David Tennant: women should "shut up"

[jacksonlamb]

As a (now ex) David Tennant fan I was so disappointed to hear his speech yesterday. Whilst talking about trans rights he told his audience that he wanted a world where "we wake up and Kemi Badenoch doesn't exist anymore. I don't wish ill of her, I just wish her to shut up."

(There's some devious doublespeak here: if you wish someone didn't exist, you obviously wish them ill).

But more importantly, how dare he tell women to shut up about women's rights. Yet again powerful and privileged men tell women what they are and are not allowed to say. They must shut up whilst men speak. Their views are wrong, men are right.

Anyone has the right to believe that the rights of trans people are more important than the rights of women (although I believe this is profoundly wrong). What they do not have the right to do is bully, belittle and threaten women who disagree with them; who are trying to protect their hard fought rights.

I despair.

She has not been targeted because she is a black woman though. The reason it's her and no one else is that in her role as Minister for Equalities she's responsible for decisions that have negatively affected his family.

I personally think that David Tennant should remember his place frankly. Kemi is a politician, her job is to speak on things like womens rights. David Tennat is a pompous, out of touch, privileged lovey, who is paid to say the words OTHER PEOPLE write. Maybe he should stick to that.

I can not express how much I agree with you. It’s like we are only allowed a voice if it remains in the very narrow confines of what is ‘allowed’ and ‘acceptable’ to white male privilege, it never ever feels like a genuine attempt at real democracy or equality but another form of oppression in fact.

The fact that so many people can not even identify or recognise the HARM and racism in these words is alarming.

Many are simply politically posturing but this isn’t a hill to die on for your party if it means pushing women and girls under a bus.

It is distressing that as a father he isn’t even giving his own child the opportunity to explore their identity privately, therefore giving them the opportunity to grow, change and develop themselves fully. Men like Tennant literally walk around stripping power away from others, claiming it for their own and on the basis he has no real talent for anything else, using it to garner attention no matter how negative. Psychopathic behaviour that is damaging his own child, ‘the cause’ and women en masse of all colours.

If anyone needs to shut up it’s most definitely him.

It isn't racist to criticise someone over an opinion you disagree with unless you only criticise them. DT does not do that. KB was Minister of Equality. Whoever was in that role would get that criticism. You don't avoid debate with someone because of the colour of their skin.

Which decisions that the Minister for Women and Equalities has made 'have negatively affected his family'?

This.
Nothing to do with her being a woman.
Or black.
I wish she'd shut up as well.

The racism of believing, genuinely believing that the colour of your skin should dictate your politics or beliefs is actually insane.

This. Thank you @Chickenuggetsticks for putting it so perfectly.

Seems that if you're a Conservative black women with your own opinions then suddenly it's ok to tell you to shut up and you are somehow - as a virtue of your views - not really a minority group anymore? The double standards in the way this has been reported vs how the racism against Diane Abbott by a Tory donor is stark.

Both men are racist misogynists, cut from the same cloth. It's the same thing really, it's that circle of left and right - eventually the misogynist men meet in the middle.

I do note that DA was not allowed to speak in the Commons though, nor did Starmer restore the whip (whatever your opinion on that a decision should have been made much more quickly) so whilst the left were frothing about 'racism' both left and right denied a voice to the democratically elected black woman against whom the racist comments were made in what is supposed to be the heart of democracy in this country. It's so bloody obvious, it's appalling.

There is no way, if she was a white man, he'd have told her to 'shut up' and say he didn't want her to exist.

Any examples of him saying this about white men? Given that both now and even more so historically they occupy the bulk of cabinet positions, one would think it would be easy to find an example.

Telling someone to 'shut up' and wishing them out of existence is not in any way, shape or form 'debate'.

Good grief. I wasn't aware of his comments and whilst I don't like Kemi Badenoch (for other political reasons ie immigration) I completely agree with you OP. I do agree with Kemi Badenoch's view on womens' / trans' rights, but even if I didn't as you say, a powerful white man telling a black woman to 'shut up' and wishing her out of existence because he happens to disagree with her stance on a particular issue. So fed up with this shit.

@jacksonlamb when Tennant said he didn’t want Badenoch to exist he meant politically, that she’d be out of politics and public life shortly.

By that stage of the evening he’d probably had a few drinks. And he’s an actor, so not necessarily very articulate without a script.

This row has led to an unpleasant focus on his trans-identifying child (which the family has apparently been open about on social media), and the parents’ responsibility for that.

As we all know, children encounter gender ideology at school, as well as everywhere else. I’m sure Tennant is concerned about that and simply trying to be supportive of that child. Unfortunately it has meant him embracing gender identity ideology wholesale.

I’m sure he now regrets his choice of words. It isn’t wise to be seen publicly to be berating a female politician by telling her to ‘shut up’.

He didn’t say he didn’t want Kemi to politically exist - at all, stop twisting his words. He said not exist - full stop.
He knew precisely what he was saying.

So: what DT said is misogynistic. It is sexist. it is racist. It's misogyny, sexism and racism filtered through the complex lens of angry and bitter idpol progressives who only love minorities as long as they stay in their place and toe the line

THIS.

When Tennant said he didn’t want Badenoch to exist he meant politically, that she’d be out of politics and public life shortly.

That's nothing more than projection.

Obviously it's difficult to unpick how much is racism and how much is sexism / misogyny. I personally think it's obvious it's both. The fact he's willing to open his mouth and say this and not even realise that a large proportion of people would recoil in absolute horror says a lot.

I will note that lefty wokebros seem to be very very angry, in general, at women like Suella Braverman and KB - strong, conservative, women of colour. It's as if they simply cannot believe such a woman would disagree with their obviously right wokebro opinions. Men on the right don't get such personal abuse or any hint they don't deserve to exist. My theory is that lefty wokebros accept they can't control other men whereas they secretly think women should just bow down before their lefty wokebro right think.

I don't agree with a lot of what KB says, but her opinions are generally well researched and evidenced. I think her particular blind spot is class and she really doesn't understand the reality of a lot of people in this country living on the breadline and how difficult to escape it is - particularly if also dealing with caring responsibilities like SEND or elder care. However, she does usually have evidence to back up her position, and I respect her hard work and intellect and what she's achieved even when I disagree with her on policy. I agree with her completely on women's sex based rights.

I don’t think criticism of Kemi is because she’s black, I think it’s mainly cos she’s a woman who won’t shut up and do what she’s told.

However I think her response is to highlight the problem of the heavy handed use of identity politics. I don’t feel the need to mention my “identity” every five minutes and I doubt Badenoch is the kind of woman who does either.

She’s making the point “oh identity is so important is it…here look I have one too… does this exempt me from criticism now, does it? Oh no look I’m the wrong kind of black woman, my identity insurance doesn’t cover this”.

I don’t think criticism of Kemi is because she’s black, I think it’s mainly cos she’s a woman who won’t shut up and do what she’s told

Yeah he could have just called her a Karen I suppose. Uppity women over 45 daring to have an opinion and all that.

Just catching up with the thread and this analysis is exactly what I see happening. Well said.

I suspect he doesn't regret a thing. I think he'll continue to shoot his mouth off and we'll continue to see him in his little slogan T-shirt that he's obviously so proud of (the wording of which just makes me involuntarily mentally add 'like a dose of salts' every time I see it.)

His child really has no way back and hasn't even reached puberty yet. It's tragic, and I'm afraid I think it's terrible parenting too.

Even if he were right (which he's not) how's it helping his child wading into this debate so publicly? It's not.

Exactly. It's a terrible situation they've gotten their child into here.

Hilarious that so many of you think KB is a champion of women's rights. Have you actually looked at her voting record?

It's also a little patronising that some people appear to feel that KB should be immune from any criticism because she's black.

Yes, she almost invariably votes with the Conservative government, as do most Conservative ministers. I don't think you're giving anybody fresh information there.
I don't see anybody trying to make the case in your second sentence.

Hilarious that so many of you think KB is a champion of women's rights. Have you actually looked at her voting record?

More of a champion for women's rights than David Tennant will ever be.