Ze, Hir, Hirs; He, She, They: Which Pronoun Are You?
by Kristina C.
October 2, 2011
7:33 pm
http://www.care2.com/causes/ze-hir-hirs-he-she-they-which-pronoun-are-you.htmlMore and more high school and college-age students are choosing to check "other" instead of "male" or "female" — are seeking out the P.G.P.'s (preferred gender pronouns) that is best for their gender identities. They are thereby questioning the gender roles society has heretofore automatically assigned to them, based on whether they were born male or female. If "she," "her," "he," his," "him," "they," "their" and "them" do not seem suitable, a number of new ones that connate both genders — "ze," "hir" and "hirs" — now exist.
Katy, an Ann Arbor, Michigan, high school junior interviewed by the New York Times, describes her excitement at discovering that Google+ has "other" as a gender option, besides "male" and "female":
"For those of us in the nonconforming gender community, it is great to see Google make the option more mainstream.
