With a chilly week coming to an end, students and faculty can come together in the Sloss House at this week’s Feminist Friday. Danny Cook, senior in communication studies, will be leading this week’s discussion on understanding the meaning of non-binary.

This week’s discussion will take place at 1 p.m. and is hosted by the Margaret Sloss Center for Women and Gender Equity. The center provides snacks for all attendees, while speakers usually bring a various number of activities or references to discuss.

This week’s event is “L’Ecriture Non-Binaire.” This lecture will cover the basics of non-binary gender identity and the language used to non-conform to the gender binary and express this phenomenon.

Non-binary is neither male nor female but rather a spectrum of identities. One of the more tricky things about the non-binary identity is understanding which pronouns are appropriate.

What makes this identification unique is that everyone can be referred to as whatever they would like. Common non-binary pronouns are “them,” “they,” “their,” “ze,” “zir,” “zem” and “zeir.” However, this does  not apply for everyone, so it is important to ask rather than assume just as one should with everyone.

Non-binary tends to encompass a variety of genders outside of binary norms of male and female genders. Genderqueer, gender fluid, a-gender and so many more can be termed under the non-binary identity because they all challenge the general aspects of gender.

“A lot of the language right now is a lot more about creating space for non-gender conforming people to assimilate into gender and society without actually changing the society or to be actually inclusive,” Cook said. “It’s just allowing you to fit into a society that doesn’t actually include you as a part of it.”

Open to all students, faculty and the community, this Feminist Friday event has everyone in mind.