How to avoid / decline stating pronouns or gender in meetings, forms, signatures etc:

[JFDIYOLO]

'I don't do that, in support of those who have not yet made their decision - requiring a public statement could force those who haven't decided yet, to either prematurely out themselves, or lie about themselves for protection.'

'No thank you, it would be like being required to add 'I believe in God the father, God the son, etc' on my emails. I don't share that belief system either, and belief is of course a protected characteristic.'

When faced with a form asking your 'gender', go for Other - and if there is a freestyle box, add in 'I do not have a gender. My sex is ...'

'I don't agree with imposing compelled speech. I abstain.'

'No.'

What would you do?

Ignore. So far, that's worked fine.

I go for either - "I don't mind how I'm referred to" and "I think the latest advice is not to insist on pronouns as it's uncomfortable for any one in the process of transitioning".

No one really argues with this.

I never tick a gender box and always opt for sex

Definitely not the first one as it implies you agree with the ideology.

Personally I’d keep it simple because I have a tendency to trip over my words. In the first instance I would just see if I can get away with ignoring the request completely. If challenged I would just say “I’m not bothered how people refer to me”.

When this was presented at work by a young colleague that oddly admired the work done by Carolina Criado Perez, she appeal to how kind it was for those who don’t dare to say their gender. So it wasn’t so much, how do you want to be referred, but how can you enable others to be comfortable stating their pronouns that presumably will be at odds.

I had difficulties relating to her stance. Specially in a scientific setting.

I’ll ignore or say it’s private and protected information.

I'd either ignore, or just say they are sex based (and in my head I'd add - like my oppression)

I've just been asked on a form for a new hairdresser 🤦I just wrote that my pronouns were sex-based.

I don't feel comfortable sharing that.

That's not relevant to my work and I don't wish to share it.

I don't want to highlight my sex on my emails as I feel it puts me at risk of discrimination

I prefer not to say

This, because I genuinely believe it’s true. It can feel like deeply personal information and it isn’t reasonable to expect everyone to disclose it.

I think I am just going to say 'no thank you' if directly asked at work, in a meeting

Ignore as a first line of defence.

No thank you with a smile as second option.

Third option 'That's against my belief system', also with a smile. If they ask what your belief system is I would go with 'science'.

I've never been in this situation and don't think it's likely in the near future, but my pronouns are first person and therefore irrelevant to anyone else. I would expect other people to refer to me using perceived sex-based pronouns and I wouldn't ask or expect anyone to do otherwise.

In my particular department of the Civil Service, its starting to fade away. I've been doing a lot of training and awareness-type meetings recently, and haven't been asked for my pronouns once. Noone has asked any of us to put pronouns in our email signatures. So, in my department at least, its starting to die a natural death.

"I have no opinion about pronouns"

I haven't been asked in person yet, but if I were, I'd probably look puzzled while I worked out what a pronoun is (we weren't taught that level of English grammar at school) and then have a lightbulb moment and say "I, me, mine". If pushed for third person pronouns, and after working out what they are, wonder aloud why I would want to tell other people how to refer to me, other than getting my name right.

Based on your second para, I quite like "I don't follow that belief system".

Email signature not an issue at my current employer. Some people include pronouns but it isn't encouraged by management as standard. There would be very strong pushback from some areas of our org if they tried. If I were ever asked, I'd say that unless there is a practical reason for an individual to include pronouns (eg unisex or unfamiliar foreign name) then including pronouns as an act of support is a political statement, which wouldn't be allowed for a religious or political declaration.

Forms are easier. If asked gender, either select "Other" or if free text box "I don't have a gender. My sex is female."

Which reminds me, I saw a form recently that avoided the sex/gender issue by asking the question "What are you?" followed by the options male/female/other. Respondents could interpret it to mean sex or gender without the question setter tying themselves in knots trying to navigate the thorny issue. I thought it rather clever.

No thank you. It is an individual's right to choose when and whether they disclose any information about their gender identity, as made clear in the Right to Privacy of the Yogyakarta Principles on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity. I would ask you also to respect Principle 6(f) by not arbitrarily disclosing the pronouns of others, either.

Bit of a mouthful, though. :-)

And if you felt like it, after ....anyone in the process of transitioning

you could add 'or those who don't subscribe to Gender Ideology /are Gender Critical' (Thank you Maya!)

I'm very tempted to start saying he/him and hope someone mistakes me for a transwoman and gives me a payrise

I have seriously entertained the thought of putting he/him on my email whilst changing absolutely nothing about myself (I’m quite obviously female and wear skirts, etc.) If you subscribe to gender ideology surely you then have to believe in what people state to be their pronouns even if it goes against very obvious visual evidence, so logically nobody could complain, surely? I really like the idea of everyone struggling to remember to refer to me as “he” behind my back. Would I suddenly get paid on the scale of my male colleagues? Or get listened to in meetings?

However, how long do you bet it would be before my boss complained that I shouldn’t be doing it or that it was offensive and faking the piss? Because when actual women women, the boring old fashioned kind over 25, do stuff like that, they tend to get reprimanded pretty sharply. Going about making everyone call you something that is obviously false is only for men, and girls when they are young enough to be unthreatening.

On forms: If gender is clearly a synonym for sex (i.e. choice is male or female) I fill it in. For other options I put none or N/A or write in sex depending on format.

IRL: I live up North so it's never happened. I met an alphabet person for the first time the other day: multiple pronoun badges, pink and blue hair- the works.

Which reminds me, I saw a form recently that avoided the sex/gender issue by asking the question "What are you?" followed by the options male/female/other. Respondents could interpret it to mean sex or gender without the question setter tying themselves in knots trying to navigate the thorny issue. I thought it rather clever.

Yes, but the data collected would be unclear. Unless, it's a box ticking exercise, in which case, they wouldn't care.

I'm up north but it's started around here. I asked some fellow local terfs if they felt there was a suddenly change just this year and they too felt there'd suddenly been a great deal more young visibly trans people. Mainly transmen. All hitting the work place. One woman said she'd heard a lot of grumbling at her gym around pronouns etc. as it's now becoming so much more if a thing at the local business level.

Which reminds me, I saw a form recently that avoided the sex/gender issue by asking the question "What are you?" followed by the options male/female/other. Respondents could interpret it to mean sex or gender without the question setter tying themselves in knots trying to navigate the thorny issue. I thought it rather clever.

WTF. What are you????
I find that incredibly rude and stupid. I'd be going with other and writing unicorn or witch or something.

"it's not a practice I follow"

Or explain what a pronoun is. In the way. Reception teacher would explain it to a 4 year old (and with a look of slight exasperation and pity).

Anything wrong with just saying "I'm a 'she', obviously"?