Dear TAPS,
I have a significant personal update to share, and as I'm co-chairing
this WG, I wanted to let the whole WG know:
I go by the name Reese in most contexts now, including at my day job,
and I ask people to use the pronouns "they/them" or "he/him" when
referring to me (choose one, choose the other, switch it up, it's all
good). This is related to my realization that I'm not in fact a woman,
but non-binary, which I have had over the past year or so.
My publications including IETF work are still under my legal name,
Theresa, and they will stay under this name for the foreseeable future.
I'm not sure if I ever want to try changing my datatracker name etc. So
to reduce confusion, it's fine to keep referring to me as "Theresa", and
I'll most likely keep showing up under that name in videochats and such.
However, please do try to use gender-affirming pronouns when talking
about me, or alternatively, just my name. I acknowledge that this is new
for many folks and I'm not expecting everyone to get it right
immediately. If you slip up, a good way to handle it is to briefly
correct yourself, e.g., "[…] sorry, they, […]" and to then move on in
the conversation, similar how folks may correct themselves if they
accidentally get somebody's name wrong. Getting used to different
pronouns requires some significant rewiring of one's brain, I've been
there and my day job colleagues are going through it right now, but it's
doable, just a matter of practice. I may remind folks from time to time.
I'm just starting to communicate this more broadly in the IETF, so
others may not yet know. It's fine to tell people about the above. I
just hope I'll never have to discuss my gender on ietf@ietf ;)
If you have questions or would like to chat, you can send me an email,
and/or we can chat as part of the usual socializing around IETF 112.
Thank you so much for reading, and I'm looking forward to continuing to
work with you!
Best,
Theresa, or Reese
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