Local councillor's extreme reaction to women's legal rights

[TimeConsuming]

The essence is a local Green Party councillor has threatened to "report" me for "harassment" if I send her a second message about the ruling on the definition of "woman" for the Equality Act.

I don't know who she would report me to other than the police! She may be emboldened by reports of the police turning up and removing people for "harassment", but I sent one email with legal facts! I would like to send her my penned reply but am not sure about the best course of action.

Full story with relevant quotes.

Before all recent elections I've written to all candidates asking if they will uphold single sex spaces in schools, hospitals etc.

One Green Party councillor asked if we could speak "because it will take about ten minutes to explain." I was walking to the polling station at the time and realising no candidate would recognise women exist and have legal rights, for the first time in my life, I spoilt my ballot with a women's rights slogan.

Following Wednesday's Supreme Court ruling, I wrote to that local Green Party councillor to remind her of what she had said, and that although it had taken more than ten minutes, the Supreme Court had ruled "explained" that women are female and have legal standing as such, distinct from all men. I explained I had found the Green Party's blatant misogyny difficult to see, and hoped the party would now "accept women are real and as such need the spaces and services created to meet female needs. Men do not need to be appeased or included in anything exclusively female, including language. Sincerely hoping for change, my name".

The email bounced back from her party email, so I took one from my inbox that she has used to write to the local area email group in which she identifies herself as a parish councillor for the area, and resent it.

The councillor responded with only these words:
"Please never email me again and delete my email address or I will report you for harassment. I make my on judgements. I don't need yours thrust upon me."

I crafted a reply that pointed out I contacted her about an issue we had communicated about before, her party email is not working so I used one she uses publicly declaring her council role and for council purposes, and she is in a position of responsibility to ensure the council and its contracted services operate within the law and provide single sex spaces where necessary, I also mentioned the hypocrisy of her wanting ten minutes of my time to "explain it" to me but when I forwarded a legal judgement that is independent of my opinion she called it me "forcing" my "opinion" on her.

I sent it to the Green Party email address and it bounced back.

Do I send that message to the functioning email address she asked me to "delete", and/or to the main party to complain, and/or make a complaint to the district council, and/or forwarded the messages to the local press, any other suggestions?

If she is an elected representative she should be scrutinised, so long as it remains respectful, which I'm sure it would. In this case I might write to the parish clerk, if that's the body she was elected to, and ask if there is any basis in law for her to say you can't contact her.

this person feels under threat and has just lost a big political argument. Leave them alone for a week to calm down. Then it will be a better time to come back and ask what practical things the council are doing to comply with the law.

elected representatives can and do block people from contacting them.

She was elected to the district council and sits on local government boards making decisions for all of us.

My communications have always been focussed and reasoned.

I can register a complaint with the local authority.

She hasn’t lost anything. Women’s rights have been clarified. She may have wanted men to have access to female spaces, but that was not a legal right.

I take your point about waiting, but how can I contact her anyway? Elected reps surely can’t block people for one email a year after a previous email?

Honestly, if you want an answer from the council, I would try someone else

If you want an answer from the Green Party, I would write to their headquarters.

My own contact with the Greens has shown an extraordinary level of lack of professionalism. I can't really take them seriously.

What action are you expecting her to take as a result of your email?

It's seems obvious she's not going to change her mind and agree with you so what would a good outcome look like?

That’s an interesting question. I’m astounded that an elected local official would be so reactionary to a pretty innocuous message that could have been ignored.

I assume she’s upset about the email address use, but it’s an assumption so not reliable. If the threat to report me it is about using a non-party email, I want her to understand the other one isn’t working, that I used one she has used publicly for councillor declarations so such a threat is unreasonable.

If she’s reacting to something else, I’d like to understand what caused such an extreme reaction.

Beyond that, I’d like to tell her it’s hypocritical to want to talk to me for ten minutes to give her opinion then tell me one email is “forcing” something on her. But that’s a personal wish.

She has chosen to (be paid to) represent people whose positions she won’t always like, and when that happens she can’t opt out of her role. I was calm and factual and mentioned having been distressed by misogyny, and her reaction was, to my mind, unacceptable.

However, in practical terms I guess the important thing is that all elected officials like her recognise that the law applies to things she’s involved in so she, and the whole council, will be responsible for ensuring services they provide and fund meet the terms of the law.

As I write, I realise the answer is to take that request to the wider party and local council.

It seems wrong to allow her to dismiss a constituent in that extreme way.

I don't think it's right to use her personal email to contact her about something like this. It's reasonable for her to want to keep her contact details private (even if she has occasionally used that email address and identified herself as a councillor). Stick to the official channels.

I think you need to work out what “success” is for you here, and how important it is for you to achieve it.

This person has asked you not to contact them. You’re not going to change their mind by contacting them again: you’re going to make them feel more pressured and anxious, and give the impression you are fixated.

It doesn’t matter if you have a just cause - the route you’re taking by trying to make your point repeatedly to an individual who does want to hear it is not a rational one. This individual will have few levers to make any of the policy changes you might like. Take a step back and see how this might look.

You could focus your energy in bringing the issue to the attention of the party or at local council public meetings if there is a thing you want to change in particular. Other than this person’s mind.

She’s blocked you, which is why it’s bouncing back. It’s possible she received a lot of similar messages, and so feels harassed even if no individual has harassed her.

I would send a less specifically targeted email to the clerk, requesting the council answer rather than the individual member. Individual members only matter if you can get them onside so they help direct action. Councils as a whole make decisions, not individuals.

Seriously OP that councillor's reaction is not extreme. In my job I email all manner of professionals, including social workers, Nurses, doctors, council officers, police, other schools staff. You should see some of the abrupt, poorly spelt and at times very rude even insulting responses I get. Some people are not good at writing, and some people are I guess nasty.
Just don't vote for that party, by all means contact the national party. I think all our political parties will be impacted by this court case. So maybe the Greens will be a bit more open minded on this matter, but I doubt it. As we saw
with Brexit. People don't change their minds often, even when proven wrong.

She hasn’t blocked me. The email is unavailable to everyone — possibly a full mailbox?

Our last communication was her leaving me a voicemail with her phone number to call. That was local elections c. 2021

She used the email I used to promote her council activities.

I certainly wouldn't describe her response as "extreme" in the slightest but I would view repeatedly emailing someone who you know has differing views to yours demanding that they agree with you and change their stance as harassment. I'm glad she stuck to her boundaries. You are under no obligation to vote for that party if you disagree with their policies. However there will be people who do agree with their policies and stances and they have every right to vote for them. Personally I'm glad we don't live in a world where everyone is obligated to agree with you even if I understand your concerns.

Thanks for the perspective & suggestion.

That’s a good perspective to hear. Thanks. Sorry you routinely encounter unpleasantness.

In my world it’s seen as unreasonable for anyone with public duties responding to such a message with “delete and threat”.

I responded to the wrong message, apologies.

Of course people have wildly different views and opinions on most subjects and we can all choose not to vote for anyone. However, once someone is elected they are bound to uphold the laws of the land.

Women’s legal standing as a biological group is a matter of law not opinion. It doesn’t matter if she doesn’t want women to be able to ever exclude men from anything. What matters is she is not able to force that unlawful view into policies that affect everyone.

Elected officials do not have the luxury of picking and choosing which laws to respect.

I’m also glad we live in a country in which women are able to campaign for women’s rights and child safeguarding even if it means facing masked men making threats.

If you put your postcode into https://www.writetothem.com it will give you the option to email your councillors through the website so I'm assuming it uses their official council email address. You can direct your query to her, or to all your councillors.

The parish councillor is a different role to Green Party councillor. I would use the correct avenues and not use her parish email.

OP
I think that all the people (political or otherwise) who supported the ridiculousness, are finding this difficult.

Well diddums!
As you say OP, it's the law and should be upheld.

What's happening is, the rubbish and law breaking went on for so long people seem to think they can just carry it on.

Well they can't and they need to.learn that.
It's almost as if they were brainwashed and have now been shocked out of it?

I suppose yet again, we need to be patient whilst people like your councillor reframe their thinking.

Bloody annoying and frustrating though.......