by Dr. David Sanders
Who is on first, that’s right.
When:
Who is he
or
Who is she
or
Who is they.
When then:
Who was he
Now is she.
or
Who was she
Now is he.
Or
Who was he or she
Now is they.
There was a time when:
Who was on first.
What was on second.
I Don’t Know was on third.
The gender vocabulary for this generation of young adults, adolescents and children is rapidly changing. There was no hesitation for our girls as they named a child at camp, they. A camper who the prior year was she, was this summer he, in the boys bunk. For me, this is still disorienting despite my knowing personally many people who are transgender or non-binary gender.
In our classes we focus on the masks of identity and when an identity, as core and as previously binary as gender is deconstructed, our perceptions of identity change and broaden. It can easily be missed: It is not that we add to our lexicon more designations for gender identification. It is that what was once rigidly defined is now recognized as fluid. The implications of this are far reaching for all of the identities we claim as core to who we are.
As we round the bases to home we must touch third base with a newfound awareness that the answer to “Who is on first” and “What is on second” is: I Don’t Know. That is, until you ask.
Come join us this summer for two in-person workshops on identity: Who Have You Been? (Reincarnation) and Who Are You? (The Magic of Identity)
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