Life Outside The Binary
Nonbinary Transgender Information Centre

The inevitable misunderstanding of Mx

cassolotl:

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Transgender woman’s request to become ‘Ms’ refused by NatWest

Staff said she could not have her preferred honorific, but could call herself ‘Mx’ instead – an exchange that left her ‘feeling like a fake’. The bank has now apologised and blamed human error

I knew this would happen as Mx became more well-known, and some errors in the recent media flurry about Mx (namely that Mx is a title for transgender people) are probably part symptom, part cause.

Time to share the misconceptions post again, and a few points pertinent to this post:

  • Transgender people are protected by law, in this case in that they are entitled to have whatever title they feel best fits their gender.
  • Mx is not a title for transgender people - it is a title that has no gender, similar to the way Ms has no marital status.
  • Titles are not legally binding, and you should not require any “proof” of your gender to change your title on any records regardless of gender presentation.
  • Title limitations are not a security issue - we have much more sophisticated ways to confirm identity.
  • Degendering trans people is horrible as well as illegal.

Finally!

mxactivist:

An article about Mx where the writer has done their research, notes that it’s a title that anyone can use, notes that language shifts over time, etc.

Bustle.com

If only national newspapers could be so conscientious!

The Oxford English Dictionary has officially added the gender-neutral title ‘Mx’

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pohroro