To be really frightened

[TheXXFactor]

I know, I know - you're sick of trans threads. But please take 1 minute to read this because it's not about trans, it's about women's right to free speech.

In the last few days, a woman has been physically attacked by a mob of 20-30 people and had to be rescued by the police - link. Her 'crime'? She had attended a meeting held by Women's Place UK about the Gender Reform Act. These meetings are moderate and respectful - they have trans women speakers as well as biological women. Purely because she attended this meeting, the woman, who happened to be a trades unionist, was stalked, followed to a picket line days later, surrounded and violently attacked.

Also this week, a woman who expressed gender critical views on Twitter was questioned under caution by the police and told she cannot leave the country link

AIBU to think this is terrifying? Whatever our beliefs about the trans movements - even if we support self-ID - don't we all support the right to peaceful debate and freedom of expression? This isn't happening to men - male journalists and men on social media who express gender critical views aren't being stalked and attacked. This is a concerted effort to silence women. I am genuinely scared.

[Mawalls]

Get what you ask for really,

First they went for the racists, then they went for the homophobes

Now its your turn.

If you supported 'hate speech' or 'hate crimes' that institutionalized castes within society you have fucked yourself. They have more privilege points than you ergo they as a higher caste are subject to a different set of rules than you.

Critical theory is now the state religion and its validity or otherwise is not relevant, all that matters is how loud you are

[Mawalls]

ditto the thousands of girls found to have been abused in Telford- no doubt there will be a womens march about that any day now.

There seems to be no shortage of wives and daughters at these mens trials calling the girls slags and saying they deserved it

[iBiscuit]

YANBU

[Wineloffa]

YANBU - I'm frightened. This is turning into a Margaret Atwood novel..

[DarthArts]

It's horrific and I'm worried that a lot of women are simply not aware of what's happening.

The whole premise seems to be if you say anything that isn't in line with an extreme TRA agenda then you are transphobic.

When we reach the point that even refuges are not sacrosanct there's a really, really damn big problem.

When women are being beaten and arrested for saying you can't change sex it's a total breech of free speech and scary as hell.

[TheXXFactor]

If we want to protect freedom of expression we must fight for it even when we don't like the views that someone is expressing

Agree. We need a very strong presumption in favour of freedom of speech, with restrictions only when truly necessary to protect life & limb. I was uncomfortable with the Northern Ireland gay marriage cake case for example link. The bakers concerned sound like total knob ends, but what if they had been a gay couple asked to bake a cake demanding the re-criminalisation of homosexuality? A lot of modern liberals (small 'l') aren't actually liberal at all. They only defend the freedom of expression when they agree with the views expressed, and they don't seem to understand that this is a fast track to authoritarianism.

[Itsbeenaverylongweek]

I think it's terrifying but believe that it's still mostly going under the radar.
It's only my opinion but I think away from MN and Twitter many people are still under the impression that trans people are quietly going about living ordinary lives in their chosen gender; are taking their hormone meds and possibly have had surgeries. They don't picture people like Lily Madigan or Danielle Muscato, they're certainly not imagining people talking about lady dicks and the like.
People worry about being seen as not being PC so don't question information that is being shared.
I think posting this in AIBU is a good idea to help spread the message as well as branching out if able to on other social media sites. The possible repercussions for speaking out though are definitely scary.

[Andrewofgg]

Beansonapost I am in no doubt that the vast bulk of those of us with the Y chromosome know damned fine that we are not women and cannot be women. The handful who go through surgery are another issue; but you cannot change gender by say-so. It is one of those preposterous ideas which appears from nowhere, who knows how.

Just how the hell we restore common sense I have no idea.

[therealposieparker]

Somerford

Until you fully understand what free speech really means you cannot defend it. I've always been outspoken and so free speech has been a value I see clearly. But the left, of which I am part, is rather tyrannical in its "liberalism" and thought police.

[Somerford]

@TheXXFactor I agree with you about modern "liberals". My experience of them taught me that many of them don't appear to have any genuine political allegiance, or any moral compass. They stand for absolutely nothing but the modern left has provided them with a vehicle to obtain the only thing that gives them any pleasure in life. They are addicted to asserting control over other people. The issue that they hide behind when they come for you is often a ruse and it doesn't take much probing to confirm that. What they really want is to shoot a pistol around your feet and watch you dance. They want you to acquiesce and beg them for forgiveness but you are left with a dilemma here. If you give them what they want, it's a green light for more them to join the feeding frenzy and you will never be rid of them. If you stand up to them, as I did, it can escalate quickly as they become more and more enraged at your refusal to obey them. They're a scourge. Anyone, and I do mean anyone, who has sat back and let these people go unchallenged because it was convenient at the time is responsible for this mess. At least in part. There will be people reading this thread who have condoned the violence and censorship of these people because the target at the time was a mural political enemy. The enemy of my enemy is my friend and all that.

Before we we bemoan the behaviour outlined in your OP, I think we must each consider our own contribution to the problem. I'm not asking anyone to join a debate here, I simply encourage people to look inward and consider the extent to which they enabled the authoritarian left to get such a strange hold on political discourse. If anyone is prepared to do that honestly, and they conclude that they have played a role in this (however small), will they do things differently in the future now that they've seen that the monster they helped to create will come for them sooner or later? I would hope so.

[icedtea]

Before we we bemoan the behaviour outlined in your OP, I think we must each consider our own contribution to the problem

I agree with this. I believe radical feminism has played a part in enabling the transgender agenda and the the present power of the authoritarian left.

[UpstartCrow]

icedtea Really? Could you explain why you believe that?

[FlorisApple]

YANBU op. But an optimistic reading is surely that they are getting desperate to contain the truth and bury it, therefore they are coming on heavier in their tactics. I hope I am right, but I fear there is still much struggle to come and the win is by no means guaranteed.

[RedRedDogsBeg]

I think 'the win' is pretty much guaranteed tbh. Women will stamp this out....

[AngryAttackKittens]

I'm scared.I wish I was brave enough to put my head above the parapet. But I'm not sad

For those who still think we're overreacting, ask yourselves what kind of people would regard this as a desirable outcome, women being to scared to voice their opinions about a topical issue in public.

[HawkeyeInConfusion]

There is a petition here calling on government to consult with women's groups regarding proposed changes to the GRA.

petition.parliament.uk/petitions/214118

[Dipitydoda]

We have an obligation that everytime we experience the over the top
PC brigade challenging the right to freedom of speech we challenge it. Unfortunately, we have allowed it to get to this stage, someone won’t make a cake because they have been targeted to make something that chalkahes their beliefs, haul them through the courts, someone mentions black people dispropriantely involved in gangs, shoot them down as a racist, someone doesn’t want a man self identifying as a woman getting naked next to their 8 year old daughter they’re a bigot. The pseudo liberal Brigade have ironically created a big brother society where you can think anything you like so long as it’s identical to them. People wrongly envisage Orwell’s 1984 was a the culmination of fascism. It’s actually where socialist liberalism will lead. To ensure a dictatorship. Create a revolution

[ijustwannadance]

Petition signed. Numbers went up by 30 just in the minute it took me to complete.

[OhCalamity]

I've signed.

I wasn't sure that I could, being Irish. But then I remembered that I am also a British citizen through birth.

[Polarbearflavour]

I’ve signed too. I hadn’t even considered this until I read the posts on MN!

[BoreOfWhabylon]

Signed.

[HawkeyeInConfusion]

If you do sign, don't forget to click the link in the email they send you. Else it won't count.

[LizzieSiddal]

I'm neither frightened nor scared!

I am fucking fed up!

Me too! Unfortunately I think it will take a big court case to make the powers that be sit up and listen.
I also feel that the Trans activists are extremely well resources and organised, they’ve been working away, sending out “advice” to policy makers and organisations and these have blindly accepted them.

Now WE are catching up and we have to become as organised and vocal. We may be intimidated and harassed but we have carry on and stop this bloody nonsense.

[Datun]

Signed.

[OlennasWimple]

YANBU. At all