Student Penalized for 'Man' Instead of 'Humankind'

A University of Florida student says he was penalized for writing "man" instead of the gender-neutral "humankind" in a term paper about the history of water.

History major Martin Poirer wrote "Water is a thing prior to man," which he said prompted Professor Jack Davis to circle the offending word and note, "Thoughtful paper, although the writing-mechanics errors are killing you."

Poirer, who was graded B-minus, told The Daily Nerv, an independent student newspaper, that he was penalized for not using the gender-neutral alternative, "human."

But Davis told The College Fix that "humankind" is consistent with the Chicago Manual of Style, "the style and the usage guide followed in the discipline of history."

Davis said the writing exercise was not assigned to "enforce political correctness," adding "I do not lower a student's grade for only one inconsistence."

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