Top lawmakers promise action over UT pronouns post

Top state and federal lawmakers are reacting with outrage, and promises of action, after a post on the University of Tennessee Knoxville website got national attention for encouraging students to use gender-neutral pronouns.

Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey said on Facebook that the post, written by the director of UT's Pride Center, was "the clearest example of political correctness run amok that I have seen in quite some time." Ramsey, R-Blountville, said he expected the General Assembly to "weigh in on the issue" in January if UT doesn't "take quick action" first.

Meanwhile, state Sen. Bo Watson, R-Hixson, suggested in a statement that the Senate Education and Government Operations committees should "investigate and review" the issue.

In the post, which originated in a column in a quarterly newsletter from UT's Office for Diversity and Inclusion, Pride Center Director Donna Braquet said students and professors should ask each other what pronouns they use. Braquet wrote that students who do not identify as men or women might prefer gender-neutral pronouns like "ze" or "xe."

"These may sound a little funny at first, but only because they are new," she wrote. "The more we make sharing of pronouns a universal practice, the more inclusive we will be as a campus."

After the post went viral last week, the university issued a statement saying there is no official policy that mandates the use of gender-neutral pronouns, and that the post was meant "as a resource to our campus community on inclusive practices."

In an interview on Tuesday, Margie Nichols, UT's vice chancellor for communications, reiterated that point.

"If it was a policy, it would have been discussed and vetted through our vice chancellors and discussed with the chancellor.  But this did not rise to that level," Nichols said. "We are a university and our colleges and departments have a lot of autonomy.  They develop many newsletters that do not require the approval of the administration."

In his statement, a skeptical Watson said the post "suggests a lack of institutional control."

“I find it difficult to believe that such a ridiculous suggestion as gender-neutral pronouns would be published on a university website without leadership’s approval," Watson said. "Tennessee taxpayers should not expect to be paying for this kind of stuff.”

Federal lawmakers have also reacted harshly to the post.

U.S. Rep. John J. Duncan, a UT graduate and Republican who represents the Knoxville area, wrote on Facebook that he is "personally embarrassed by this stupid revision of personal pronouns by someone who obviously had too much time on his or her hands."

"This was a ridiculous overreaction to the dictates of political correctness and has made UT a laughingstock across the nation," Duncan said.

Reach Adam Tamburin at 615-726-5986 and on Twitter @tamburintweets.