Berkeley Banishes Gender-Specific Terms from City Code

BERKELEY, Calif. (AP) – California’s Berkeley City Council adopted an ordinance Tuesday to replace gendered terms with gender-neutral words in the city’s code.

The San Francisco Chronicle reports Wednesday that “she” and “he” will be replaced by “they.” The words “manpower” and “manhole” will be replaced by “workforce” and “maintenance hole.”

The measure to replace more than two dozen commonly used terms passed unanimously.

There will be no more “craftsmen” in city code, only “craftspeople” or “artisans.”

Councilmember Rigel Robinson, who sponsored the ordinance, is 23 years old and recently graduated from the University of California, Berkeley. He says his time in college expanded his awareness of gender issues.

Robinson says critics suggested the council spend time on more important matters.

Berkeley has a long history of leading on politically and socially liberal issues.