Mediaite Contributing Editor Larry O’Connor recently penned an opinion piece on Mediate.com. An excerpt of his latest article, ‘Ladies and Gentlemen’ No More: MTA Adopts Gender Neutral Subway Announcements, is below:
Check your Cisgender Privilege and watch the closing doors, the New York subway and bus systems are now adopting gender neutral language in all their announcements to passengers, according to sources within the Metropolitan Transit Authority.
A bulletin sent to all transit workers orders transit staff to cease and desist any use of the offensive term “ladies and gentlemen” and begin utilizing non-gendered terms, including “passengers,” “riders” or “everyone.”
Recorded subway announcements that currently use the horribly offensive “ladies and gentlemen” will now be overridden by a live announcement from the train conductor utilizing the politically correct terms until new recordings can be installed. Of course, for most subway riders not listening so keenly so they can find any possible opportunity to be offended, the announcements will still sound the same… that is, completely and totally unintelligible.
The announcement also includes a veiled threat to transit workers alerting them that supervisors would be “monitoring” announcements to ensure the gender neutral terms are used, lest any non-cisgender rider (or New York Times columnist) is offended beyond the ability to function. [Read More]
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