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AIBU?

To be really frightened

92 replies

TheXXFactor · 11/03/2018 08:56

I know, I know - you're sick of trans threads. But please take 1 minute to read this because it's not about trans, it's about women's right to free speech.

In the last few days, a woman has been physically attacked by a mob of 20-30 people and had to be rescued by the police - link. Her 'crime'? She had attended a meeting held by Women's Place UK about the Gender Reform Act. These meetings are moderate and respectful - they have trans women speakers as well as biological women. Purely because she attended this meeting, the woman, who happened to be a trades unionist, was stalked, followed to a picket line days later, surrounded and violently attacked.

Also this week, a woman who expressed gender critical views on Twitter was questioned under caution by the police and told she cannot leave the country link

AIBU to think this is terrifying? Whatever our beliefs about the trans movements - even if we support self-ID - don't we all support the right to peaceful debate and freedom of expression? This isn't happening to men - male journalists and men on social media who express gender critical views aren't being stalked and attacked. This is a concerted effort to silence women. I am genuinely scared.

OP posts:
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TallulahWaitingInTheRain · 11/03/2018 09:02

Yes I agree this is starting to get frightening now

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Sarsparella · 11/03/2018 09:04

This really is escalating, just as women have said it would and it’s truly frightening that the free speech of women is being attacked like this

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Kokeshi123 · 11/03/2018 09:04

It's simply unbelievable.

The thought of someone being questioned under caution for expressing views about a charity? It actually makes the hairs stand up on the back of my neck.

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Ritzsaltedcrackers · 11/03/2018 09:05

Yanbu- all women should be frightened by this.

I don’t know what to do about it though. I guess bringing it to public awareness so more women are aware is a good start.

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Putyourdamnshoeson · 11/03/2018 09:08

YANBU its terrifying. I used to think we were overreacting. We're not.

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HermioneWeasley · 11/03/2018 09:11

It is frightening. I had anonymous complaints made to my employer about me to try and get me sacked.

When your position can’t survive anyone discussing it, it’s a pretty good sign it’s a cult and an ideology

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HawkeyeInConfusion · 11/03/2018 09:13

I'm scared.

I wish I was brave enough to put my head above the parapet. But I'm not Sad

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Sickoffamilydrama · 11/03/2018 09:13

It is frightening, not sure what we can do about it??

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Itscurtainsforyou · 11/03/2018 09:13

YADNBU - I posted something on another thread last night about being prepared to leave the Labour Party because of the self-id potential position but am afraid to put my name to the MayDay list as I'm concerned about the backlash.

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AskBasil · 11/03/2018 09:14

YANBU to be frightened.

But we have to fight this or we will spend our lives being frightened and so will our daughters and grandaughters.

Speak up, tell everyone what's going on. Share on Facebook, discuss with colleagues, friends, wherever you can where there's no threat to your safety or your job security (the very fact that I'm having to caveat that is outrageous).

This Wednesday, we will be going ahead with the meeting which Millwall didn't have the balls to let us have. We will not allow men's rights activists, however they identify, to use the traditional weapon men have always used throughout history to silence women - their violence and their legal structures. We will not be silenced and we will not stop fighting until we win.

This is from another thread but it cannot bear repeating too often:

This is an existential fight over whether the female half of the human race is to be permitted to exist as a distinct class of persons in law and policy

We cannot afford to lose this fight. We've had 6000 years of being Untermenschen, we are not going to go back there.

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HermioneWeasley · 11/03/2018 09:28

This

To be really frightened
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brizzledrizzle · 11/03/2018 09:37

Women are now being subjected to the beginnings of a communist style witch hunt and the worst part of it is is that the younger generation are being too PC to wake up, notice and rebel against it.

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Cuntysnark · 11/03/2018 09:42

It feels like a nightmare. Utterly terrifying.

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ArchchancellorsHat · 11/03/2018 09:42

I was always very live and let live but yes, this frightens me. The lack of debate, the silencing of women because they are women frightens me. We are being erased.

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Globetrotter100 · 11/03/2018 09:43

I'm really pleased you posted this in aibu and not away in a corner on feminism board.

I'd kind of blanked out this issue because I'm massively pro equality and didn't understand it (silenced my own critical thinking I guess), then a few weeks ago on another lazy Sunday I stumbled across these threads on the feminism board and got up to date on what's going on.

it's not about trans, it's about women's right to free speech

This is a very big deal. So is self-identity.

Pretty shocked at the situation and I'm immensely grateful that these threads have educated me on it. Thank you.

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HumphreyCobblers · 11/03/2018 09:44

It IS frightening.

But I take heart from this When your position can’t survive anyone discussing it, it’s a pretty good sign it’s a cult and an ideology

Their desperate attempts to silence women are starting to backfire.

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Globetrotter100 · 11/03/2018 09:45

the worst part of it is is that the younger generation are being too PC to wake up, notice and rebel against it.

This was me. And I'm not even "young" Grin.

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busyboysmum · 11/03/2018 09:45

It's frightening however we need to speak out now. I've got a friend who was thrown off a Labour Party forum for saying that TW have male biology. That's just a fact it's not abuse. It's very very odd.

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goodthinking99 · 11/03/2018 09:51

This is very concerning, and is the thick end of the wedge from people being frightened to be gender critical in work. I think it was notable in the run up to the end of the self ID consultation in Scotland that there was no gender critical response, in a professional capacity, to the organisations posting pro self ID tweets.

I don't believe this is because everyone is fully on board, I think it is because we are frightened to reply and put ourselves and our organisations at risk...how the hell did we get to here?! And more importantly how do we get back?

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DamnDeDoubtanceIsSpartacus · 11/03/2018 09:52

The youth think this is counter culture, it's not, quite the opposite.

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icedtea · 11/03/2018 09:58

This is very frightening. I was horrified at what the CEO of Mermaids did to her own child - had her son surgically castrated on his 16th birthday. We need to speak up.

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ALittleBitOfButter · 11/03/2018 09:59

Agree. It's state sanctioned witch hunting again. It's McCarthyism.

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ThroughThickAndThin01 · 11/03/2018 10:04

Yanbu, it’s seems to be gathering momentum and I don’t know why women aren’t worrying about it. Frightening indeed.

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BerkInBag · 11/03/2018 10:13

The freedom of speech side of this is very worrying indeed.

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MyOwnShed · 11/03/2018 10:29

I'm reading, and occasionally posting, but not yet ready to put my head above the public parapet. I will when I'm ready but tbh, it's rather a scary prospect. Women are being intimidated and men aren't. That's not right.

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