Soon, there will be no more manholes in the city of Berkeley, California. There will also be no chairmen, no manpower, no policemen or policewomen.
Words that imply a gender preference will be removed from the city’s codes and replaced with gender-neutral terms, according to a recently adopted ordinance.
The city voted Tuesday night to replace gendered terms in its municipal codes, like “manhole” and “manpower,” with gender-neutral ones like “maintenance hole” and “human effort.”
The item passed without discussion or comments and was not controversial, said Berkeley City Council member Rigel Robinson, the bill’s primary author.
The revised city documents also will replace instances of gendered pronouns, such as “he” and “she” with “they,” according to the ordinance.
Full story at CBS Sacramento.
At the core of “They” is “He.” Oops, back to the drawing board.
I guess they also have to rename all the pot holes in the city because this means there’s marijuana in the streets.
I dare say that such people are a little too neurotic for my own taste.
There is still a MAN in huMAN.
The issue of gender neutrality has been around for decades. I personally find ‘he or she’ awkward. i’m surprised American English has not evolved a non-gender substitute. I personally use ‘chair’ unless specifically referring to a male or female.
Living languages evolve over time; otherwise, they become dead languages. Perhaps Berkeley is a step in that direction.
mike m,
Most languages have their peculiarities and idiosyncrasies. Adults accept this, sometimes to the point of humor. The movement over the past 50 years that has sought to sanitize and sterilize the English language lacks humor and life. I much prefer the older mindset.
English already has the gender-inclusive “he, him, his.” Only unimaginative linguistic cretins think “he” always and only refers to a male. Example: When bringing your child to school, make sure he has his lunch with him. That can refer to a male or female child. Simple.
Why use the word “chair” to refer to a person at all. That doesn’t refer to a person, it refers to a piece of furniture. “Chair” in reference to a person doesn’t make any sense because of what the word “chair” means. “Chairman” makes sense because it refers to the person who occupies the chair.
We were taught n school– now, much more than half a century ago!– that the English language has been slowly deteriorating since its high point, in the Elizabethan era! And our langage had a tragic further decline– as the 20th century began!
Berkeley, CA, has always been insane. LOVE the new “Save Chick Fil-A” law recently passed in Texas, and signed by their governor, to protect Religious Freedom!
Is it true that their stores can no longer have mannequins and the play “Man from La Mancha” has been doubly-banned?
Or, that Italian-Americans are now prohibited from saying “mangia?”
And, they no longer have a City Manager!
I wonder what G.K.Chesterton would’ve had to say about this.
From today’s news re Berserkly: In the latest chapter of California’s descent into liberal madness, the city of Berkeley – a hotbed of radical liberalism – became the first city in America to ban natural gas from new homes and businesses, including restaurants that use natural gas for stoves. Environmentalists are reportedly hailing this development as a major victory, and it might not be an isolated incident. More than 50 other cities in California are considering following Berkeley’s lead. While it’s unsurprising that Berkeley – a city that’s already banned plastic straws – would ban natural gas, that’s little consolation to the citizens who have not yet fled.
Seems to me it’s also a sneaky way for NIMBY-types to restrict new housing in the name of the “environment”.
I have heard radical feminist forget themselves and say, “You guys,” for both men and women when they are in a hurry. I only put he/she or him/her in some posts because some men now will get offended if I do not.
An example is:: ” He is driving like crazy,” when I can not see the sex of the driver. Often someone will say, “How do you know it is a man?”
Clearly the work of malefactors !
In order to MANage and disMANtle the English language they need to counterMANd all MANeuvers or MANdates that romanticize the MANner in which EnglishMEN speak. RepriMANds will be deMANded of those whose penManship, perforMANces or MANnerism ignore the MANiacal egoMANiacs who MANufacture MANifestos to MANipulate the use of MAN or WOMAN.
Changing MANhole cover to perSONhole cover. Still has a male connotation. This probably drives SeMANticist to drink MANhattans.
I guess I’ll have to change the name of my MANgo tree.