It is 2021 and it is far from news that gender is not as simple as black and white. So how come our language around college events is still so grossly binary?

It’s tragic, really.

Our homecoming court is headed by the king and queen, paired with Mr. and Miss Northwestern State University of Louisiana.

What about all the people who don’t identify as a man or woman? Why are we supposed to be represented by two gendered titles?

I know there is a ton of anger that comes from those who continue to choose to be bigotted around these topics. But I truly want to give the benefit of the doubt to NSU, a school that prides itself on diversity and making sure everyone’s voices are heard.

More teachers and faculty are asking for pronouns and what people want to be called, rather than relying on rosters full of dead names and assumptions on someone’s pronouns.

But things like the homecoming court keeping gendered titles continues to hold this school back.

Students are not being taught about these things in a manner that educates and relies on voices of those experiencing these issues.

How can we fix an issue when people aren’t even aware of the issue?

So, is homecoming gender inclusive? No.

It is easy to point out issues in everyday life but it’s not always easy for people to come to a solution. Lucky for us, the solution is pretty simple. We have to stop relying on gendered terms when referring to other people.

Even luckier, it’s not our job to come up with these titles. They’ve been made for us!

Mx. is the most commonly used and accepted gender neutral title. Mx is found earliest in print in 1977 and was added to the Oxford and Mirriam-Webster dictionary in 2015 and 2016, respectively.

Now we can title Mx. NSU and continue to include everyone in the school’s narrative.