I’m a lifelong feminist (first) and lesbian (second). Also, as a former teacher and headteacher I am appalled at the number of girls getting drawn in to the idea that they are in the wrong body.
EJW, Former secondary headteacher
Category: Education
This matters to me because women’s sex-based rights, always so fragile, are being eroded in the name of identity politics; because trans rights activism is mens’ rights activism in a dress; because I won’t lie and deny material reality and biology to avoid hurting a man’s feelings, or to pander to his fetish.
I am vocal on Twitter, mainly, also Facebook, I have attended women’s group meetings, eg WPUK (Woman’s Place UK) sent letters/emails, handed out leaflets and spread the word amongst family and friends.
Some people think I’m weird and obsessed, I have had abuse on Twitter and two short term bans. None of this bothers me, I am retired and financially secure and don’t care what anyone thinks if me. I would feel physically intimidated by TRAs in person, fortunately have not run into any outside meetings or on the street.
Jane Loe, Retired teacher, mother, grandmother, adult human female
As a parent, grandparent and longterm volunteer in a primary school, I fear for the impact of gender ideology on children, both psychologically and medically. I have a huge concern for safeguarding across the board – in all the areas impacted by a belief in gender identity – single-sex spaces (toilets, changing rooms, prisons) and single-sex services (female HCPs for smear tests and mammograms, for body searches in prisons and airports, for intimate personal care in social-care settings).
I am also incited to speak up because of the impact of gender-identity ideology on women’s rights – the opportunities for the female sex in sports and politics and STEM and other areas which are now offered to anyone who “identifies as a woman”.
I’ve posted on FB on the topic but not as much as I might have and other friends have. I have good friends with “trans children” who are hurt by my speaking out at all on this. I have chatted personally with members of my family, and extended family, and some friends.
At the school where I volunteer a child had a “gender non-conforming” issue: I discussed Transgender Trend + their schools pack + other resources for the family with the headteacher/Senior Leadership Team; and gave them a copy of Rachel Rooney’s book, which they appreciated.
I wrote to my MP 3 years ago and had her full support on these issues. I wrote full responses to the English and Scottish GRA consultations, and I’ve bought postcards from Fair Play and Standing For Women and left them in women’s toilets.
A couple of close friends consider I am being unfair and unreasonable but we haven’t fallen out. I am overly cautious on being very public on speaking up as it would hugely impact my husband and his career.
Aunt Gertrude, mother, grandma and teaching assistant volunteer in primary school
I’m a public school teacher in NH USA, and have seen the lives of my students, my neighbor and my niece destroyed because they were told they had boy’s brains in girls’ bodies. My niece started taking cross-sex hormones when she was 18. She soon found her face and body irreversibly changed, but she didn’t want to go through the surgeries. She was trapped, and died of a heroin overdose. She had been talking about suicide.
I’ve spoken at the NH Statehouse against bills that have forced us to pretend that men are women – even on the sports fields – as well as bilIs that silence therapists, have repeatedly written and spoken to state representatives and our governor, I often write about this on Facebook, an on-line journals, and letters to the editor.
After writing about the death of my niece, I received several death threats, was doxed at work, and was investigated by my school district for bigotry. I’m leaving my place of work, but I’m concerned that I won’t find another job after their HR checks out my background. I have a progressive neighbor who stalks, threatens, and harrasses me. Facebook removed one of my posts (of course) and I am often called a bigot by my friends on social media. My relatives on my niece’s side of the family won’t communicate with me.
Stephen, special education teacher, USA
I care because I find it insulting that the word woman is now taboo or doesn’t have any meaning. I care because girls and boys are being forced to believe that there is something wrong with them if they don’t conform to gender norms. I don’t want to share changing rooms with transfeminine men. These people are destroying feminism.
I have debated with people online and with friends in real life. I have signed petitions and attended demonstrations.
Some friends don’t respect my opinions anymore. It’s like a religion to them.
Kira, 32-year-old teacher, Spain
This issue matters to me because women’s rights matter to me – biological women’s rights. I went to woman’s college, I have always been quite liberal, but even with all of that I ended up in an abusive relationship with a very charming narcissist, and this fringe group of radical trans women seeking to take over what it means to be a woman just triggered me, especially when I saw what was happening to people like you, Maya, and JKR. The other reason is that I am a teacher and these rapid-onset transitions are deeply worrying.
What have I done to raise my voice? Not enough. I have donated to women’s charities but I was doing that before this topic came to the fore.
I’ve had some unfriending on FB, and I think some of my colleagues regard me as a bit of a kook because I bring up the issue.
Kate C, I work as a teacher in a British international school, Middle East
I care most of all about the violation of women’s sports with the entry of males. It makes me sick to see a man on the top of the podium with two elite female athletes alongside. All women’s spaces should be safeguarded. I also want to stop the medical transition of children, and the changing of our language. The word “woman” should stand alone to mean adult human female.
Mostly I have preached to the choir on the sidebars of other people’s tweets. I have written letters to Lambda Legal, CNN, and a Japanese journalist who wrote a slanted article for a Japanese newspaper. I didn’t hear back from any of these. I have signed petitions! I have tried to convince my sister to no avail. I have donated to LGB alliance so my money can work for this cause.
I live in Japan, and my part time job is secure. I have such a low profile that no one takes the trouble to send unkind tweets.
Barbara, GC lesbian feminist, Japan
As someone who was told that the first lesson for men in feminism was “It’s not about you” it called me to see men trying to centre themselves, again, by pretending to be more oppressed than actual women and taking time, funding and energy from those women so selfishly.
I have spoken on the topic and posted about it in feminist groups, made sure their voices wouldn’t be silenced when in charge of a uni feminist group and discussed it with friends and family.
The people who took over the feminist org after my graduation wrote a “proclamation” to get rid of the “reputation for ~transphobia~ it allegedly had after me and my successor were there. Furthermore I was hounded by TRAs (trans rights activists) out of several feminist groups online and slurred as a homophobe when accusations of transphobia proved unsuccessful.
Hilmar, Anthropologist, Iceland
This issue speaks to me because I am a woman. I care about other women and I care for young girls. I don’t want them to suffer from things that I’ve endured. I want them to be free to raise their voices and not be threatened by anyone.
I’ve been standing up for girls and women around me (and for myself). We are raised to be gentle and not care when we suffer from any type of violence and I see that as a valid reason for me to protect the ones around me.
I have been threatened multiple times. Rape, murder, spanking. Once, when I talked about a time when I was violated I had multiple men and transwomen tell me that they wanted to violate me “better” than the other man did, because it was not enough. A transman that lived in the same city that I do said he would go to my university and beat me up.
B, A survivor of male violence and defender of women, Brazil
I care about this issue because when I was 16 I experienced severe gender dysphoria. I was struggling to accept that I was a lesbian and felt forced into a relationship with a male. He abused me and over time I became completely disconnected from my body.
As a teenager I thought these feelings might mean I was trans. Thankfully I was too scared to tell anyone as I think I could have easily been put on an irreversible medical pathway if I had. The gender dysphoria resolved itself when I left the abusive relationship, reconnected with my body and allowed myself to be gay.
I worry that trauma is being misdiagnosed as being trans. I worry for young people who may be harmed by gender ideology. I was also later diagnosed as autistic – I now know this is common in teen girls with gender dysphoria.
I work in a mental health service for young people. I fear their gender dysphoria is affirmed as their true trans identity. I worry this approach is harming them.
I have raised my concerns with one close friend. She is someone I feel safe with. I have also gently tried to question some of the gender ideology at work, for example I recently had a client with gender dysphoria and I tried to mention that I felt this was connected with past trauma and socialisation. The client was worried they would be forced to transition if they attended therapy and I tried to ask colleagues if they knew of any neural therapists who would not push an affirmative model. My colleagues didn’t seem to know what I was talking about and suggested I signpost them to an LGBT organisation.
My work colleague started to talk about ‘hateful and transphobic people such as J.K.Rowling’. I was anxious that if I questioned the care for this client any further I could also get labelled as hateful and transphobic. I worry about losing my job, but I also worry that I am not providing evidence based care for my clients, though I try to offer an open minded and compassionate approach, where I don’t push any particular route or narrative onto them.
H, Trauma not Trans
The Gender Dissidents Survey 