Anderson Cooper, as we all know, is a weenie, and he proved it in this exchange.
Ms. Thomas may be an activist, but she’s also an asshole. Cooper should have said, “Excuse me, but did you inform me of your favored pronouns? Did I ask what they were? Do they have any relevance to the matter we are discussing? Since the answer to those questions are all “no,” your making a point to correct me on live TV is rude, obnoxious, and uncalled for. Sit down, please.
Next questioner!
Ethics Alarms 
I think you’re being way too hard on her. She didn’t seem mean or indignant about it, it’s probably habit for her, and she’s probably nervous as hell being on national television. I know I would be. In this case, I’d give Grace a bit of grace.
Practicing self-centered behavior until it becomes a habit may result in making an ass of yourself on live TV. Calling something a “habit” is not a justification for bad behavior.
I agree with this. And being nice while establishing and reinforcing bad cultural trends shouldn’t make them more tolerable.
I disagree. She is a civil rights attorney – that means she has been through college and law school (at minimum), sat for the bar exam and presumably passed it and has probably practiced law in court. She has experience speaking in public. She corrected Cooper from the very beginning and Cooper capitulated, coward that he is.
This is a Golden Rule violation in my mind: if I have no idea what your preference is, and I am not acting maliciously, then you should not assume that I know it, and should not correct me for not using your preferences. If, however, I am aware of your preferences, then comity and consideration would suggest that I should use them. That, though, does not mean that I actually believe, endorse, and/or encourage such things. You cannot compel to participate in what I think is a serious defect in your cognitive or emotional state.
jvb
There is another pronoun related issue hitting the news today:
https://nypost.com/2025/04/11/us-news/florida-teacher-becomes-first-to-be-fired-for-using-students-preferred-name-without-parents-consent/
A Florida high school teacher lost her job after using a student’s preferred name without their parents’ consent — the first known teacher to be fired under a state law implemented last school year.
Melissa Calhoun, a teacher at Satellite High School in Brevard County, learned that her contract will not be renewed next year after she called a student by a different name without getting a signed form from their parents, according to district officials.
Calhoun is the first known educator in Florida to lose her job under a Sunshine State law signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis before the start of the 2023-2024 school year that requires teachers to get parental permission before calling a student by a name different from their legal one.
My point: I want to be polite and respectful to people regardless of their sexual preferences, however when people are forced to walk on eggshells related to certain hot-button issues, and these issues are shoved in everybody’s faces (including your children at elementary school) you will invite a backlash, and people will lose tolerance for your minority concerns. The new law in Florida mentioned above is a case in point of this backlash.
Personally, I think personal pronouns and misgendering is bullshit. The whole ideology has been taken too far. This is how modern civilization evolves? This is also an area where the legal system is overreaching and running amok.
“Coercive Control”: Parents Could Lose Custody Under Proposed Colorado Law for “Misgendering”