Trans people being allowed to compete against women in the Olympics

[OhShutUpThomas]

The Olympics are now allowing men who have taken hormones for 12 months compete against women.

It is NOT transphobic to say that this is grossly unfair and a huge violation of women's rights.

Women who have trained all their lives cannot be expected to compete against people with male bodies and who will be allowed roughly 4 times the normal female testosterone levels.

It's not on. We can't stand for it.

Please get behind this mumsnet. Someone needs to take a stand.

It's NOT transphobic to state that this is unfair. It really isn't.

The fact that it's always women rather than transwomen that get thrown under the bus is proof to me that nobody actually believes that transwomen are women just like the rest of us.

*It is tucking ridiculous the shit she went through to "prove" she was biologically female enough, whereas trans women who we know aren't biologically female are given a pass&

But that's not really a valid comparison, since she was competing under different rules.

It was hardly back in the dark ages though - it was six years ago.

what about a situation where we had a transman competing against women...? would that be deemed as 'unfair'..? the T-levels would certainly be unequal

the whole thing seems a pandoras box really but somewhere along the line I do feel that it could be used to the advantage of removing glass ceilings for women in other areas of life. That's why I personally feel that we could be more welcoming

Really Claudia? How do you see glass ceilings being broken down because of these IOC policy changes?

I know what's gotta give

The rights of women to compete against women, that's what's gotta give

Exactly. Sums everything up.

Transmen should only be competing against women if they haven't transitioned medically.

The only way any of this is going to be helpful for women is if it wakes people up to the fact that our rights are being taken away.

The fact that it's always women rather than transwomen that get thrown under the bus is proof to me that nobody actually believes that transwomen are women just like the rest of us.

Yep. Of course they don't.

This is the article maryz shared earlier. Worth a read of the comments to see the mindset we are arguing with...

www.pinknews.co.uk/2016/01/28/trans-athletes-are-unfair-to-women-insists-columnist

Those comments are not good for my blood pressure.

I only have read the OP so apologies for just expressing my opinion.
This us a highly debatable issue as it would be unreasonable to discriminate against people who have rightly asumed the gender they should have been asigned by nature.

However, if women participate in different competitions to men is because, generally speaking, we don't have the same strenght ans stamina as an equally trained man would have. So it is unfair on women to miss up in well deserved medals/positions to people whose genetics put them in an fairly advantaged position.

I have a friend who transitioned a couple of years ago. I have only praise for her and her courage to change her life in such a drastic way. She is now a happy outgoing individual, has remarried and is easy to see she enjoys her life in a wonderful way.

However, seeing her win one triatlon after another, competing in the women's category, I really wonder how that could be fair.

It's not, Tiger.

Not fair at all. This is the problem.

Do have a read through the thread. There are some interesting points raised.

Tiger - do the event organisers know that she was born male? Did they compete as a man prior to transitioning? If so, with what results?

Just out of interest.
But your friend is a cheat in my eyes I'm afraid.

Arguing in the comments is difficult - they've all drunk the kool aid :(

I try to bare in mind that some trans people went through the process when they were very young. Maybe they live practically their whole lives subjected to the same societal norms that ordinary members of that sex do..others on the other hand appear to spend 60 years as a one and then suddenly become the other out of the blue..I'm thinking of maybe Caitlin Jenner. I don't feel comfortable with her as a woman whereas others I do.. why that is I don't know. Most of us are never going to be Olympic athletes anyway and frankly I think they all live in a bubble. I'm more interested in how ordinary women's lives can be improved and opportunities made available. I do wonder if prejudice against transpeople is conterproductive in the long term

I really don't know how would they know. I don't imagine signing up forms asking to check a box for "sex at birth", would you?

I think that she has been cheated about so many things by being born in the wrong body, so I wouldn't call her a cheat (nothing is black and white in this life, is it?).

I only see that she has enjoyed the physical challenge of triatlons, she started it as a past time and then become more active at it.

Although I do think there is an unfair advantage to her by competing on woman's competition (same advantage I felt was there, when Pistorious competed at the main olympics wearing his springy blades or when the Americans showed up with highly engineered bikes for speed cycling competitions), I do not think it would be right to tell her, after all that she has gone through, that she is not "actually" a woman, because she is in almost of the sense of the word.

Would gender specific competitions be the way to go? isn't that as discriminative to be forced to compete in such way therefore waving their right to privacy and hindering their transition process? It's all very complex I think.