Author: bomp123

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Others

I resent that there are no female toilets in some theatres

This matters to me because I feel like women are being erased. I resent that there are no female toilets in some theatres. I resent that some trans women are trying to push women out of Female only sports. Most of all I resent that this is a battle we have to fight.

I’m on Twitter, I’ve written to my MP, talked to friends about why I feel this is an important case.

Some people think this means I hate gay people. They just don’t get the argument.

Lynne, Adult human female, feminist,  boomer, retired but not dead

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Others

Imposing nonsensical beliefs on anyone is unacceptable

Nonsense should only be for amusement, not to be taken seriously. The whole gender thing is nonsense. Imposing nonsensical beliefs on anyone is unacceptable, especially when it does real harm.

I’ve written on my blog, posted my opinion on Twitter and Facebook.

I’ve been suspended on Twitter several times, doxxed by a trans activist, sent threatening messages, and reported to the police for “hate crime” – they phoned to advise me to be careful, but later apologised.

Margaret Nelson, Retired humanist celebrant, former teacher, broadcaster, artist and journalist, among many other things

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Lesbians

I cannot remember an attack on women like this

I care because I am a lesbian and as such I have supported and contributed to Stonewall campaigns over the years. I am appalled and astounded by both the decisions made and the behaviour demonstrated by Ruth Hunt and her cronies and the terrible way in which this has impacted on women – lesbians in particular. I feel utterly and truly shafted by Ruth Hunt, Stonewall and The Labour Party – particular the soggy shower of female MPs we currently see before us. I have actively subsequently supported AWP, SFW, MMN and all if the various groups who have fought against the GR Act. 

I’ve spoken socially and professionally, posted on social media, attended meetings and actions and donated money

I have been a radical feminist for 45 years and I cannot remember an attack on women like this. As a result of my views I have been abused on social media to the point of feeling depressed, called a Terf many times and not often supported by friends, colleagues and even family, who will privately pledge support but are too scared to speak out. I am not in London and feel generally vulnerable as I have no outspoken like minded supporters where I do live. This is why the GC meetings and actions were so important to me when I could get to them. I will continue to fight this nonsense for my daughter and all the women who come after me ✊🏼

Maggie Moon , Radical lesbian feminist, activist and gobshite

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Healthcare Others

I am worried that medical transition will be the opposite of helpful for her

I could write pages… but to summarise: Firstly, because of the impact on children of being taught they (or others) could be “in the wrong body”, the messing with their heads this involves, the way they are indoctrinated to ignore their normal boundaries around their bodies, private spaces, etc. as soon as someone claims to “identify as” something they are not, and the way some are being funnelled towards puberty blockers and further medical transition which I don’t believe will help them long-term and which have numerous potentially serious consequences.  I also know – slightly- a vulnerable young woman who is now “transitioning”, and am concerned for her as I am convinced her desire to transition is a result of her situation, and I am worried that medical transition will be the opposite of helpful for her.

Secondly, the destruction of women’s (and girls’) rights – our rights to single-sex spaces, care and support, safety, dignity and privacy, women’s sports, and initiatives to promote equality in business, politics and elsewhere are being eroded by allowing males to move in on them.  Worse, we can’t even talk about these issues properly due to the very meaning of the words being warped so that “women” can mean anyone.

Thirdly, even data gathering to better understand the needs of women as distinct from men, and the factors that affect us differently, is at risk through people “identifying into” the opposite category. 

Criado Perez’s “Invisible Women” brilliantly highlighted the importance of sex-specific data, but instead of addressing this we are at risk of worsening it with misleading data about “female” rapists, 6ft 5 “women” athletes etc., which also impacts research and policy-making affecting women and girls.

Finally the basic UNFAIRNESS infuriates me; that after oppressing women in every way for centuries, men can now do so by claiming to BE women, and claim they are now the most oppressed minority, all while trampling on our and our daughters’ rights.

So far I have: written to my MP several times and met with her in person once, mainly about GRA reform, though I also discussed child transitioning and other points with her; completed the UK GRA consultation (and also persuaded a few others to fill it in as well) and later also completed the Scottish one (I think there was another one too but can’t remember just now?); donated to several relevant crowdfunders and campaigning organisations; talked to my children’s school about my concerns, particularly about a scheme they were participating in (though without much success I fear); attended a Woman’s Place event; discussed issues with a few close friends and family; sent other letters occasionally or sent cards to thank people who had been particularly supportive; given feedback on surveys etc which used “gender” instead of sex or otherwise erased women; and supported/followed/shared posts/occasionally commented or replied (though I don’t post much!) on Twitter, Mumsnet, newspaper and other comment sites etc.

I would like to be more vocal on social media/in real life, but as I am currently jobhunting and many/most of the likely employers in my area are Stonewall champions or otherwise like to present as very “woke”, this limits me to speaking out only anonymously or “behind the scenes” (e.g. contacting my MP), as I do need to be able to get a job and fear this would be impossible if I was more open about my views.   

I have had to be very cautious about where/how to speak up as I am currently jobhunting and worry about wrecking my chances of getting a job if I am open about my views.  Too many of the potential employers in my area are heavily rainbow-flag-waving, Stonewall-championing organisations and I believe being openly gender-critical on social media, for example, would have a huge effect on my chances of finding a job, which in turn would affect my family as we will need the income in the longer term. 

I also worry to an extent about losing friends, hostility etc if I speak out more openly to friends on social media or more widely in person, though I have talked to some close friends and family and not had any negative reactions so far.

Violet

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Others

Vulnerable people are being sold a lie at great cost

I care because vulnerable people are being sold a lie at great cost and because of the appalling effects of this on the world’s only oppressed majority – women.

I run OBJECT.  We have been out on this issue since 2016. I was in the London Pride action in 2018 and was interviewed for Pink News. This was beamed round the world and resulted in a transactivist Twitter pile-on to Humanists UK with whom I worked as a self-employed Funeral Celebrant. HUK raised an entirely hypothetical complaint against me based on this..  I vigorously defended myself in a 20-page document which peak-transed the 3 women deputed to process the complaint. I chose to stop working with HUK as they did not apologise.

I have been vilified by Humanists UK and was dragged through a trumped-up complaint based solely on a transactivist Twitter pile-on.

Jan Williams,, Chair, OBJECT, http://www.objectnow.org

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Others

I strongly object to the words we need to discuss our experiences being taken from us

I care about this issue partly from the free speech viewpoint (issues affecting policy and law should be widely discussed, and in general people should be able to state opinions and debate freely) and partly from the viewpoint of being a woman and the mother of a woman. I strongly object to the words we need to discuss our experiences being taken from us, and to our being reduced to a set of stereotypes and a performance of femininity.

On social media, I have supported individuals being attacked as bigots for stating material reality (eg Maya Forstater) or for wishing to discuss the issues (eg Kathleen Stock) I have contributed to crowdfunders and have attended events organised by WPUK. I have discussed the issues with some members of my immediate family.

I have been labelled a bigot by a member of my family, and told “you can’t say that”.

Gail, Retired librarian

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Healthcare Others

I struggled with my discomfort and thought I was being intolerant and bigoted

I care because I’m a woman and a lesbian. After the T crept onto the end of LGB, I struggled with my discomfort and thought I was being intolerant and bigoted, but thankfully radical feminism and attendance at a meeting of WPUK in Sheffield, where I heard Michele Moore speak with passion and compassion, changed all that.

I care because definitions matter. Sex matters. Being same SEX attracted matters. I care because gender needs to be eradicated as far as possible, not cemented in an ideology that constrains us all and forces us into rigid stereotyped roles. I care because adolescence is hard enough, but telling children their discomfort is because they’ve been born in the wrong body is homophobic at root and conversion therapy at worse.

Many of my friends, including my partner, would have been ‘transed’ as teenagers if they’d grown up now. I care because women’s oppression is because of our sexed bodies and it’s not something we can identify out of.

I’ve attended WPUK meetings, spoke about the Labour Women’s Declaration at the meeting in Leeds in November 2019 and I attended the WPUK conference last October. I have leafleted for Women’s Place UK. I spoke to a small and partially very hostile local Labour Party women’s forum on this issue. I have raised the issue at a Labour Party-run Women’s Development Programme.

I have peak transed a number of friends who thought they supported self ID through discussion and argument, in real life and online.

I am a founder member of Labour Women’s Declaration and remain part of that working group, writing social media posts as part of that group and on my own Twitter and FB accounts in order to raise awareness and share information.

I have met with my local MP about the GRA reforms and written to government ministers, the Labour leadership and other bodies about this issue. I’m part of a local Resisters group; we petitioned our local council and spoke at a council meeting about same sex facilities. I attended a Resisters residential gathering in September 2019, and am a member of a number of secret online forums. I am part of my local feminist network and am setting up a local group of gender critical women in the Labour Party across my city to support getting motions through CLPs (on hold currently because of Covid 19). I have had face-to-face discussions with someone I know who moderates a national Labour Party forum about ‘my problem with trans women’ but whose mind I have yet to change.

I’ve had tweets reported to and removed from Twitter and for which I’ve refused to apologise, so have had to serve out my suspended sentence. I’ve had posts either not shared or removed from national Labour Party forums with no explanation, and I’ve got into protracted arguments with trans activists on Twitter and FB on this issue, including Morgan Oger. But the worst consequence was a spat within my local CLP FB Forum on which a local Labour Councillor less than half my age (who consequently signed the Trans Labour Pledge) told me to f*ck off out of the LP, called me a transphobe and a bigot, set her mum and her partner on me and the result was that I left the forum and I no longer engage at all with local LP politics; I put what energies I have into the national LWD campaign because I am frightened of this becoming too personal. I admire those women who do put themselves out there locally and receive a great deal of trouble for their trouble.

Flabuless, a socialist realist, I worked in higher education for most of my working life and lament the ‘safe space’ it has become in order that no one’s feelings get hurt or brains get challenged

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Others

I wrote to the NSPCC and told them why I was stopping my monthly donation

As a child, I was extremely GNC to the point of wishing I had been a boy, and was a very androgynous teenager and young woman. I have no doubt at all I would be transed if I was young now. I also fear for women’s and girls’ sports. All the (very recent) progress we’ve made is set to be lost if men and boys are allowed to participate.

I have written to my MP and tried to meet with him, and I have spoken to friends and family. In fact, I have spoken to anyone who will listen, trying to explain what is happening and why it matters. (Most people find it hard to believe and some think I must have made a mistake).

I post on Twitter, and amplify GC feminists voice by retweeting and liking their posts.

I have also contributed to 4 or 5 crowd funding requests (e.g. Sue Evans,  James Caspian, David Bell, EVAW) and I support Refuge crisis centres with a small monthly donation to help them remain independent. I wrote to the NSPCC and told them why I was stopping my monthly donation, and have written to other institutions such as the National Trust when they show themselves to no longer understand that women are a biological category.

I haven’t suffered any negative consequences.

Claire L

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Healthcare Others

When archeologists uncover the bones of someone dead for thousands of years, their natal sex is easily discovered

I care about this issue because biology matters.  This is clearly demonstrated by the fact that when archeologists uncover the bones of someone dead for thousands of years, their natal sex is easily discovered.  This matters to me also because I am terrified for my grandchildren, that they may be exposed to the warped views of the ‘Gender’ army.

I have written to my MP to ask that she is raises her voice in ensuring there is no change to women’s rights to safe spaces and that the GRA legislation should not be passed without a great deal more consultation.  I have completed the Scottish Governments consultation on changes to the Gender rights Act.  This is particularly important as I live in Scotland.  I have also taken part in a demonstration against the proposed bill.

I have not spoken in a public arena about my views.

Donella, Granny, great granny, lesbian

Categories
Healthcare Parent

Every public body is captured, including the NHS where they harmfully affirm children’s gender distress

This matters to me because our family has been directly impacted by harmful gender and trans ideology. Due to the toxic nature of this debate, I have struggled to seek support and appropriate help for my child and myself.

Every public body is captured, including the NHS where they harmfully affirm children’s gender distress and systematically shutting down healthy debate and questioning.

I have been part of a parent support and lobby group, I have written countless to times to my local MP, I have been active on social media for over 2 years, I have attended conferences and talks on the topic, I have read reams of material, books and academic papers, I have helped to fund grassroots campaigns.

I lost a twitter account, I was doxxed and targeted on social media and my personal details were published on a website. I had to visit the local police to report a death and rape threat. I had the details of my situation with my daughter published by a trans activist on a large media outlet. I have lost friends and been alienated from social activities. I have suffered severe stress and suicidal ideation at the sheer horror of not being able to speak up about what was happening to my family.

Jill Gardner, Jill, campaigner for truth and justice., itsjillgardner