海角大神

On this Presidents Day, our 鈥淔ounding Fathers鈥� may be a sticky subject.

Earlier this week, the conservative legal organization Pacific Justice Institute incited outrage over the fact that the city of San Diego instructed its employees in a workers' manual to refrain from using gender biased language, and the term 鈥淔ounding Fathers鈥� was listed as an example.

In a letter to Mayor Kevin Faulconer, the group pointed to more than 1,500 instances of the phrase at hand used in Supreme Court decisions and other judicial documents, urging the city to amend its manual. The city has since agreed to retract the suggestion, but for proponents of gender-neutral language, the issue of 鈥淔ounding Fathers鈥� remains at large.

鈥淲e trust you will act swiftly to that city personnel should not quote the foregoing authorities or otherwise refer to the Founding Fathers,鈥� the group鈥檚 letter said. 鈥淭he folly of the prohibition is so self-evident that we will offer to represent, at no charge, any city employee who is disciplined or admonished for invoking our Founding Fathers.鈥�

But according to city spokesman Matt Awbrey, no city employee has ever been reprimanded for such action. 鈥淭he manual is a guidebook and nothing more,鈥� he told 海角大神 via email. 鈥淣o employee has ever been disciplined for referencing our founding fathers, and no one ever will.鈥�

In fact, since the Pacific Justice Institute called attention to the issue Monday, the city has revised its manual and eliminated the bit about the nation鈥檚 founders.

鈥淪uggesting that our Founding Fathers should be referred to as 鈥楩ounders鈥� is political correctness run-amok. We are proud of our nation's history and there is nothing wrong with referring to the Founding Fathers,鈥� a statement from the city reads. 鈥淎t the Mayor鈥檚 direction this was removed yesterday from the City's correspondence manual. The manual will be reviewed for other misguided examples that defy common sense and changes will be made accordingly.鈥�

Politically correct or not, the term 鈥淔ounding Fathers鈥� still doesn鈥檛 seem optimal for some supporters of gender equity. After all, women were not completely absent in the establishment of the US. But advocates say, more crucially, gendered language has a role in perpetuating social gender boundaries.

The American Philosophical Association, for instance, recommends using the terms, Independent editor and grammar blogger Kathy Watson prefers the term 鈥渇orebears.鈥�

鈥淎s a person who thinks grammar is important, words matter. The implication of words and the connotation of words all matter,鈥� she tells The Monitor. 鈥淲hen you take the example of 鈥楩ounding Fathers,鈥� if that鈥檚 the way history is taught at an early age, young girls will not be able to envision the important roles that women can aspire to, and it could limit their self-perception.鈥�

鈥淥nly by taking the actions that the city [was],鈥� she adds, 鈥減eople will be more inclusive and recognize that women also filled important roles鈥� 鈥� and will continue to do so.

Last year, a team of German psychologists found that children reacted to traditionally male occupations when they are introduced in both masculine and feminine forms 鈥� such as male and female politicians 鈥� rather than to generic masculine forms.

But Ms. Watson says it goes both ways.

鈥淔or many years, males did not go into the nursing field,鈥� she says, noting that 鈥渕ale nurse鈥� is still a common phrase. Without gender neutral communication, she explains, 鈥減eople tend to perceive certain professions as being filled by one gender or the other.鈥�

Currently, there are at least four states 鈥� Florida, North Carolina, Illinois, and Washington 鈥� that have from their public legal lexicon, replacing terms such as 鈥渇isherman,鈥� 鈥渇reshman,鈥� and 鈥渟ignalman鈥� with gender nonspecific versions. A handful of other states have passed gender-neutral constitutional mandates and others are now considering similar measures.

A gender-neutral bill was just introduced to the Idaho state legislature Wednesday morning.