On Saturday, October 11, the Central Library is open to registered Heartland Book Festival attendees only. Regular services, such as hold pickups, public computers and phones, and public meeting rooms, will not be available.
Merriam-Webster has thrown its considerable weight behind the use of “they” as a singular, gender-neutral pronoun, expanding its dictionary definition and then proclaiming “they” the 2019 Word of the Year. Traditionalists and other critics argue: miscarriage of meaning!
Pronouns, like gender-neutral bathrooms, are sparking a national debate, prompting new policies in schools and workplaces about which ones to use. In a discussion of his new book What’s Your Pronoun?, the University of Illinois’ Dennis Baron examines the issue and lends some valuable historical context. The search for a gender-neutral pronoun actually goes back centuries. Shakespeare used the singular “they,” and people have been coining new gender pronouns (beyond “hir” and “zie”) for generations.
Brown, a professor emeritus of English and linguistics at Illinois, joins author and KCUR Digital Managing Editor C.J. Janovy in a public conversation.