A basic mark of respect to any trans person is to use their proper pronouns. That includes non-binary people, and unfortunately, not all of our society seems interested in making that change.
This was the case for Demi Lovato, who was misgendered by the paparazzi in front of singer Lizzo, who immediately corrected the paparazzo's incorrect pronoun usage.
\u201cDemi goes by \u2018they\u2019\u201d - Lizzo corrects a paparazzi after they misgendered Demipic.twitter.com/p9PVff08PL— Demi Lovato News (@Demi Lovato News) 1625150546
Immediately, people took notice of how clearly and unabashedly Lizzo demanded respect for Demi in that interaction.
That video of Lizzo correcting the paparazzi about Demi Lovato\u2019s pronouns did something for me. Her saying \u201cthey\u201d firmly. Then saying \u201ctheir\u201d with her chest. A thug\u2019s allergies acting up!— Ryan Ken (they/them) (@Ryan Ken (they/them)) 1625169257
we stan lizzo for literally correcting paps on referring to demi as "they/them"— \u0299\u029f\u1d1c\u1d07 (@\u0299\u029f\u1d1c\u1d07) 1625149097
lizzo correcting paparazzi on demi\u2019s pronouns\u2026 we love to see itpic.twitter.com/LgVgrF2azq— iz \ud83c\udf43 (@iz \ud83c\udf43) 1625227255
Lizzo is literally the type of friend demi needs, god I hope they get close with each other— sean \ud83e\udd8b (@sean \ud83e\udd8b) 1625181697
Demi themselves finally saw the video and emotionally reacted via their Instagram story:
"@lizzobeeating you f—ing queen I love you [kissing emoji] thank you."
@ddlovato/Instagram
And other Demi fans were vocal about how much they absolutely loved Lizzo as well.
Queen statushttps://twitter.com/justcatchmedemi/status/1410609747695263747\u00a0\u2026— United States of Boochie\u2122\ufe0f \ud83c\udff4\u200d\u2620\ufe0f (@United States of Boochie\u2122\ufe0f \ud83c\udff4\u200d\u2620\ufe0f) 1625251639
It\u2019s really THIS EASY TO support someone- even when they\u2019re not in the room... @lizzo said THEY/THEM with her chest and kept it moving. https://twitter.com/justcatchmedemi/status/1410609747695263747\u00a0\u2026— Judi Young Gifted and Black (@Judi Young Gifted and Black) 1625251575
Exhibit A of good allyship:https://twitter.com/justcatchmedemi/status/1410609747695263747\u00a0\u2026— a prednisone hate account (@a prednisone hate account) 1625250514
can i just point out how the sarcastic \u201cyou got me\u201d from who she corrected makes my skin crawl? like how dismissive can you be, you ass?https://twitter.com/justcatchmedemi/status/1410609747695263747\u00a0\u2026— Cayde (BLM) (@Cayde (BLM)) 1625250080
i love lizzo so much yall don\u2019t understandhttps://twitter.com/justcatchmedemi/status/1410609747695263747\u00a0\u2026— nunya039 s*sp*nd*d (@nunya039 s*sp*nd*d) 1625249555
And Lizzo provides, on video, a sample of good allyship: a firm, but gentle, correction of pronouns without apology.
Lizzo was 1.5 seconds away from saying "BITCH! You better get it correct" \nThis is ALLYSHIP. It's that easy and that SIMPLE. It's all it takes for y'all not to participate in bigotry and to be protective of your peers. I'm happy Demi Lovato saw this.https://twitter.com/justcatchmedemi/status/1410609747695263747\u00a0\u2026— Jason (Moderna Gay. One Piece stan) (@Jason (Moderna Gay. One Piece stan)) 1625249535
Skin cleared, crops watered, transphobes crying, we are thriving. All your faves support trans people. https://twitter.com/justcatchmedemi/status/1410609747695263747\u00a0\u2026— Emperor Jack I (@Emperor Jack I) 1625249506
I love everything about this. The correction. The reporters response. The fact that this tweet is also helping educate.https://twitter.com/justcatchmedemi/status/1410609747695263747\u00a0\u2026— JK \ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\ud83c\udf08 (@JK \ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\ud83c\udf08) 1625248715
It\u2019s literally this easy to be a kind human beinghttps://twitter.com/justcatchmedemi/status/1410609747695263747\u00a0\u2026— julinnette\ud83c\udf08 (@julinnette\ud83c\udf08) 1625242882
Everyone who wants to be a good ally, take notes from Lizzo.