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Discussion on: The problem with “you guys”

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dmfay profile image
Dian Fay

Speaking as someone with "lived experience of not being included in all sorts of ways, in a field still dominated by mostly men", I appreciate the desire to help communities do better on inclusivity but I'm really, really not a fan of the approach. I think the comments here make the case in point: the people who need to be reminded to use inclusive language are exactly the people who will dig their heels in at robotic finger-wagging. And I don't blame them, because automated nagging is annoying however high-minded the intent, and I would absolutely do the same if I were in an analogous situation (in fact, I have done the same in analogous situations!). I've posted on bulletin boards which made extensive use of automated text replacement; that has the advantage of being direct and not coming off as condescending, but of course realtime chat platforms would have to have it built in.

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kmelve profile image
Knut Melvær

Thank you for your comment @dmfay !

Yeah, as you say from the various comments I've gotten both here and on Twitter, I think you're completely right. Not even a wagging-finger from the adorable BMO gets past them. Next time I'll use Clippy 😄