11/26/2023

Teachers, Students Grapple with Fears, Confusion about New Laws Restricting Pronoun Use

Some states have legislated rules around pronoun usage

Indianapolis high school senior Caston Peters had used they and them or he and him pronouns at school for three years without a problem, but they came home a few days into this school year and told their mother that the situation had changed.

Peters, 18 and nonbinary, heard from a teacher that a new state law meant they wouldn not be able to use those pronouns, or the first name they have used for years, without explicit permission from a parent because the pronouns and name don not correspond with their sex assigned at birth.

This was news to Caston's mother, Kim Michaelis-Peters, who immediately sent teachers, a counselor and the principal an email asking them to comply with Caston's wishes, and the school staff did. But even though her own child's wishes are being respected, Michaelis-Peters said she has deep concerns about what Indiana's law could mean for students whose parents might not be understanding if they learn from school officials that their child is transgender or nonbinary.

Please select this link to read the complete article from The Associated Press.