Singular They. - Is it political? It feels political.

[Larry David's Opera Cape]

The internet and big cities. The trend may pass entirely before it spreads farther into common parlance.

Unfortunately the fact that it's being adopted by large companies and institutions means it will move into every part of the countryside.

Shawn Podunk may not use "they" in his daily life in Remote, MT. But his corporate communications at his job at Target uses it, as does his doctor's office (attached to MegaHealth inc) and insurance company. The local daily paper, staffed by Lois Lane (Grinnell '22) also uses this wording, and so does the school he sends Shawn Jr and Dawn to every day.

Basically- we have to fight harder.

 

[DeadwastePrime]

singular they is a weird quirk in the english language like generic you and double genitives where they're both correct and incorrect depending on the context of a conversation. like the sentence "someone left their jacket in the office" is technically correct. using it to refer to oneself is rare but likely to increase as it becomes more acceptable to use.

 

[wtfNeedSignUp]

It's very tempting to compare to 1984 newspeak, but modern language shenanigans are more for the opposite reasons: If newspeak was to dumb down language, woke speak is basically putting as many landmines as possible to make simple verbal communication a reason to destroy the opposition's life.

 

[starborn427614]

I tend to use it interchangeably with him/her. No particular reason, sometimes it just flows better.

 

[Male Idiot]

It is vantablack niggercoal brimstone.

My ESL hatred of it is such that I simply refuse to engage with anyone using it for a single specific person.

Even xirself is better.

 

[One Angry Computer]

I am but a simple person, who uses "It" as a singular expression of "They".

And I don't give a fuck about the"bhut 'it' is for objects, not people!!1" argument. In the face of the unknown, you cannot know if you are speaking about a man, woman, or something that is not human.

Invented pronouns (shi/hir, for example) are stupid and inapplicable for the current sexual dichotomy present in humans at the present time. When they invent perfect hermaphroditism (hopefully never), I can accept the introduction of new pronouns, but not now.

TL;DR: 'It' for Singular 'They', substitutes are lunacy.

 

[frozen_runner]

Any time I see it, it bothers me. I refuse to use it, and if I'm irritated enough by it, I'll act confused and ask the offender to explain.

 

[Rimanah]

It's political, expressly tied the "gender neutral language trend" which in turns finds root in "gender identity theory."
As someone who sort of has to dabble in linguistics and grammar as part of my profession, there's debate over whether it's ever proper vs the singular he. For example, Garner's works like Modern American Usage says its ok in certain circumstances, but Strunk and White's The Elements of Style still resist it in its entirety.

But outside the non-political connotations (e.g. a "person of unknown gender" Read: A Faggot), its proper stylistic and grammatical use is with an indeterminate antecedent, as you said.
Any attempts to broaden it are political, and usually overtly so. For example, Purdue OWL's guide says:

When individuals whose gender is neither male nor female (e.g. nonbinary, agender, genderfluid, etc.) use the singular they to refer to themselves, they are using the language to express their identities. Adopting this language is one way writers can be inclusive of a range of people and identities.

Pretty much every style or grammar guide that approves of broader uses of singular They is similarly rooted in "gender identity theory."

So yes, it is expressly, demonstrably political.