I found this article extremely interesting because it deals not only with gender identity but also with higher education and politics. The University of Tennessee’s Office of Diversity and Inclusiveness is under fire for requesting that students and faculty use “gender-neutral” pronouns such as “ze” rather than “he”/”she”. The pronouns were offered to help create a more inclusive campus for the LGBTQ community.
The Senate’s Education and Government Operations committees have been called to investigate and review the situation by Senate Speaker Bo Watson. Watson criticizes the university’s use of taxpayer dollars to achieve political correctness, suggesting a lack of institutional control because he believes UT officials must have signed off on this “ridiculous” matter. David Folwer, President of the Family Action Council of Tennessee, has said of the matter “It reflects the new worldview running higher education in Tennessee, namely the view that there are no differences between men and women and that sex is not binary based on x and y chromosomes, but some kaleidoscope of variations imagined in one’s head.” This comment, ignorant and hateful as it is, raises some interesting questions. How should public universities respond to the needs of students without infuriating taxpayers/ residents simultaneously.
A university spokesperson has said that there is no mandate or official policy to use the language. After reading this article I am left wondering how ECU compares with other state universities across the nation with regard to inclusiveness and use of language. Also, to what extent are our programs’ goals and initiatives supported by the university?