PLU supports the efforts of faculty, students, staff, and
administrators to employ and augment the inclusive language guidelines
of their professions or disciplines, and to reflect upon the cultural
conditions which have made such guidelines integral to contemporary
language use. One set of guidelines is that of the Evangelical Lutheran
Church in America (“Guidelines for Inclusive Use of the English
Language,” 1989), which provides examples of language that includes and
affirms groups which have often been misrepresented in or left out of
discourse. Inclusive language avoids stereotypes or biases such as
those based on gender, race, physical ability, sexual orientation,
class, nationality, religion, family, and status. Inclusive language
directs our attention to the nuances of social reference and calls us
to address all individuals with respect.