To feel conflicted in my feminism?

[Sparkles57]

This is not meant to be a GF thread just to clarify.....

All my life I’ve liked to think of myself as a staunch feminist, defender of women’s spaces etc.

I’ve also been a part of the LGBT community for nearing 10 years now and I like to think I’m a big believer of everyone being included, no prejudice etc.

The current climate has got me so confused, I feel as if there is no middle ground between acceptance and feminism and I’m really struggling to make sense of it. On the one hand I don’t want anyone to feel ostracised or like they can’t be themselves but equally I don’t want women’s rights to take a back seat!

Am I the only one that feels like this? And how do I reconcile the feeling of wanting to be accepting with defending my rights as a woman?

...the word "woman" is taken. We all know what it means and who it applies to. Men cannot have it. Women's facilities/opportunities/services/sports are similarly "taken". We built them for us. TW can build their own too.

Well said, BuzzShitbagBobbly.

I have not had any trouble or conflict between my staunch feminism and my staunch believe in trans rights and protecting vulnerable minorities. I believe it's all in the mindset and education along with how people do and do not view trans people. Of course I am lucky enough to be enveloped in a very diverse community with many people representing all facets of LGBTQIA++ so I see first hand how things affect the people that I love. I believe it's very possible to marry a support of LGBTQIA++ rights and a strong feminist belief.

I watched Martina's documentary. She was fabulous as usual. One of the things that struck me was that Rachel Mackinnon's comment at the beginning-transphobia is about irrational fear- was nicely pulled apart. There was no irrationality in Martina's conclusion that more research is needed with regard to elite sport. It clearly is. She also made the powerful point that it's as much about the competition over 19th and 20th spot as about competition over the top spot. Her empathy was also impressive.
Thank God for women like her.

mabel any proof of that?

Of course I am lucky enough to be enveloped in a very diverse community with many people representing all facets of LGBTQIA++ so I see first hand how things affect the people that I love. I believe it's very possible to marry a support of LGBTQIA++ rights and a strong feminist belief.

How do you view men using 'trans' to access women and girls in their previously believed 'safe spaces'? What is feminist about turning a blind eye to females boundaries being removed just to appease men who you personally know?

It's not unreasonable to feel conflicted and uncertain. In the current climate lots of people are having the similar thoughts.

Feminism is about female people. And right now sex-based rights are being stripped away in the name of 'inclusivity'.

Honest conversation is needed. And that starts with acknowledging that it is impossible to change sex. It involves recognising that there are good reasons for sex segregation.

Transwomen are a subset of men, not women. It is possible to believe that these individuals exist, have rights and needs and still recognise the need for boundaries.

Wanting to be inclusive is lovely. But it's not viable.

Similarly, a cis woman can never really have a true idea about the bullying, hate and lack of self identity that many trans women have to endure.

I don't actually think that is true for "cis" women who are butch lesbians. They have always had a very difficult time with bullying and hate and for some, confusion about their own identity, but it is worse in some way these days, when there is huge pressure on young non-gender-conforming lesbians to accept an ideology (supported by Stonewall!) that lesbian attraction is defined as "same-gender", not same-sex. They are led to belief that there is something morally wrong with them if they aren't prepared to accept "lesbian dick" from (often older) transwomen, and that such transwomen are more oppressed than they are.

Frankly, in this climate, I can see why a young butch lesbian would perceive transitioning to become a transman as an easier option.

While I am concerned about preserving women's sex-based rights, the issues around the enormous rise in teenage girls transitioning, and the likelihood of this being due to social contagion on line and
in friendship groups, is to my mind a really terrifying issue, given the likelihood of later infertility and regret. Reading accounts by de-transitioned young women online of how they were sucked into believing transition was the answer is very scary.

I am not conflicted.

I fully support the right for anyone to live, work, play and love free of harassment and prejudice.

I do not support men taking the rights and spaces of women. e have fought for these spaces and rights, they are ours and we need to protect them.

I do not support the denial of biological fact. You can not change your sex.

I do not support the increased focus by the trans community on harmful stereotypes on what makes a person 'make' or 'female'. We should be breaking down gender steryotypes not telling non-conformists that they shoudl change sex (which you can't anyway)

I do not support the pushing of harmful surgery and drugs to children under the age of consent.

I do not support the further marginalization of lesbian woman.

I do not support including trans-women in female crime statistics.

I do not support trans-women competing in sex-segregated sport as women.

I do not support trans-women taking prizes and accolades in categories for women.

I do not support the view that we are committing "literal violence" by standing up for women's rights.

I do not support thew trans ideology that trans-women (never women who have transitioned to men!) have superior rights than women

Now personally, I couldn't give a monkeys about who is occupying the adjacent cubicle

When you say something like this, what you really mean is 'I don't care about safeguarding'.

I’m not conflicted. There are two sexes but you can express yourself in any way you choose.
if you’re conflicted it’s because you’ve been made to feel guilty by unsavoury people exploiting the expectation that females will please, capitulate and agree with things that are not true.
Imagine straight men feeling obliged to accept trans women as actual women as sexual partners? As if they’d put up with that!
I’m afraid we need to be less afraid of being arseholes