Surely Mridul Wadhwa has to go now? Report into ERCC out.

Receipts

https://x.com/hightreebud/status/1837820599697072343

Trina AT hightreebud
Here's what Sandy Brindley says. GUARANTEED women-only spaces in EVERY rape crisis centre in Scotland. Reiterated in the Times today: "one thing that has remained core is protecting spaces for women. It has never changed and it never should". So let's have a look see... 1/n

Argyll & Bute Rape Crisis Centre. “We offer support to survivors who are over the age of 12, regardless of their gender.” Nothing about women-only spaces but they have a dedicated LGBTI page and a charter award from LGBT Youth Scotland "making sure we are inclusive". 2/n

As part of the charter award LGBTYS use their "Stronger Together: Guidance for women's services on the inclusion of trans women". 3/n

This guidance misrepresents the law and advises rape crisis centres that it is not acceptable to exclude TW from a women's service. If any woman objects it is her who should be removed and educated in the same way as a racist or homophobe.
More here: https://murrayblackburnmackenzie.org/2019/02/22/the-case-for-due-diligence-assessing-and-owning-policy-and-practice/ 4/n

Rape Crisis Scotland removed the guidance from their website in 2019 after the section on re-educating women was highlighted on Twitter. They claimed to be "not aware" of it despite Wadhwa, then employed at Forth Valley RC, busy promoting its message. 5/n

So the guidance is now back in rape crisis centres via the back door, with centres paying LGBTYS £2,000 a pop for the charter privilege. And just to rub salt in it, LGBTYS also took £100k from the Scottish Gov Equally Safe fund for women to sell it back to the VAWG sector. 6/n

It beggars believe Sandy Brindley is still claiming to be shocked that Edinburgh RCC failed to provide a protected women-only service and should not have hired Wadhwa without a GRC, esp when RCS itself signed up for doing just that since 2016! 7/n

Dumfries & Galloway RASAC doesn't seem to have a website. Edinburgh RCC has learnt little from its tribunal loss and the Ling report, offering a paltry few hours for women, which may include men according to the word salad explanation. And a gold charter award, of course. 8/n

Fife RASAC "support services to anyone 12+, of any gender". Nothing about women-only, not even on the group support page. Does have a dedicated "LGBTQIA+ survivors" page. Forth Valley RCC, "survivors of all genders over 13". Nothing about women-only spaces. 9/n

Glasgow & Clyde RCC Women and girls only. Wonderfully robust statement: "We are an organisation that is rooted in feminist values...This prioritises the provision and safeguarding of single-sex service spaces..." 10/n

Lanarkshire RCC "support to women and girls (12ys+)". Nothing about women-only spaces but does have a dedicated inclusive services web page for LGBTI+ Moray RC "support for anyone (age 11 and over)". Groups are for all adults, so are mixed-sex. LGBT charter award holder. 11/n

Orkney RSAS "support for anyone (age 13 and over)". LGBT inclusion matters so much it is all they can display at their premises. Not sure this is welcoming to any woman looking for a women-only service. 12/n

RASAC Perth & Kinross "support anyone who identifies as a woman and young people (aged 12-18)". No actual women-only spaces here then. Another holder of a charter award from LGBTYS. 13/n

RASAS Highland "support all genders – women, men, non-binary, trans & gender non-conforming." Nothing about women-only services, but helping uphold their LGBT charter is a transwoman on the Board. Despite the job advert seeking a woman. 14/n

RC Grampian "support & information to anyone over 11 years old". Any assurances given to Sandy Brindley of protected women-only spaces in reality include men. Quelle surprise for the centre that was flying the trans flag in response to the tribunal result. 15/n

Scottish Borders RCC are "inclusive to self-identifying females". The only "reassurance" here is that they will work with LGBT people to reduce any barriers (women's voices?) to their inclusion. 16/n

Compass Centre, Shetland "Whatever your gender, you are welcome here." Nothing about women-only spaces and the only reassurance here is reserved for transwomen and their inclusion. LGBTYS charter award holder. 17/n

STAR Centre, Ayrshire "anyone aged 13+ (women, girls, men, boys and those who identify as transgender or non-binary)". Men are welcome to self-identify into the few hours of women-only spaces. Has two LGBT charter marks with a warning on pronoun use. 18/n

Western Isles RCC, "anyone, of any gender, over the age of 13". But no LGBTYS charter award and no mention of LGBT on the website, so group work may actually be women-only. 19/n

Women's RASAC, Dundee & Angus. Despite having "women" in the centre's name, don't get too hopeful as it's for "self-identifying women". TW specifically included and they're working towards a silver charter from LGBTYS. 20/n

17 rape crisis centres. One explicitly for women-only (Glasgow & Clyde) and one possibly offering women-only spaces within a mixed-sex service (Western Isles). The majority explicitly state they work on the basis of self-ID, which is not law in Scotland. 21/n

This is the law, as ruled by recent judicial reviews. The section in red is under appeal to the UK Supreme Court. By definition, in the Equality Act, women's spaces exclude biological males. Those without a GRC are the sex they were born as. 22/n

Yet when the CEO of Rape Crisis Scotland talks of "woman" she displays her ignorance of the law & gives an offensive penis-including definition of who she welcomes into female rape survivors' spaces. It has taken her 11 months to come up with this! 23/n

This is the fundamental problem we are facing with women's services. Most have long been co-opted to include all men, not just TW. 24/n

The whole sector needs a reset starting with sacking Brindley and addressing what women, who are 94% of rape victims, actually want. Which is separate-sex services, as recommended by the Scottish Gov review, & which Brindley has ignored since June 2023. 25/n

The Scottish Gov should also consider implementing the SNP 2021 manifesto commitment to fund a separate complementary service for men. 26/26

Twitter thread is fully evidenced throughout with those all important screenshots (we know how much screenshots are valued to hold power to account within ethical principles and all that).

Sandy 'I didn't know' Brindley is a liar.

Another article in the Times today:
https://www.thetimes.com/article/4ab96950-a165-4ac4-829c-dca2f2674dad?shareToken=6023562acfa1817bfe0a1d8784fda1ef

I particularly liked the commentator who suggested Brindley should reframe her trauma.

The comments were universally horrified at the interview with Brindley. Readers on the Times have had years of sunlight from an array of good journalists who have exposed the corruption and toxicity of trans extremism. Add to that numerous educated and informed women commentators and the understanding that women are entitled to and need single sex spaces seems to be fully accepted on there.

Sandy clearly rarely reads the times....

Were they allowing comments on that article and, if they were, was anyone buying it?

It is quoting the article but I don't believe she actually said the 'me or JKR' line. I think it was a passing fancy or something that came to her later.

The whole anecdote though was a whole look at how JKR hurts her young fans.

Ah found a link to the Times Article which works (other one on the thread didn't work for me)
<a class="break-all" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20240922021120/www.thetimes.com/uk/scotland/article/jk-rowling-wants-me-fired-i-just-want-to-help-survivors-of-rape-g2thm7hnr" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://web.archive.org/web/20240922021120/www.thetimes.com/uk/scotland/article/jk-rowling-wants-me-fired-i-just-want-to-help-survivors-of-rape-g2thm7hnr

The quote mentioned above about eyes twinkling WAS the one published in the times.

Her job, as head of a national body with 17 member centres, means she works with survivors, “making a change for the better in the world”. It is, she says, “wonderful in so many ways” but the flipside is the “real vulnerability” that comes from her public position.

“I feel like this is where I am just now, that space of complete vulnerability,” Brindley says. “It’s not something that I can do long term. I can acknowledge the personal cost: it impacts my daughter, it impacts my family.”

Jeez. Just how tone deaf. When you go after JKR saying that...

She is at pains to stress that she will not be leaving her post because of the furore surrounding Edinburgh Rape Crisis Centre, where Mridul Wadhwa, a trans woman and activist, quit this month amid allegations that she harassed staff with gender-critical views. A review found that the chief executive had not grasped “the limits on her role’s authority”.

For Brindley, this goes back much further. Over years there has been a “constant sense you’re under really severe scrutiny,” she says. “Of course I should be under scrutiny because of my job, but this feels very personal, like a visceral hatred of me for doing my job.”

But you didn't do your job. Thats the problem.

As Brindley stated on air, ERCC’s board is autonomous and she had no hand in Wadhwa’s appointment, but her response was summarised in one newspaper headline as “Charity boss says tribunal judgment no bar to men working in rape crisis centres” .

Brindley is still bristling. “I literally did not say that, but an hour later Martina Navratilova was tweeting, “Sandy Brindley — what’s wrong with you?”

Cos you've 100% read and understood JKR position and the position of survivors. Yep ok.

The substance of the newspaper article was unfair, Brindley says. Moreover, she claims that Rowling’s points about a previous meeting between RCS and a group of survivors were “demonstrably false”. (A description of the 2019 meeting raised by Rowling is contested by Brindley, who says the survivors’ own account lodged in the Scottish parliament contradicts the author’s interpretation.)

Hmm. And those reciepts above???

“Truth doesn’t matter, even if you can prove this is false,” Brindley says. “What recourse do I have? I’m a single parent that works for a charity. JK Rowling’s a billionaire. I have no recourse, so truth doesn’t matter.”

Oh you are SOOOOO close. Lying to service users about the truth about sex... As for JKR pockets, what about all the survivors you were supposed to look after but didn't so JKR did instead. Yes out of her own pocket, rather than spunking taxpayers money up the wall on diversity which led to harms and self exclusion.

She has always supported women-only spaces, she says, and is appalled that for 16 months until last October, ERCC operated without them.

Oh do fuck off. Reciepts.

Brindley barely draws breath. One of the recommendations of the report into ERCC asks Rape Crisis Scotland to “facilitate a shared definition of woman”, and that will happen, she says.

To that, Brindley adds a “personal definition”. She is an “intersectional feminist” meaning there are overlaps between different groups of women. For example, she says, “You can be a woman and you can be black and those intersections can lead to greater discrimination — you can both experience sexism and racism.

So under your tenure you intend to continue to fuck over women wanting single sex spaces, with word salad. And by using racist tropes.

“I recognise that trans women are women, but I also recognise that there are circumstances where biology matters. I believe with good faith and nuance, we can navigate that without causing harm to anyone.

Trouble is, no one actually believes you are acting in good faith. Cos you keep sodding lying.

I wish I hadn't actually read that. Its even worse than I thought.

No wonder JKR has steam coming out her ears.

Some more JK tweets replying to others in that thread: