Musk designates 'cis' and 'cisgender' as slurs, says Twitter to suspend users for using them

Twitter owner Elon Musk on Wednesday declared that the platform considers the terms "cis" and "cisgender" to be slurs and confirmed that the social media platform would suspend users for harassing others with the designations.

"Repeated, targeted harassment against any account will cause the harassing accounts to receive, at minimum, temporary suspensions. The words 'cis' or 'cisgender' are considered slurs on this platform," Musk said.

His declaration came in reply to conservative commentator James Esses lamenting the onslaught of critical messages he had received from trans activists using the term in a pejorative manner.

"Cis" and "Cisgender" are terms popular with trans individuals to reference those whose gender identity aligns with their biological sex.

The announcement drew mixed reactions in the comment section, though those in favor seemed to generally outweigh those opposed. Musk responded to one user who highlighted the backstory of German sexologist Volkmar Sigusch, who coined the term, and his past statements on pedophilia.

"Yup, the contemptible creep that manufactured the term 'cis' has serious problems. Ignore him," was Musk's reply.

Ben Whedon is an editor and reporter for Just the News. Follow him on Twitter.