State Department employees noticed pronouns in their emails in the “from” line a day after the department celebrated “International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, Interphobia, and Transphobia.”
Well, no one had a choice. Pronouns appeared in all the emails. Plus, the system managed to misgender employees and seemed not to use the many “non-binary” pronouns.
I must give credit where it’s due. Associated Press reporter Matt Lee got into a heated discussion with spokesman Vedent Patel over the mandatory pronoun usage:
“Have you gotten any emails from any of your colleagues before you came out here… since about noon or so? Lee asked.”What’s your question?” Patel responded. “My email? I’m not going to pull up my email from the podium.””You don’t have to show it to me, I want to know if you noticed anything different in the ‘from’ line, where it gives the sender,” Lee replied.Patel, growing visibly frustrated, said he was unaware of any such change.
LEE: “Okay. Well, within the last hour and a half, two hours, the State Department’s internal E-mail system — and I tested this, so I know that’s true — has added pronouns to people’s — not their signature, but to their — you know, where it says ‘From,’ so it will say him/he/his or her/she/hers. Why? This is not an optional thing. This is something that has been just arbitrarily imposed. You know, I understand that people could have their pronouns attached if they wanted them to a signature before, but this is not something that anyone has a choice about, and so I’m just wondering why and who made this decision?”
Patel said people have the right to include their pronouns because that’s totally what Lee said.
Lee responded: “I don’t have a problem with doing it and if people want their pronouns attached to it, it’s fine! But it should be a choice. Not something the State Department imposes on people, especially if it’s wrong.”
Spokesperson Matthew Miller answered Lee on Twitter, claiming the server “involuntarily added” the pronouns.
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