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Feminism: Sex and gender discussions

Trans people will be able to choose their gender for next census after bill passes final stage

55 replies

stumbledin · 08/10/2019 18:44

Oh dear - maybe it would have been better to let Parliament be porogued because then this bill couldn't have had its final reading and would have been lost.

www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2019/10/08/next-census-will-allow-trans-people-choose-gender-bill-passes/

Was thinking we need a really big campaign to encourage everybody to ignore this question (no legal penalty) to show that gender identity is totally irrelevant to most people.

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Dangerfloof · 15/10/2019 12:44

Feel very dillusions with the whole process

I haven't even seen the census or much about it yet but I think I may well be homeless or travelling abroad that night. Only after making sure that every man in my life ids as femme or feminine or woman. If I'm gonna skew the stats I'm gonna do it right.

MarieIVanArkleStinks · 15/10/2019 10:29

Two questions? Oooh, good.,

Q. 'What is your sex?' A. 'Jedi Knight'.

Q. 'What is your gender identity?' A. 'Yoda'.

Think it'll catch on? It did once before ...

stumbledin · 15/10/2019 01:01

OKay - now I am really cross. Have just done a bit of googling and have found a page describing the questions and how to answer them. Whilst doing the test census this did NOT pop up.

and yes as PP said the quesiton on sex is basically open. So will email them and maybe copy to my MP.

Their advice re question on sex:

^Select either “Female” or “Male”.

If you are one or more of non-binary, transgender, have variations of sex characteristics, sometimes also known as intersex, the answer you give can be different from what is on your birth certificate.

If you’re not sure how to answer, use the sex registered on your official documents, such as passport or driving licence, or whichever answer best describes your sex.

A later question gives the option to tell us if your gender is different from your sex registered at birth, and, if different, to record your gender.^

Full list of questions and advice on how to answer at census.gov.uk/help/how-to-answer-questions/online-questions-help/#name,-sex,-date-of-birth-and-marital-status

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stumbledin · 15/10/2019 00:54

I am in one of the areas that took part in the test census so I completed my last night.

And I am ashamed to say I forgot to screencapture any of it! Blush

But I did concentrate on the question about sex. It was very straight forward ie male or female and after that it just said there would be a question about gender later on.

I clecked on all links on that page and nothing came up about assigned at birth or sex you identity with so I suspect most people will just respond as the normally do, ie without thinking.

The later question about gender states it is optional and suspect many will just pass it by. It did have an open definition answer so I put in that nobody was a gender and that gender is a social construct.
But at least all those disenfranchised Jedi from the last census could use it.

But ... I am not saying phew nothing to worry about as:
i) as a test version it maybe didn't include everything
ii) I am notrious for not seeing obvious links, footnotes on web pages so may have missed something

They do give an email address if you have a comment or feedback, and haven't yet contacted them.

Just wondered if anyone else has done the text census and can let me know whether I did miss something. Dont want to email in comments that only show I wasn't pay attention!


On another issue about the purpose of the census being to help with future planning it seems totally useless and for some reason focused on education qualifications. By that I mean it is quite a long set of questions and may be useful in relation to a younger age group but seems totally irrelevant to middle to late age. I cant see what they are hoping to achieve.The only thing I can think it that the questions on employment where more than just job title but an explanation of the type of work. Is this to show that further education is pointless because it turns out those in top jobs / loadsamoney left school at 16?

Feel very dillusions with the whole process and the can of worms that trans activism is. Of all the pressure groups in the UK does the Government really feel that the most important one is the trans community so they get to have their very own special question?

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Ereshkigal · 13/10/2019 20:48

And people wonder why the great unwashed of this country reject the expertise of their more educated overlords.

Absolutely. They can sneer at Brexit voters in the provinces all they like, but they're not exactly covering themselves in glory with this kind of nonsense. And I say that as a Europhile Remainer.

Aspley · 13/10/2019 14:29

Maybe they should cut the crap:
"Do you now (or did you*) ever have a prostate"
Yes/no
The Census is for recording factual info about a population. If x% of a population of males are likely to get prostate cancer then we can prepare, with the equivalent for smear tests etc etc.
Are people going to die because our statistics are ruined by people making shit up?
Now that really would be 'transphobic'

(*I guess prostate cancer survivors will of had them removed and certainly would know about it)

CuriousaboutSamphire · 13/10/2019 12:54

I wish I couild spell... or proof read!

CuriousaboutSamphire · 13/10/2019 12:53

There has to be a way to register our ire on the form!

I may well take the Monty Python route as @Dangerfloof has started:

Female, uterus haver, bleeder, not man, woman, femme, woman, lady, membe rof the fairier sex, daughter, sister, aunt, wife, dame, madam, matron, squaw, helpmeet, ball and chain, 'er indoors, ald lady, Mrs, Ms., oviparous, reproductive, fertile, childbearing, pistillate, pistil-bearing, of the female gender, distaff, 'more deadly than the male'

Antibles · 13/10/2019 12:40

This is a complete embarrassment. If our country can't get a question on biological sex correct in a census, we are officially the most stupid century yet and that's quite some achievement. Bullied into doublethink over basic biological sex.

And people wonder why the great unwashed of this country reject the expertise of their more educated overlords.

Dangerfloof · 13/10/2019 12:13

I’m definitely putting religion as Jedi from now on too
I did this last time, what I didnt realise is that it all counts under religion and therefore religious things are funded, religions are given a voice and as jedi is not an actual religion they didnt get a voice in anything. It just skews stats but in organised religions favour. Iirc there was no choice of no religion offered, but it wasnt compulsory either.
After the ruckus in NI about abortions I would prefer religion to be taken out of politics altogether. We should be a secular country.

Dangerfloof · 13/10/2019 12:04

Maybe as many people as possible should answer female, woman, femme, AHF, ovary haver, womanly, womanish etc etc.
Then if enough people do, we will have most of the funding for everything, and parliament will have to add more female members to be more inclusive, and women will get top positions in companies cos inclusive innit.

MrsKCastle · 13/10/2019 11:43

or whichever answer best describes your sex

This makes it clear that self-id is allowed, or at least will be seen as ok, even without the accompanying documents.

Ereshkigal · 13/10/2019 11:26

If you’re not sure how to answer, use the sex registered on your official documents, such as passport or driving licence

It's worth bearing in mind that one of the Man Friday women got their driving licence changed to male just by self declaring.

MrsKCastle · 09/10/2019 19:06

Sp long as sex and gender are separated in the questions I don’t really care

As explained above, they are not being separated. It is now apparently acceptable to put your gender for the 'sex' question.

Barracker · 09/10/2019 18:51

I've checked Hansard.

Irrespective of the voluntary 'gender identity' question, it does appear that the SEX question, which is mandatory, is not intended to capture biological sex, nor legal sex.

I've also checked the official ONS guidance.

We're effectively getting two questions on gender identity. One of which is deceptively entitled sex, is mandatory, and has only two possible answers.

Look:

Sex
What is your sex?
Select either “Female” or “Male”

If you are one or more of non-binary, transgender, have variations of sex characteristics, sometimes also known as intersex, the answer you give can be different from what is on your birth certificate.

If you’re not sure how to answer, use the sex registered on your official documents, such as passport or driving licence, or whichever answer best describes your sex.

A later question gives the option to tell us if your gender is different from your sex registered at birth, and, if different, to record your gender.

They are not asking for sex registered at birth. Nor legal sex. Nor biological sex.

Michelleoftheresistance · 09/10/2019 18:27

It's assumed that only a very tiny proportion of people will give fictional responses, and hoped that this will be small enough not to bugger up national planning of services.

Thing is, no one knows how many and how big that sample of people will in fact be. No one. Because there will be no way to tell who supplies fact and who supplies personal choice of identity. So it won't be able to be proved if it's a small enough sample or not.

And secondly, if it's fine and legal for one person to provide their personal choice of information as opposed to real fact, it has to be fine for everyone to provide personal choice. The integrity of the whole thing ends. If it's ok for someone to put their personal preferred choice of sex down why is it not ok for someone else to put their personal and preferred choice of age or income or address?

You cannot expect 99% of the population to meekly stay in their box so that less than 1% have something to identify away from.

SalrycLuxx · 09/10/2019 18:06

Sp long as sex and gender are separated in the questions I don’t really care

DuMondeB · 09/10/2019 18:04

is extremely unlikely to significantly affect data integrity for needs assessment and the provision of services

Y’know who will be affected tho? Trans people. If the government doesn’t know how many trans people there are, how do you calculate adequate provision?

I think those either delusionally or politically motivated would simply answer 'no' as they don't want to see themselves as trans, they want to see themselves as the opposite sex

I’ve recently seen several internet comments from trans people saying now that their transition goals are met, they identify as ‘cis’ (most notably India Willoughby on Twitter, but there are others too).

It confirms the wise words that older/more knowledgeable feminists shared with me when I first started getting interested in the debate - you can’t make any concessions of language because transactivists are colonisers - they move the goalposts every chance they get.

Fieldofgreycorn · 09/10/2019 17:21

The commission have very clearly stated that the small number of trans people who answer in line with their current sex status is extremely unlikely to significantly affect data integrity for needs assessment and the provision of services.

janeevans · 09/10/2019 17:10

The question makes a mockery of the whole thing.
(I didn't know you could change gender - only your appearance - with a new passport etc).
Another example of overly PC behaviour!

RoseQuartzGlow · 09/10/2019 17:04

I’m definitely putting religion as Jedi from now on too.

RoseQuartzGlow · 09/10/2019 17:03

I’ve been amusing myself with thoughts of filling in ‘I identify with a snow leopard’
I was born on Mars
Making up a date of birth.
Endless fun could be had.

OnlyTheTitOfTheIceberg · 09/10/2019 14:16

Basically there should be a question at the beginning: “are you trans?” or similar, and those that answer yes should be discarded for use of anything towards sex-based demographics, because it’s highly likely they will be completely fiction.

I think those either delusionally or politically motivated would simply answer 'no' as they don't want to see themselves as trans, they want to see themselves as the opposite sex.

OnlyTheTitOfTheIceberg · 09/10/2019 14:13

The sex question really needs changing to "do you have, or have you ever had, a penis?" Yes/No.

I appreciate the sentiment you're aiming for, but I am not defined by my lack of a penis. Women are not the penisless others. We are women, we are female, and that has been perfectly acceptable for every other census.

NotBadConsidering · 09/10/2019 14:02

There was a Twitter thread recently, linked on another census discussion, with trans people saying they were going to answer with what they see themselves as anyway, even if it asks for birth sex, because to them their birth sex has always been their “trans sex” or however you want to describe it.

Basically there should be a question at the beginning: “are you trans?” or similar, and those that answer yes should be discarded for use of anything towards sex-based demographics, because it’s highly likely they will be completely fiction.