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Stephen Whittle (Press for Change) irresponsible use of 'likely' suicides follows Helen Belcher's (Trans Media Watch)

111 replies

R0wantrees · 17/10/2018 09:57

In the Guardian today:
(extract)
"Prof Stephen Whittle, the founder of trans rights group Press for Change, warned that many trans people would “become depressed and dejected” if reform was delayed. He said: “I am sure there will be a flurry of attempts and suicides. But in the end we will pull ourselves together and continue the campaigning. We know we have Labour behind this one, so will simply do our best to get them elected.”

www.theguardian.com/society/2018/oct/17/transgender-law-reform-has-overlooked-womens-rights-say-mps

Last week Helen Belcher (Trans Media Watch) ascribed causative link between suicide and suicide ideation to newspaper coverage with specific mention of the Times journalist Janice Turner:
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/3393577-Janice-Turner-accused-of-causing-trans-suicides

2013 Article describing formation of Press For Change and background to prominant trans-rights campaigners.
Christine Burns describes how Press For Change secured legislation:
(extract)
"Much of their campaigning remained on the quiet. The passage of the 2004 law to give trans people legal status was "remarkable," says Burns, because "the government was able to pass an entire act in parliament without anyone throwing a fit in the press"

www.theguardian.com/society/2013/jan/22/voices-from-trans-community-prejudice

Helen Belcher comment:
"In her Pressing Matters books, Christine Burns writes eloquently about all the work that a small group of trans campaigners did to achieve a legislative landmark. The Gender Recognition Act took at least 10 years of work as well as a series of court cases. It also took its toll. Most of the Press for Change team stepped back from front-line campaigning shortly after the Act was passed.

It’s been left to a new generation of campaigners to pick up the slack. I was one of a small number who formed the charity Trans Media Watch back in 2009, with the aim of improving the representation of trans and intersex people across the British media. What we found was largely ignorance. Senior executives would ask questions without any idea of their insensitivity. It took some thick skins to educate rather than retaliate."
challengingjourneys.wordpress.com/2018/10/01/free-speech-or-life-and-death/

Samaritans: www.samaritans.org/media-centre/media-guidelines-reporting-suicide/suicide-reporting-10-things-remember

Stephen Whittle (Press for Change) irresponsible use of 'likely' suicides follows Helen Belcher's (Trans Media Watch)
OP posts:
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8
Datun · 17/10/2018 13:10

I'm sure catbox is whittle.

LemonJello · 17/10/2018 13:08

Whittle has been on MN before. I wonder if Whittle is still here in fact?

Catbox · 17/10/2018 13:05

I must've misinterpreted, I can see you're listing Whittle's contributions to legal thinking. Hardly salacious or controversial, or done quietly seeing as they're all out there for anyone to read. It seemed that there was some incitement to go digging for personal information, which would of course be wrong, yes?

He's already pretty well known for his work, though I imagine he's too busy to fully embrace celeb status if you succeed in making a household name of him.

Datun · 17/10/2018 12:49

Honestly, will you listen to yourself.

How can you say

Quite frankly, the idea of Stephen Whittle going on " a narc rampage" is laughable to anyone familiar with his work or him as a person.

Followed by a threat???!!!

Timelady - inciting mumsnet to spread poison about Whittle is unlawful. You might want to have that post removed. Lest it cause you more trouble than anyone you're keen to cause trouble for.

TimeLady · 17/10/2018 12:47

And then there's Whittle's involvement with the Yogyakarta Principles:

www.boell.de/en/2016/07/20/yogyakarta-principles-provide-guidance-and-are-constant-reference-point

YetAnotherSpartacus · 17/10/2018 12:45

If Whittle can't get their own kids' birthdays right how they gonna understand stats?

TimeLady · 17/10/2018 12:40

Timelady - inciting mumsnet to spread poison about Whittle is unlawful. You might want to have that post removed. Lest it cause you more trouble than anyone you're keen to cause trouble for.

That sounds horribly like a threat, Catbox.

I simply want to give Whittle the belated credit for the campaigns they successfully fought - clearly they did enough to be awarded an OBE for "for services to Gender Issues" back in 2005.

Catbox · 17/10/2018 12:32

PFC's campaigning prior to the passing of GRA2004 was not behind the scenes. They had a website where everything was shared. TBF, in the 90s not many people were online but I believe it is archived. They shared details of campaigning to anyone who wrote in.

Quite frankly, the idea of Stephen Whittle going on " a narc rampage" is laughable to anyone familiar with his work or him as a person.

Timelady - inciting mumsnet to spread poison about Whittle is unlawful. You might want to have that post removed. Lest it cause you more trouble than anyone you're keen to cause trouble for.

NewWomensMovement · 17/10/2018 11:51

By the way - can anyone make head or tail out of what Shon Faye was on about in that tweet? Bringing out protective instincts in men and all that? WTF was that?

NewWomensMovement · 17/10/2018 11:50

That's what I thought as soon as I read the Whittle quote LangCleg

LangCleg · 17/10/2018 11:36

If they stay true to the pattern of abusers, they'll probably directly attack, physically or verbally. It's a fact that a victim is in the most danger when she leaves and the abuser realises he is losing control. It's like that but on a much, much larger scale.

Yep.

breastfeedingclownfish · 17/10/2018 11:28

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AngryAttackKittens · 17/10/2018 11:25

Indeed.

TimeLady · 17/10/2018 11:23

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AngryAttackKittens · 17/10/2018 11:20

Whittle has done a great deal of damage already behind the scenes.

NewWomensMovement · 17/10/2018 11:16

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OvaHere · 17/10/2018 11:07

*your not you're

OvaHere · 17/10/2018 11:07

Shon 'enjoy you're erasure' Faye accusing the women fighting back against said erasure as 'fanatical'.

Perhaps if you had just kept your gob shut in the first place Shon these nasty women would never have realised the end game here.

SaskiaRembrandtWasFramed · 17/10/2018 11:05

If they stay true to the pattern of abusers, they'll probably directly attack, physically or verbally. It's a fact that a victim is in the most danger when she leaves and the abuser realises he is losing control. It's like that but on a much, much larger scale.

AngryAttackKittens · 17/10/2018 10:58

When this threat doesn't work, where do they go from there?

LangCleg · 17/10/2018 10:58

Narc spin out is spreading, I see! Keep going m'dears: the more you spin out, the more people see you doing it.

Scales.
Eyes.
Falling.

Datun · 17/10/2018 10:55

Again, this will only go one way. People who actually understand about suicide ideation, who are on the coalface, have written extensively about it. None of this is a secret.

The wheels are well and truly coming off.

If you don't do what I say, I'll kill myself.

breastfeedingclownfish · 17/10/2018 10:51

twitter.com/shonfaye/status/1052485670835548160

breastfeedingclownfish · 17/10/2018 10:50

Shon Faye also accusing FPFW of 'incitement'.

Shon has removed the gloves I see.

Stephen Whittle (Press for Change) irresponsible use of 'likely' suicides follows Helen Belcher's (Trans Media Watch)
LangCleg · 17/10/2018 10:45

The older people deploying this strategy do not care if it results in harm to the young people over whom they have an influence.

When you add to this the schools guidance that has multiple safeguarding loopholes making (non trans) abuser infiltration an increased risk to their own cohort of kids, a very worrying picture emerges, does it not?