Gender-Neutral Pronouns: What They Mean and How to Use Them

Past societal norms and formal education taught us that pronoun usage had rules based on a binary male/female and singular/plural framework. However, this framework often leads to misgendering people whose identity is nonbinary, including members of the transgender, genderqueer and gender nonconforming communities. Modern society now calls for updating the previously taught and accepted grammatical framework to be considerate of the intersections between gender, race, class and other complex layers of identity.

Christopher Lewis, MD, pediatric endocrinologist and medical director of the Washington University and St. Louis Children’s Transgender Center, joins the show to discuss the origins of gender-neutral pronouns, what they mean and how to use them.