Second reading of Gender Identity Bill 24th Feb

[Stopmakingsense]

If you haven't raised this with your MP yet, now is the time -
www.transgendertrend.com/gender-identity-rights-of-the-child/

Already done it and started a new thread xx

I'll be doing this. Thanks for the reminder

Thanks for flagging this up - will be doing.

I've written to my MP about it. He didn't write back last time I wrote about something similar, let's see if he does this time.

I'very been poised to write to my mp for days but it's so daunting a task compared to anything I've written to him about before. When I start, I keep spewing out everything onto the page and it's too much. I want to remain factual, succinct and add some links to impact full examples. Would anyone share with me their letter? Happy for you to pm me. I'm a long time mostly lurker who reads the feminism chat board frequently and fumes. I suspect there are many of us who read, fume but don't post.

Impactful

I'm still awaiting a response from my MP. I've a feeling I will be waiting a while...

Fortunately it is a private member's bill so very unlikely to get anywhere.

oftenlate

It is a massively daunting task, I agree. But please do it. I can't share my letter as it is so specific. And it's bloody long! I wanted to keep it short, but failed miserably. At least I know I have given them all the information I wanted them to have.

You could do it as a series of questions?

You could insist they provide you with any evidence of the science that underpins the 'Born in the wrong body narrative', whilst linking to sites that completely dispute it.

You could ask if they approve of the sterilisation of somebody as soon as they reach 18.

You could suggest that 10 girls coming out in a well-known girls' school at the same time can't possibly be authentic. And why do they think that is happening?

You could ask why Jess Phillips and Flick Drummond were unable, or unwilling to actually define the word woman.

And you could ask how have women's rights eroded to the extent where it is now illegal for women together officially in a woman only space without the presence of a man, should that man say so.

You might also ask why Maria Miller's report in all it's 98 pages didn't mention autogynephilia once. And was this deliberate?

We are socialised not to be strident or militant. We are socialised not to be shocking. We must be sensible, rational, not offend. So although I was perfectly polite in my letter and tried not to sound as angry as I am, along with perfectly sound arguments, I also included links and cut and paste comments from transactivists which should make any normal person's hair curl. And because these are not confined to the fringes of the outskirts of the Internet, there are thousands to choose from.

Finally a UK petition re Gender Identity Bill : citizengo.org/en-gb/pc/41304-say-not-dangerous-gender-identity-bill?tc=fb&tcid=32808372

Datun, your letter sounds excellent. The inclusion of links so that politicians can inform themselves about what trans activism and trans ideology actually involves is a good idea.

I'm Australian and we have similar legislation being proposed in our state parliament. I am writing a letter to my MP which keeps the focus on debunking gender identity ideology. I think it is very important to make a distinction between 'gender identity' (the belief that the state of being male or female is a 'feeling' rather than a biological reality) and transsexualism (a medical condition in which a person feels deeply distressed about their sexed body and wishes to change it to resemble that of the opposite sex).

IMO, that is what is doing all the harm - the determination of trans activists to impose their ontology of gender across all of society. We must keep emphasising this: this is not about attacking people's right to live as transsexuals, it is about challenging an ideology that looks progressive on the surface but is actually anti-woman, anti-gay and anti-science. In this instance, the current legislation enshrining the right to self-declared 'gender identity' would effectively eliminate all sex-based protections for women, given that gender identity will now override sex in determining who is a man or a woman.

Transsexual people have the right to live their lives without discrimination or harm, but they do not have the right to force everyone to adopt gender identity ideology. This ideology is not only repressive (in that it forces everyone to go along with an evidence-free belief system) and regressive (in that it reinforces and amplifies sex roles), it is causing real material harm to women and children.

We need better legislation than one that wrenches the categories of 'man' and 'woman' free from any objective criteria. It is possible to legislate to balance the rights of transsexuals with those of women and children, and politicians need to urgently come up with ways to do so. This necessarily involves rejecting outright the absurd proposition that a woman (or a man) is anyone who claims to be a woman, and therefore rejecting self-declaration as the only criteria for legal change of gender. Otherwise politicians are walking us all into an Orwellian future in which the material reality of sex difference - and the myriad ways this impacts women - will become impossible to describe, let alone form policy around.

Speaking of the future, the mutilation, sterilisation and use of untested drugs on the bodies of sex-role non-conforming children is going to be a huge scandal in the coming years - it might not hurt to remind MPs of this, too. FYI for anyone who needs them here are some links on what the shockingly irresponsible, and rapidly expanding, paediatric transition industry is doing to children:

4thwavenow.com/2017/01/26/shriveled-raisins-the-bitter-harvest-of-affirmative-care/

4thwavenow.com/2017/01/20/gendercare-london-private-clinic-with-a-winning-business-model/

www.transgendertrend.com/gender-identity-rights-of-the-child/

youthtranscriticalprofessionals.org/2016/10/23/questioning-academic/

All of this will probably end up in my letter, other posters should feel free to use or adapt any of it if they like.

Another FYI, here is a list of the rights and protections that women will lose if self-ID of gender becomes law, if you need specific examples to include in your letter.

gendertrender.wordpress.com/2013/07/11/transgender-rights-the-elimination-of-the-human-rights-of-women/

donkey

Re that link. I often end up reading Gallus Meg. It's a real eye opener.

Thankyou Donkeyskin and Datun. Your points have helped me to remain focused on the main issues.

Good post, Donkeyskin.

As the bill won't go through this time, people shouldn't feel they need to write really long letters to their MPs. I imagine most MPs don't read their letters carefully anyway in most cases. A short letter pointing out the potential risks is enough to alert the MP to the issues so they're better prepared for when the next bill comes along.

I think this is 24.03.17 rather than Feb.

I think it is March. I thought it was today but just checked

There is an error on the Parliament page services.parliament.uk/bills/2016-17/genderidentityprotectedcharacteristic.html

It says "This Bill is expected to have its second reading debate on 24 February 2017." But the Next Event (2nd reading) is 24.3.17. And it is not on today's debate schedule

It was postponed.
Giving us all more time to write to our MPs.

The petition now stands are over 10,000 signatures, however if people are really concerned then more signatories need to be added: citizengo.org/en-gb/pc/41304-say-not-dangerous-gender-identity-bill?tc=fb&tcid=32808372

The petition mobile website doesn't seem to work on Safari (which would be the first mobile browser that I'd test, but maybe that's just me).

Oh! I was wondering why I'd not seen any more about this. Would it be an idea for the OP to ask MNHQ to edit the title and add - postponed until March 24th ?

Does anyone know why it was postponed? Is there any way that it could be because they had a flurry of protests as the date drew near?

I think it just dropped down the list because there was stuff that was seen as more pressing.

MY MP has ignored my email, I'll try again.

Dj

Send a hard copy in the post. Write on the email that you're sending a hard copy in the post. And write on the one in the post this was emailed on such and such a date.

I think they must get hundreds of emails every day, but in this day and age, an actual letter is probably rarer and harder to ignore.