Who else would really appreciate a polite discussion of gender issues and the concerns of women at the jess Philips webchat on Monday?

[StealthPolarBear]

I posted on the webchat thread:
Since the questions have already been asked I am not allowed to repeat similar but I want on record that self ID, its potential abuse, protection of vulnerable young people from those who promote transition which can sometimes include puberty blockers, the protection of natal women's rights and the importance of teaching biological facts in schools are big concerns to me.

MNHQ have said they don't want any more comments or questions about gender issues on the Web chat thread which I can understand. However what I do want to make clear is the number of people who may share some or all of my concerns. Otherwise any questions about gender issues are of an equal weight to all others and in fact others, which can be repeated in a different form, may seem to gain more weight.

Well I’d have been sad about this news before yesterday but it’s probably the right decision if she can’t stand up against the erosion of women’s rights.🤷‍♀️

Funny, I was just reading KS’s TheyWorkForYou page...

He is ‘for’ the GRA.

Unfortunately it’s a p!nk news source.

www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.pinknews.co.uk/2020/01/06/keir-starmer-labour-leader-leadership-trans-rights-gender-recognition-act/amp/

Well he can get in the bin then. Anyone out there worth voting for?

My point is the webchats don’t work. For either side. MNHQ are trying to appease the participants and make it look easy for them to engage and it ends up making them look ignorant, failing to inform them as to what people are actually worried about and enraging those of us who are being deleted and silenced. MNHQ need to review this channel and construct something better because at the moment it’s a car crash. Not just on this issue but more generally as a way for politicians to interface with the women on this board.

Well @stealthpolarbear has already collated a lot of the questions/concerns so we have a "working document" and the spade work is done, I think? We certainly don't need to shout or harangue  but we are ready to puuulll? @GirlsInGreen

Justhere, I asked the same question on a different thread. It appears not

Sorry I didn't necessarily mean a MN webchat. What do people think? I'm barred from Twitter but that would be limited for a full discussion anyway perhaps?

Do webchats tend to work better when it's not a politician involved, or does this happen on all of them?

I don’t think I can remember a good one with a politician.

I remember a Gok Wan Webchat that went very pear shaped a few years ago. It depends if people feel very strongly about an issue and ask a lot of questions MNHQ would rather they didn’t because the webchatter doesn’t want to answer those questions.

@WeBuiltCisCityOnSexistRoles I'm impressed you're banned from twitter - not me yet!
@StealthPolarBear is a Queen
@JustHereWithMyPopcorn Yep Keir has supped of the KoolAid but surely we'd still welcome the chance to forensically dissect his position and rip him a new arse hole before we put him in the bin?

Maybe it's the word "Chat". Implies it'll be a nice giggle with the gals over coffee and bikkies. Maybe the name of the "chat" needs to change "webclinic" or something like that. I'm sure an MP's surgery meetings in their own constituencies aren't giggling over cake events - they'll be dealing with fairly upset people and strong feelings about local issues from local residents. A MN webchat is the same, but on a larger scale and dealing with issues of national rather than local importance. Do you think the invitees understand this? I'm beginning to wonder..

@Gertrudesgarden - I think you just nailed it. A lot of us came here looking for help/advice to do with children and stayed for the intelligent women. That's what they dont understand about this place.

They are definitely not a ‘chat’ - it’s not particularly 2way when we can’t interact with the speaker. A seminar maybe?

Speakers need better preparation. We have honed our skills on the boards here (and elsewhere) and our concerns/questions as women, mums, carers, members of the workforce etc should not be so readily dismissed. It’s patronising and achieves nothing other than frustration on all sides.

If you watch the video of Keir Starmer, he doesn't really say much at all - it's a bit of a puff speech, in response (I think) to an audience member bringing it up, the the of the audience look a bit

I'm working on the assumption that an ex top human rights lawyer who headed the CPS and worked to secure rights/justice for victims of FGM and DV knows what's what. (Okay. they all do, but the female socialisation causes the women to cave much more easily as I guess they have more to lose)

I may be wrong, but he looks much more likely to understand the dynamics of the whole thing and be more likely to want to support Trans rights without caving to self ID.

Re Webchats. It's just sheer laziness. Takes half an hour to skim through a few recent webchats to get the flavour. Then you set aside An hour before the web chat to read the questions and formulate your answers.

The lack of respect for our intelligence and our time is breathtaking sometimes.

Yes that’s why I’m so cross with MNHQ. They’re framing us as silly women who ‘shout’ and ‘harangue’. As opposed to extremely knowledgeable, thoughtful and articulate people with a huge range of interests and with a particular interest, given the demographic, in women and children. MNHQ need to be bigging up their users not trying to hide us away.

I am so done with politics at the moment. I've had it with all of them. I desperately want to vote for a party I have some faith in, rather than just the least-worst option. At this rate I will end up voting Tory for the first time in my adult life because the other contenders in my constituency spout the self-ID crap without apparently being aware of the risks this poses to vulnerable women.

Oh dear, how sad I am that Jess has quit the leadership race.

Oh wait. I have now self id as not sad.

Ah well!

”A lot of us came here looking for help/advice to do with children and stayed for the intelligent women.”

Yep. I haven’t asked anything child-related for a very long time, and I’ve been here since DS1 was born- he’s coming up 13 now.

Same here Grumpy. I had 4 parties/candidates to choose from: Tory, Labour, LibDem and Green. I spoilt my paper for the first time in my life. Not one party I have any belief in. I have been involved in politics all my adult life, for some years professionally, I vote in every election in my area. I voted Tory once, about 40 years ago and have never done so since. I am close, so close, to doing it again which will sicken me more than not voting at all.

I have a ridiculous possible novel running in my head, whereby the current politicians are hoping that most of us will lose interest in them and they can get on with reaping the benefits of their very important positions with no-one accountable. I sometimes think that the vile IDS knew exactly what would happen with his horrible punitive welfare reforms and that was all part of his plan. There are too many people for anything to function properly; why not a cull?

en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Rise_and_Rise_of_Michael_Rimmer

That was done years ago, Jux
When satirists were satirists

Now Jess has stepped down could Mumsnet HQ reconsider the ban on Lang ?

Indeed, Ruby, if the webchat was part of Lang's being banned can we have some flexibility here please?

Maybe realising that you're not very good at answering in-depth questions is the thing that nailed it.

My thoughts exactly. She was pretty gung ho about her leadership bid yesterday. I think it played a part in her cold feet.