Why Pronouns Matter

At Out Youth, our mission is to promote the physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, and social well-being of sexual and gender minority youth so that they can openly and safely explore and affirm their identities. We integrate the sharing of pronouns into our daily work to set a standard of respect for one another and continuously create a supportive environment for the LGBTQIA+ community members who rely on our programs and services.

Pronouns matter because they inform a person on how to respectfully refer to another person. Using the correct pronouns can be affirming to a person’s gender identity, and making a regular practice of sharing and respecting pronouns shows a commitment and respect for creating a safe and affirming environment. A person may use one set of pronouns or multiple sets of pronouns (for example, he/him/his or she/they).

Examples (not an exhaustive list of pronouns)

• he/him/his

• she/her/hers

• they/them/theirs

• she/they or he/they

• xe/xem/xir