This clip has gone viral for whatever reason.
This behaviour and the issues it raises are something that is causing problems within our society.
As I said in my previous comment that is partly a consequence of the actions of others which over can have ultimately encouraged and enabled it.
We SHOULD be talking about this. It's something that is uncomfortable to watch. I think there are a lot of comments here which ARE NOT remotely laughing at the individual. And the criticism ISN'T personal. It's about a wider problem which, quite frankly, has been caused by allies and a failure to talk about this.
I have said for many years now we should not be focused on identity. We should be focused on behaviours. Identity politics creates blind spots to unacceptable and antisocial behaviour which, as a society we should be acknowledging and working together to deal with.
This involves having uncomfortable and difficult conversations which may be controversial and we may not enjoy. Or feature views and opinions which we don't like. Because it is FAR more unhealthy NOT to talk about them.
The root of the riff with my brother was never about his identity. It's about what his identity enabled him to do and how this was unacceptable and harmed others in his immediate radius. Yet as someone who said "this isn't ok" I was the villain. Even my own mother who was so so supportive and affirmative said his behaviour was unacceptable but I should just suck it up because he now had special status.
The support that people who ultimately get into his situation with IS the problem. It's all the promises and enabling of a fantasy that is directly at odds with the reality and legal issues that it creates that the issue.
The video is a visual representation of all that's gone wrong. And we are supposed to ignore it and pretend everything is fine when it's quite clearly not.
The people who have been most harmed by affirmations and untruths are not just women and gay people. It very much is the case that it's those who identify as trans themselves.
As I say regularly, if I had a magic wand which could change peoples sex I would wave it. But I suspect this wouldnt solve the problems that so many face anyway. Because trans presentation is far too often the symptom rather than the cause of their personal issues.
It's about time we had these honest conversations about the whole damn thing because without it, the only outcome is lots more people harmed. It's not ok.