Sirry Alang is an Associate Professor and a lesbian mother from Pennsylvania who decided to take it to Twitter to urge teachers that they should stop using the words ‘moms and dads’ when they talk to young children. In her powerful tweet, she pointed out that families come in all different shapes and sizes, and there isn’t one ‘pattern’ that fits all. Not every child has a mom or a dad, and some children have neither.
She went on to praise one brave student in her child’s class who corrected the teacher about their own family set-up, and you can check out her post for yourself below.
Teachers, ur class convos are broadcasted in everyone’s homes. The # of times the teacher has said “your mom and dad” to my kid’s class is infuriating. But a BRAVE kid just said…”But I only told my grandma at lunch time because my sister and I live with our grandma.”
— Sirry Alang, PhD (she/her) (@ProfAlang) September 8, 2020
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Then of course my kid jumped in right away & said: “I don’t have a dad & it’s ok because my mom said there are different kinds of families. Even though I would want a dad but she’s gay. Gay means she only dates women.” LOL. Now my business is out there.
— Sirry Alang, PhD (she/her) (@ProfAlang) September 8, 2020
But teacher apologized and said she’ll start saying “parent or the adult helping you at home”. I have faith in this generation.
— Sirry Alang, PhD (she/her) (@ProfAlang) September 8, 2020
The tweet went viral in just a few days, and thousands of people praised her for her words. One person commented that the phrase ‘the adults who care for you’ is much better, and another suggested saying ‘your supervisory figures’. Another one proposed ‘your folks’, and there were different opinions about all the suggestions.
Most people, though, thanked her for sharing it, and noted that it’s very important to remember that different kids have a variety of situations.