Pronouns are often used in everyday language instead of a person’s name. In English, some pronouns have an implicit gender: “she” is used to refer to a woman or a girl and “he” is commonly used to refer to a man or a boy. So, what should we do when we are willing to refer to a non-binary person? 

Also, some people may not identify themselves with the gender we assume they do. How should we act in that kind of situation?

Let’s see the The Diversity Center of Northeast Ohio can teach us about it:

When someone shares their pronouns, it is an indication of how they would like to be referred to in the third person. Pronouns in the first person (referring to yourself– e.g., “I”) or second person (referring to the person you’re speaking to– e.g., “you”) do not change. Most people think of pronouns as they fall within the gender binary– with men using he/him/his and women using she/her/hers. However, gender neutral pronouns such as they, ze, xe, and others exist and are often used by non-binary people, who do not associate themselves with genders of man or woman.

Gender neutral pronouns are also useful if someone doesn’t know the gender of the person they are speaking about (“The pizza delivery person is at the door, give them a good tip!”).

Some people give options when sharing their pronouns. For example a non-binary person could use both “he/him/his” and “they/them/theirs” pronouns.