Instagram will now let users choose pronouns, reportedly from more than 40 options – but some think the list is too restrictive
Instagram has announced that users will now be able to display up to four pronouns on their profile in a dedicated section. They will also have the option to make them public or only viewable to friends.
Users under 18 will display their pronouns only to their followers by default and people can fill out a form to have a pronoun added to the list.
Add pronouns to your profile ✨The new field is available in a few countries, with plans for more. pic.twitter.com/02HNSqc04R
— Instagram (@instagram) May 11, 2021
Tech website Mashable conducted its own testing and found that there were 41 pronouns currently available on the app.
Facebook, which owns Instagram, allowed users to define their pronouns as far back as 2014, but these were limited to: ‘he/him’, ‘she/her’ and ‘they/them’.
As discussed in many comment sections online, the new feature will free up precious characters in peoples’ Instagram bios, where many typically choose to post their pronouns.
Also on rt.com Sorry for mansplaining, girls, but pretty soon your gender will no longer exist, you're getting cancelled...unless you speak up!Dating apps like OKCupid, as well as rideshare apps like Lyft, have also recently added pronoun features to users’ bios, but Instagram appears to offer more options.
Instagram, with an active user base of over one billion people, does not allow users to type in whatever they wish as their pronouns, however, to the chagrin of many in the trans community online.
This should just be a box for us to type in. Having us pick from a predetermined list excludes people who use less common neopronouns, it/its people, people who use all or no pronouns, people who want to list their pronouns in multiple languages, and anyone who wants to show >4
— margaretmadole (@margaretmadole) May 11, 2021
this is incredibly cool, but maybe can you please add an it/its option? some trans and nonbinary individuals like it/its pronouns
— aesop (@tetchousuehiro) May 11, 2021
Naturally, some saw it as yet another instance of “PC gone mad,” despite the fact that users have already been displaying their pronouns on Instagram for years.
What's next? Race fields? Religion? Height? Disabilities?
— Neil Cauliflower (@NitroTurbo86) May 11, 2021
As expected, others derided the update, and perhaps highlighted why users are not currently permitted to type whatever they wish as their pronouns.
why does it not let me put your/mom? this is incredibly discriminatory.
— roach enthusiast (@sterrobrys) May 11, 2021
The pronouns will appear in a specific section of their profile, should they wish to display them, as showcased by Canadian politician Janis Irwin, who lauded the move and called on Twitter to follow suit.
Well thanks, @instagram! You can now add your pronouns. It’s a simple act, but an important one. @Twitter, you next? pic.twitter.com/uXgXCcm911
— Janis Irwin (@JanisIrwin) May 12, 2021
For now, the pronouns feature on Instagram will only be available in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and Australia but there are reportedly “plans for more” countries to be added in the future.
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