To think that Anne Hegerty was only stating the truth?

[derxa]

On TWS today AH was discussing the gender pay gap. She didn't think that there was an old boys' network nowadays. Paris Lees disagreed.
Anne said 'Well you would know. You used to be a boy.' My jaw dropped.

It was very cheeky under the circumstances. IMHO.

That anyone actual dared to say it, in public. Most wouldn't, you'd get destroyed for it. I'd bet there are death threats on twitter already!

I'll go out bloody marching myself and I'm very unconfrontational usually!
Fucking ridiculous that truth is "literal violence." I could understand if she'd have said "you're a boy" but "you used to be a boy?" said in context to the gender pay gap is a factual statement.
FFS.

@sidewayswithatescotrolley Did PL go to a private school/develop the old boys' club connections? If so (I have no idea about their background), then it's absolutely relevant. But sex is not the only barrier to old boys' networks, it's a class thing too - my husband is no more involved with these networks than I am.

I couldn't care less that Anne pointed out that PL was a boy for what it's worth, it just seems to miss the point of these networks (which absolutely do exist).

Paris Lees grew up on a council estate and is very much from a working class background. Regardless of their sex or gender identity their class would very much exclude them from such a network so really not relevant at all.

There’s layers to it being both the truth, and still rude.

The “Well you should know, you used to...” just sounds really rude regardless. It sounds DS as if it’s betsting someone personally fur the problems of a wider group - PL presumably wasn’t automatically a member of an “old boy’s club” regardless.

But “you used to be a boy” is factually correct and if PL is sensible won’t make a massive fuss over this statement because they should understand then it’s an attack on someone with Aspergers.

If AH had said “you’re not a woman, you should know”, that would be deliberately misgendering, and a cause for outrage.

Even if you accept and agree with the idea of being able to transition, you can't deny that the physical body presented one way or the other originally?

That's just it though. It seems like people are denying actual biology and replacing with "feels."
You're "not allowed" to say that only women can give birth. A man can give birth too if they identify as one.
It's a man giving birth.
Saying otherwise as in speaking fucking sense you get called a TERF (trans exclusionary radical feminist) and shouted down/threats.
I've never actually identified as any feminist, I'm usually rolling my eyes at some of the stuff people get wound up about, but trying to erase women's biology really gets me wound up!
You're a biological woman? You're not a woman, then. You've been renamed. You're a cis woman. Fuck off with that.
See,all the swears and I never usually swear much at all.

Ann Hegerty is fabulous...

Ann Hegerty is fabulous..

Agree

You're "not allowed" to say that only women can give birth. A man can give birth too if they identify as one.
It's a man giving birth.

I’ve just read something on Twitter where people are asked to lobby/make aware their local reproductive health and abortion clinics to make sure they realise that men who have transitioned will still need their services.

Does the reproductive rights campaign you work for know that trans men and genderqueer people will need abortions and birth control?

It’s so patronising amongst other things - of course a women’s reproductive rights organisation will know that biologically female people will need their help.

But that’s the point - biology. Biology.

Paris lee grew up on a rough estate in hucknall, ending up in prison as a teenager before deciding to go to uni and get her shit together and live how she wanted - which for her meant transitioning , stopping drugs /prostitution and getting a journalism degree.

She has since become a reasonably successful journalist and an activist. I would say anything she has learned about "old boys club" has been learned during her journalism career rather than anything she might of learnt whilst growing up wouldn't you? I doubt she was ever invited to it!

Paris lees has never denied her past or thAt she was a boy , she has written long articles about her past.

Pointing out her being male in this context was just obviously done to goad.

But there is an old boys network No? So PL was right about this?

I dont think a boy / man would notice the obn more than a woman though?

Something must have been said in Ann's ear piece as she was very quiet after that comment. You could definitely cut the atmosphere with a knife!

I'm not debating whether it's true that PL used to be a boy btw. Thats obviously true.

But I'm not.sure that mean they would know.all about the obn, especially as a pp has pointed out they are from a council.estate! Old boys normally means boys from the same private schools.

I quite liked PL. I'd never listened to them before. However PL used to be a boy. If people could state the truth and discuss then there might be less hate. Who knows. Instead of David Lidington saying that he thinks that transwomen are women despite clearly not believing it.

Love him or hate him but has anyone watched Ricky Gervais' Humanity on Netflix 😀

It's entirely factual and to the point, consistent with Anne's autism. It's not as if she tried to misgender him in the present day.

Pointing out her being male in this context was just obviously done to goad.

How? How was it done to goad? If they're talking about gender pay gaps, as in men and women are paid differently, how is it being goady if you point out in conversation that they have seen it from both sides, from both being a boy and now being a female?
It's in context in that case. No misgendering, just an actual, factual truth.

Sorry wrong pronoun. Her. That honestly wasn't deliberate or a snark. Pure brain fart.

I saw her on a TV a few weeks ago talking about Aspergers as she is on the spectrum, the great thing about being on the spectrum is you tend to say things how they are, sometimes a great train but can get you into trouble. I enjoy watching her on TV, she reminds me of my daughter, very intelligent and straight to the point.

I bloody love Anne. She's highlighting that autistic women exist.

On the one hand Anne just bringing up that Paris used to be a man was irrelevant - Paris grew up on a council estate, so would never have got anywhere near a an olds club, male or not, so they probably wouldn't 'know'.

On the other hand, Paris Lees has forged their entire career out of being trans. They are no where near a good enough writer or speaker to have got where they are (including being on the front cover of Vogue!) without the USP of being trans... So Paris probably needs to be careful about how they handle this as, while what Anne said was unkind and kind of irrelevant, it was in no way 'transphobic'.

However having seen PLs previous form, I imagine they will milk this for all its worth.

Well said Anne, I love the woman.

Cadyheron : I guess we disagree on whether it was in context then. If Paris has transitioned after working for a number of years or had the sort of background growing up where she might of been part of old boys club I would see it as relevant but I don't in this case.

It isn't about speaking the truth anyway, ah said it in past tense . Paris lee says it in past tense she doesn't lie about it.

Telling the truth the way posters are complaining they can't would be saying Paris lee IS a boy which AH isn't anyway.

Ann Hegerty is fabulous...

Is she??

She doesn't think there's an old boys' club, she thinks that women don't have high-powered job because they aren't "going after them" and she doesn't care about the gender pay gap!

She's a knob.

She was being a knob.

I bloody love Anne.

Well said Anne, I love the woman.

She basically said women aren't paid as much because they aren't trying as hard, and people are lining up to pat her on the back because she said a transwoman used to be a boy