Gender-INCLUSIVE LANGUAGE
Language around gender is ever-evolving. The language in Hofstra publications must help build inclusive communities of students and employees. Gender-inclusive language is all about respect for differences, and using such language demonstrates that the University wants to create and support an environment that respects all gender identities. Members of the Hofstra community are encouraged to contact the Office of Equity and Inclusion with specific questions not addressed in this guide. The office may be reached at equity@hofstra.edu.
GENDER vs. SEX
Gender refers to internal and social identity and often corresponds with but is not synonymous with sex. Experts say gender is a spectrum, not a binary structure consisting of only males and females, that can vary by society and change over time.
Sex refers to biological characteristics, such as chromosomes, hormones, and reproductive anatomy, which can also vary or change in understanding over time, or be medically and legally altered.
female, male
In general, female and male are adjectives that can describe people of any age and are used only rarely as nouns, such as for a range of ages or an unknown age. The study included males ages 10-21. She is the first female governor of North Carolina.
Woman, women, man and men are usually reserved for use as a noun to describe adults, while girl, girls, boy and boys are typically used as a noun for people under age 18.
Be aware of nuances and pitfalls in the use of female and woman/women.
Since female primarily describes sex, not gender, some people object to its use as a descriptor for women because it can be seen as emphasizing biology and reproductive capacity over gender identity. It can also sometimes carry misogynistic tones that may vary in severity by race, class and other factors.
For this reason, woman or women is increasingly common as an adjective. But its use as such can often be awkward, especially if the words man or men would not be used adjectivally in a parallel sense.
For instance: He is the only man construction worker on the otherwise all-woman crew is awkward, and He is the only male construction worker on the all otherwise all-woman crew is not parallel. Options for being both sensitive and eloquent include He is the only man on the otherwise all-woman construction crew.
Avoid using male and female as modifiers that could convey assumptions about gender roles, such as male nurse, male nanny, female bodybuilder, etc. In general, make a point of someone’s sex or gender only if clearly relevant.
gender expression
How people outwardly convey their gender, intentionally or not, such as through fashion choices, mannerisms, or pronouns. Gender stereotypes can lead others to incorrectly perceive someone’s gender or sexual orientation.
gender-fluid, gender-fluidity
Refers to a gender identity or expression that changes over time. Include the hyphen.
gender identity
A person’s sense of feeling male, female, neither, or some combination of both. Often just gender will suffice: She spent a lot of time explaining her gender may work just as well as She spent a lot of time explaining her gender identity. Examples of gender identities include man or boy; woman or girl; nonbinary; bigender; agender; gender-fluid; genderqueer; and combinations of identities, such as nonbinary woman.
gender-nonconforming (adj.)
Acceptable in broad references to describe people whose identities or expressions do not follow gender norms. May include but is not synonymous with transgender.
LGBTQ+
Hofstra University uses the term LGBTQ+ in all publications. The “+” signifies the importance of including all aspects of sexuality, gender identity and expression, and allyship (Hofstra University LGBTQ+ Task Force Report, 2015-2016).
nonbinary (adj.)
Describes people who don’t identify as strictly male or female; can include agender (having no gender), gender-fluid (an identity that fluctuates), or a combination of male and female. Not synonymous with transgender, though some nonbinary people are also transgender.
pronouns, they/them/their, themself
Growing numbers of people, including some transgender, nonbinary, agender, or gender-fluid people, use they/them/their as a gender-neutral singular personal pronoun.
As much as possible, AP also uses they/them/their as a way of accurately describing and representing a person who uses those pronouns for themself.
Here are some guidelines and perspectives.
They as a singular pronoun may be confusing to some readers and amount to a roadblock that stops them from reading further. At the same time, though, efforts to write without pronouns to avoid confusion may make people feel censored or invisible.
How to balance those priorities? Try to honor both your readers and your story subjects. As in all news writing, clarity is paramount.
Often a sentence can be sensitively and smoothly written with no pronoun. For example: Hendricks said the new job is a thrill (instead of Hendricks said Hendricks is thrilled about the new job or Hendricks said they are thrilled about the new job).
When using they/them/their as a singular pronoun, explain if it isn’t clear in context: Morales, who uses the pronoun they, said they will retire in June.
Be sure that the phrasing does not imply more than one person. Rephrase if needed to avoid confusion about the antecedent.
Don’t refer to preferred or chosen pronouns. Instead, the pronouns they use, whose pronouns are, who uses the pronouns, etc.
Don’t make assumptions about a person’s gender identity based on their pronouns, or vice versa. Don’t assume a person’s pronouns based on their first name.
In general, do not use neopronouns such as xe or zim; they are rarely used and are unrecognizable as words to general audiences.
They/them/their take plural verbs even when used as a singular pronoun, and the singular reflexive themself is also acceptable when referring to people who use they/them/their.
Do not presume maleness in constructing a sentence by defaulting to he/his/him.
When necessary, use they rather than he/she or he or she for an unspecified or unknown gender (a person, the victim, the winner) or indefinite pronoun (anyone, everyone, someone). But rewording to avoid a pronoun is preferable. For example: The foundation gave grants to anyone who lost a job this year (instead of anyone who lost their job).
A singular they may also be used when an anonymous source’s gender must be shielded: The person feared for their own safety and spoke on condition of anonymity.
same-sex marriage
The preferred term over gay marriage, because it is more inclusive and because the laws generally don’t address sexual orientation. Where legal, same-sex marriages do not differ from other marriages, so the term should be used only when relevant and needed to distinguish from marriages of other couples.
sexual identity
People’s awareness of themselves in a sexual sense. It incorporates a person’s sex, gender identity, gender expression, and sexual orientation.
sexual orientation
Not sexual preference.
Transgender is not a sexual orientation. Like anyone, transgender people can have any sexual orientation.
transgender (adj.)
Describes people whose gender does not match the one usually associated with the sex they were assigned at birth. Identify people as transgender only when relevant, and use the name by which they live publicly.
Avoid references to a transgender person being born a boy or girl, or phrasing like birth gender. Sex (or gender) assigned at birth is the accurate terminology.
Do not use as a noun, such as referring to someone as a transgender, or use the term transgendered.
Some techniques for achieving gender-inclusive language:
• Omit the pronoun. Instead of “The programmer should update the records when data is transferred to her by the head office,” use “The programmer should update the records when data is transferred by the head office.”
• Repeat the noun. Instead of “A writer should be careful not to needlessly antagonize readers because her credibility would otherwise suffer,” use “A writer should be careful not to antagonize readers because the writer’s credibility would otherwise suffer.”
• Use a plural antecedent. Instead of “A contestant must conduct himself with dignity at all times,” use “Contestants must conduct themselves with dignity at all times.”
• Use an article instead of a pronoun. Instead of “A student accused of cheating must actively waive his right to have his guidance counselor present,” use “A student accused of cheating must actively waive the right to have a guidance counselor present.”
• Use the gender-inclusive singular pronoun one. Instead of “An actor is likely to earn more in New York than he is in Kentucky,” use “An actor in New York is likely to earn more than one in Kentucky.”
• Use the relative pronoun who. Instead of “Employers presume that if an applicant can’t write well, he won’t be a good employee,” use “Employers presume that an applicant who can’t write well won’t be a good employee.”