I don't want to add my pronouns at the end of an email, but I can't explain why...

I don't want to add pronouns to my signature, because:

1. The pronoun refers to a gender identity and not sex. I don't have a gender identity and should NOT be forced to pretend I have a gender identity. gender identity and sex are not the same thing.

2. Other adults are entitled to believe in this philosophy or any other religious belief as is their human right. But it is quite wrong for the workplace to force me to declare I believe in a philosophy or religious belief.

3. the moment I see pronouns in signatures, badges and starting work meetings, my heart rate elevates and my stomach drops as I know I'm in a hostile environment. I feel unsafe and risk being cancelled, de-platformed, falsely called hateful or could even lose my job.

4. It goes beyond a pronoun and is a political statement and signifies acceptance of a wider philosophical belief that gender is more important than (and in fact replaces) sex. It belongs to lobby groups who campaign to remove sex from the equality act. I would declare any belief at work political, spiritual, philosophical or religious.

@NecessaryScene great response

If pushed you could say you haven’t yet decided on your gender identity.

But you’re honestly not obliged to take part in this new unnecessary thing people are doing. The reason you don’t want to do it is that you’re not buying into gender identity ideology. If you’re a woman you also know that advertising your sex makes you more likely to experience discrimination and the pay gap. All sensible reasons if hard to articulate in the face of the inclusion police. Inclusion isn’t working if it’s not including the people who don’t believe in gender woo. Which is most people. But the current climate is making it awkward to say so.

Hold firm.

She said I should as it makes it easier for trans people who want to add theirs.

Tell her she should take hers off as it makes it easier for women who don't want to add theirs.

I regularly get emails from someone in a professional capacity who has pronouns, rainbow flag, BLM, quotes and bunting (OK not the last one). On all replies as well. Try printing an email exchange for a file! It's pages!

What people need to know in an email is my contact details and whatever the email is about.

Also there's all the evidence that drawing attention to your female sex worsens your performance and how people perceive it. Lose lose.

If this comes up, I just say I’m not comfortable sharing my pronouns. No one challenges this. If I’m in an environment where I know people a bit I’ll explain this is because it will increase the unconscious bias and stereotype threat I experience as a women and therefore I don’t think it’s fair to ask me to. But often I don’t elaborate. I’d love to take a bolder stance on this but it could lead to a lot of trouble for me. But under no circumstances am I prepared to add my pronouns.

Being encouraged means nothing. Pay absolutely no attention. If you want to give a reason you can (and the more people do, the more it will be heard and understood that actually, most people do not want to and do not agree with this), but you don’t have to justify it.

If you don't want to do it, don't do it you do not have to explain or justify your choice, this is still (arguably) a free and democratic country not a totalitarian dictatorship with compelled speech.

Not all trans people want to out themselves by adding their pronouns so by enforcing it as your colleague is suggesting is also forcing a trans person to publicly declare their status whether they want to or not, hardly the definition of 'inclusive'.

I'd say it's because I don't really believe in gender ideology. If others want to believe in it of course they can but not everyone should be forced into it.

www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/gender-inequality-man-woman-switch-names-week-martin-schneider-nicky-knacks-pay-gap-a7622201.html%3famp

Leave gender out of it perhaps and forward on this?

What about trans or non-binary people who aren’t ready to disclose theirs? How’s trying to mandate this supportive of them?

There’s no need for unpleasantness. As you say, she can’t make you and it’s not the law.

This was published today, might help explain your feelings and how to approach it:

sex-matters.org/posts/updates/pronouns/