Two employees of a Christian university in New York state lost their jobs after including their pronouns in their work email signatures and then ignoring the university’s request to remove them.
Raegan Zelaya, 27, and Shua Wilmot, 29, were both fired from their positions as director of residence halls at Houghton University in upstate New York after refusing to remove their pronouns, in accordance with a newly enacted university policy.
The university, which is affiliated with a conservative branch of the Methodist Church, asked for their pronouns to be removed, but Zelaya and Wilmot refused to comply. The pair were subsequently fired just before the end of the semester.
The layoffs have now sparked protests on campus with debates about gender and sexuality taking place in other faith-based organizations, including Yeshiva University.
Houghton made changes consistent with conservative Christian peers, such as closing a multicultural student center and environmental sustainability program and withdrawing recognition from an on-campus LGBTQ club.
Raegan Zelaya, 27, left, and Shua Wilmot, 29, right, were directors of the residence; Zelaya chose to include “she/her” in her email signature, while Wilmot chose “he/him.” Both were fired
Zelaya and Wilmot worked at Houghton University, a Christian university in upstate New York. They were fired for adding preferred pronouns to the end of their work emails
Zelaya and Wilmot, neither of whom are transgender, have both faced misgendering due to their unique names.
The couple both say they had professional, pastoral, and inclusive motivations for including their pronouns, but the university saw things differently and decided to terminate the couple.
“I think the bottom line is, they want to be trans-exclusive and they want to communicate that to prospective students and the parents of prospective students,” Wilmot told the New York Times after his firing.
“There’s the professional piece, and the practical piece, and there’s also an inclusive piece, and I think that’s the piece that this institution doesn’t want.”
Zelaya said she was fired “as a result of your refusal to remove pronouns from your email signature,” along with criticizing an administrative decision to the student newspaper.
Raegan Zelaya posted a photo of the letter she received saying she was ‘relieved from her position effective immediately’
Zelaya wrote a thank you message on her Facebook page explaining why she wouldn’t remove the pronouns from her email signature
Zelaya received a letter of support from a student after she was fired. There have been protests following their dismissal by 600 students on campus
Shua Wilmot in a photo from Raegan Zelaya’s Facebook page where he was told not to eat in the cafeteria with other students and teachers
“Ultimately, it doesn’t affect what I actually believe or what I think is a sin or not a sin,” Zelaya said. “It all comes down to: Do I love people in a way that reflects Christ?”
“We currently live in a very divided world where everything is this or that, right or left, conservative or liberal, Republican or Democrat. As Christians, I think we’ve gotten so caught up in these ideas of “This is what I should be advocating or angry about” that we forget to really care for people,” Zelaya added.
Alumni who signed a protest letter expressed concern about the lack of respect for diverse theological and ethical views within the institution.
Houghton’s president responded by emphasizing the university’s commitment to the teachings of the Wesleyan Church.
University spokesperson Michale Blakenship said in a statement that Houghton “has never terminated an employment relationship based solely on the use of pronouns in staff email signatures.”
There were several reactions to Zelaya’s firing online
Houghton University is a private Christian liberal arts college in Houghton, New York and affiliated with the Wesleyan Church
“In recent years, we’ve demanded that anything extraneous be removed from email signatures, including quotes from scripture,” he said.
The controversy generated frustration among students of differing political and religious beliefs, highlighting divisions over gender, sexuality, and identity politics.
While some alumni have called for a more open environment in which to discuss their time at Houghton, the current administration’s decisions have curtailed such chatter.
Zelaya and Wilmot believe the disagreement stems from differing perspectives on living a Christian life, with the university choosing to align itself with conservative political beliefs prevalent in evangelical Christian circles.
They claim that their inclusion of pronouns reflects their desire to emulate Christ’s love and care for marginalized individuals.