You very likely have noticed, and for quite some time, staff and congregants at the UUCC have been stating their pronouns as part of self-introductions during services, meetings, and other gatherings. Nametags displaying a member’s pronouns have also become more prevalent. Such practices have become a norm in most progressive spaces.
In December, the Board of Trustees discussed and unanimously voted “yes” on an agreement to state our pronouns during meetings and other UUCC gatherings where we’re present. Our agreement applies solely to the Board and does not mean that using pronouns at the UUCC is a compulsory policy for everyone, although it has been and will continue to be encouraged.
We as a Board made our decision for several reasons. We recognize the importance of Board members modeling welcoming practices. We feel that stating our pronouns is a small but important part of our work to honor the sacred worth and dignity of every person. Additionally, our agreement relates directly to our first and third Ends statements:
- We are a joyful, loving, religious community of people who are deeply connected to each other. Here people are heard, included and respected.
- We understand our personal, institutional and community involvement with systemic injustice and inequity and we demonstrate a commitment to dismantling these systems.
We desire to be a welcoming, loving community; that is something we can surely all agree on. Stating our pronouns is one way to be more inclusive and respectful of others, especially our transgender, nonbinary, gender nonconforming, and gender-neutral members and guests. It tells others we understand and that we see and hear them for who they are. As more and more young people, and people in general, are conflicted about or even reject being associated with organized religion, performing such small and simple acts is one way we can set ourselves apart and attract a more diverse community to our doors.
For more information on personal pronouns, we recommend visiting Shige Sakurai’s website Pronouns.org, which includes excellent, in-depth resources and examples on how to engage with personal pronouns in intentional and welcoming ways.