After introducing yourself and your pronouns, you can ask, “What pronouns do you use?” or “How would you like to be referred to?” Respect their responses.

Some people use more than one set of pronouns. For example, someone may feel equally comfortable with they/them and she/her pronouns. Sometimes people use different pronouns depending on their situation — for example, some people use different pronouns at work or home. If someone uses more than one set of pronouns, you can ask them what they prefer you use. Some may prefer you use them interchangeably.

Example: “They are almost done with their clip; he just needs to submit it to the copy editor.”
 

Many reasons might explain why someone would not want to share their pronouns, and those reasons are none of our business. Respect those who offer to share and those who do not. No one should be forced to comply. If someone doesn’t feel comfortable sharing their pronouns, just refer to them using their name; or get confirmation that using “they” is acceptable.

• Mistakes happen. If you accidentally misgender someone and you realize it, apologize, correct yourself and continue the conversation. Example: “My bad, I mean he will handle the interview.” or “Sorry, they said they were returning the equipment.”
• If someone corrects you, thank them and move on. 
• If you hear someone using the wrong pronouns for someone else, you can correct them gently by reminding them of the correct pronouns.

Language evolves as times change. We can adapt to meet people’s changing language needs. Singular they/them pronouns have been grammatically correct for quite some time, and are used casually. The use of the singular they is accepted by all major citation styles, including the Associated Press Stylebook. See also the the GLAAD Media Reference Guide and the Trans Journalists Association’s Stylebook and Coverage Guide

You can say it’s policy for your newsroom, but don’t feel the need to educate them on pronoun usage. 

You can just use their name and then afterward their pronoun. This includes neopronouns — there’s no need to introduce a person’s pronouns unless there’s a justifiable reason for doing so, such as if it becomes unclear who you are referring to in your story. 

• WRONG: Jane Smith, who uses she/her pronouns, said …
• RIGHT: Jane Smith said she appreciates that people are nice about other people’s pronouns!

• LGBTQ+ Equity Center: The LGBTQ+ Equity Center provides the campus with expertise, develops visible LGBTQ+ campus communities, shares resources, and organizes events and programs.
• The Office of Multicultural Involvement and Community Advocacy (MICA): MICA provides advising, resources and support to student organizations that serve various communities, including LGBTQ+. MICA serves all student organizations interested in organizing related to identity, diversity and multiculturalism. MICA staff can assist organizations with leadership development, membership recruitment, program planning, goal setting and other organizational development issues.
• The Harriet Tubman Department of Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies (WGSS): WGSS offers a B.A. that has seven thematic concentration areas — including Bodies, Genders, and Sexualities; Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer + Studies; and Gender, Sexuality, and Health. The department also offers undergraduate certificates and minors in LGBTQ Studies.
• Belonging & Community at UMD: Belonging and Community at UMD works to cultivate well-being, belonging, and a vibrant learning and working community for the entire UMD community. They offer community-building and learning opportunities, academic support, restorative practices for those who have experienced hate or bias and more.
• Counseling Center — Rainbow Walk-in Hours: The Counseling Center offers free unscheduled sessions for underrepresented students, including LGBTQIA+ students with Rainbow walk-in hours.
• Teaching & Learning Transformation Center (TLTC): The TLTC offers free workshops and webinars, including seminars on Inclusive Pedagogy and Practice for Instructors.
• University of Maryland - Good practices for names and pronouns

• “Stylebooks finally embrace the single ‘they,’” Columbia Journalism Review
• “Gender & Language,” Reuters
• “Using a Person’s Correct Pronouns Saves Lives,” Minnesota Department of Health
• “EEOC says workplace bias laws cover bathrooms, pronouns, abortion,” Reuters
• (Mis)matching: Journalistic uses of gender pronouns and names can influence implicit attitudes toward transgender people, perceived news content credibility, and perceived reporter professionalism, Newspaper Research Journal

MyPronouns.org offers more about pronouns, with examples, information, and resources. 

Deadnaming (calling a transgender person by their birth name although they have changed their name) and misgendering have significant outcomes, including causing anxiety, gender dysphoria, a lack of acceptance and safety concerns. Below are some relevant reports:

• Only 15.6% of transgender and gender-expansive students are always referred to by the correct pronoun at school. 2023 Youth Report for Educators and Administrators, Human Rights Campaign
• Almost half (46.1%) of LGBTQ+ youth, including over half (53.9%) of transgender and gender-expansive youth, reported feeling unsafe in at least one school setting. 2023 Youth Report For Librarians/Media Specialists, Human Rights Campaign
• About 80% of adult respondents and 60% of 16- and 17-year-old respondents who were out or perceived as transgender in K-12 experienced one or more forms of mistreatment or negative experience, including teachers/staff refusing to use chosen name or pronouns. 2022 U.S. Trans Survey
• In 2015, 81.7% of trans respondents reported seriously thinking at some point about suicide and 40.4% reported attempting suicide — nearly nine times the attempted suicide rate in the U.S. population. 2015 U.S. Transgender Survey 
• LGBTQ youth with access to spaces affirming their sexual orientation and gender identity reported lower rates of attempting suicide. Trevor Project’s 2021 National Survey on LGBTQ Youth Mental Health