Woman Gets Roasted on Twitter For Not Knowing How To Speak To A Trans Cafe Server

People weren't buying it and insisted that the entire situation could have been avoided with common sense.

Stephanie

• Published in Interesting
• April 6, 2022

It's fair to say that society is far more aware of transgender people and the hardships they face these days. But, despite how hard we try, sometimes it can be hard to navigate certain situations if we aren't entirely sure of the correct ways to do so.

Recently, professor and evolutionary psychologist Gad Saad posted on Twitter about his wife, who he says was "frozen in fear" when she visited a cafe and wasn't sure of the proper pronoun to address the barista. The man said his wife became anxious when she noticed the person making her coffee was "possibly" transgender.

Saad explained that he and his wife have no issue accepting transgender people. However, they sometimes find it hard to know which pronouns should be used when addressing a trans person.

"Fighting for a world free of bigotry does not imply that we must suppress perfectly natural categorization mechanisms that are built into our brains and our languages," Saad said in his tweet. Before long, Saad and his wife became a target for Twitter users who were quick to point out that there are plenty of ways to order a coffee without mentioning the server's gender.

People seemed to want to point out that the issue here was with Saad's wife, not the transgender person. In his wife's defense, Saad posted an update to provide more context to the story.

He explained that the confusion happened when his wife wanted to tell another server that their colleague was already taking care of her order. She didn't know if she should call them "he," "she," or "they."

But people weren't buying it and insisted that the entire situation could have been avoided with common sense. Keep scrolling to see how people reacted.

Recently, professor and evolutionary psychologist Gad Saad posted on Twitter about his wife, who he says was "frozen in fear" when she visited a cafe and wasn't sure of the proper pronoun to address the barista.

The man said his wife became anxious when she noticed the person making her coffee was "possibly" transgender.

You can read Saad's post in full below.

Saad explained that he and his wife have no issue accepting transgender people. However, they sometimes find it hard to know which pronouns should be used when addressing a trans person.

"Fighting for a world free of bigotry does not imply that we must suppress perfectly natural categorization mechanisms that are built into our brains and our languages," Saad said in his tweet.

He explained that the confusion happened when his wife wanted to tell another server that their colleague was already taking care of her order. She didn't know if she should call them "he," "she," or "they."

Here's how people reacted.

Pretty simple, really.

"The gender looked at me."

Just say, "hi."

The mind boggles.

"Hello, can I have a latte?"

No need for a culture war.

"You can imagine how little sympathy I have."

"Fixed. You're welcome."

"Ladies and gentleman, do you take Apple Pay?"

Perhaps she needs some professional help?

"It's a tricky one."

"Are you he who can food us?"

"A modern tragedy."

"They/them pronouns have long been used to address someone whose pronouns you don't know."

What's your take on this one? Do you think Saad's wife was being a little ridiculous for reacting the way she did, or do you think it's entirely understandable?

In a world where there is so much diversity, surely the most important thing is that we treat each other with dignity and respect. Knowledge and understanding may take time, but if the effort is being made, it speaks volumes.

We would love to hear your opinions on this topic. Feel free to share your thoughts in the comment section below.

Stephanie