USC celebrates International Pronouns Day
With a tent draped in pride flags and hundreds of free pronoun pins, USC’s LGBTQ+ Student Center celebrated International Pronouns Day Wednesday. The event took place at Hahn Plaza, and was intended to help normalize preferred pronouns and make LGBTQ+ students feel supported on campus.
As part of the festivities, the LGBTQ+ Student Center offered ten different sets of pronoun pins to students. Journey R., a senior majoring in human biology and employee of the LGBTQ+ Student Center, said that the LGBTQ+ center hoped to kickstart a conversation about how the University community can incorporate personal pronouns into everyday life.
“Even if you’re cisgender, including your pronouns in your Zoom name, wearing them as a pin on your shirt or your backpack, introducing yourself with your pronouns at meetings or in group settings, all of these things really help contribute to a trans positive and safe environment,” they said.
Hassan B. Marong, a graduate student at the Rossier School of Education and employee of the LGBTQ+ Student Center, said that by starting this conversation, the LGBTQ+ Student Center was also able to educate people on how to use different pronouns.
“We have already had some people come to the table and ask about what different pronouns are, what they mean, why some of them are in Spanish and what the different flags mean,” he said. “I hope it’s an educational point for people and that they can then take that information and educate people in their everyday lives.”
Marong went on to state the importance of having an open dialogue around pronouns on college campuses.
“When I first came to college, I had never really heard of pronouns. It wasn’t until I heard someone introduce themselves with their pronouns that I was like, ‘oh, that’s important because not everybody is going to be he/him or she/her, and it’s important to not assume people’s pronouns.’ I hope that this table is going to start that conversation with other people, and trickle on to their families and their friends,” he said.
The Student Center also organized an activity where students could write down how they could incorporate pronouns into their daily lives. Megan van der Toorn, who oversees the LGBTQ+ Student Center and gender equity resources, said that the event was meant to inspire people to consider how they could make their space more inclusive.
“[This activity ensures that] it’s not just a one and done grab a button and go,” van der Toorn said, “It’s actually really thinking about, what can I do to affirm others? What can I do to help create more inclusive spaces across campus?”
She also emphasized how important it is for students to see faculty participating in these advocacy and educational events.
“What we’ve tried to do is…help our students feel like there are other people doing this advocacy for them, this awareness raising for them so that they’re not always having to be the one to do the education,” van der Toorn said.
Marong said it is important to celebrate this day on campus, not only because of how essential pronouns are, but also to make campus a more welcoming space.
“Pronouns are very important and very dear to people’s hearts, it’s how they identify,” he said. “We are trying to, as USC, make sure that we’re inclusive to people in that people are feeling welcome in our space, however they identify on the gender spectrum. I hope that’s what this celebration of pronouns will do for other people.”
Journey also said that the LGBTQ+ Student Center’s fight to make campus a more equitable place does not stop at International Pronoun Day.
“Right now we’re in the process of trying to get more gender neutral bathrooms,” they said. “Another thing we’re working towards is just normalizing the concept of pronouns, and raising awareness about nonbinary genders as well. All those are helpful things that can make trans students feel safe.”
Overall, van der Toorn said that they will consider their efforts for International Pronoun Day a success if they help even one student feel safer on campus.
“Hopefully, we can change one person, make it easier for one student, faculty or staff member on this campus to be authentically who they are and to be seen for who they are,” they said.