Two more women attacked by trans activists

[ferntwist]

At least two more feminists have been attacked by trans chauvinists today, set upon while they were handing out leaflets at the Anarchist Book Fair. One is Green Party candidate Olivia Palmer and the other a trade union rep Helen Steel

What a shame @Betty184

Mind you, I can see why women are getting scared

This is exactly what they want though, to scare people and shut them up. I understand being concerned about possible violence though...but at the same time I think all these events cancelling is just playing into their hands.

I agree Horny

What was it Ada Whatzit tweeted (ex Women's officer of Edinburgh Uni) after the Speakers' Corner assault? Something about 'if everyone there had punched a terf and every terf had left bruised and bloody they'd soon stop organising'.

Ada Wells. Yeah. I don’t think he understands women very well.

Unsurprisingly.

He’s also the same jerk who carried a banner at pride to say kids, puberty is optional - take hormone blockers.

Violent, unstable, misogynistic, dangerous.

Wasn't it Ada Wells who called women "cuntscum"? And she wants to be accepted as a "real" woman. Hmmmmm.

There's an account of what happened here:

www.reddit.com/r/GenderCritical/comments/79ilfx/radfems_kicked_out_of_london_anarchist_bookfair/

The OP who wrote that account responded to a reply as follows:

The worst thing is it is mostly people of my generation doing this, young people. I worry for the future because the people who built the left wing movement are being hunted down and shut out, their ideals about freedom and critical thought going (literally) out the door with them.

It was comforting to read; I’ve been feeling all “Argh, what is wrong with the kids these days!” lately, precisely because of the very worrying state of affairs described.

Comforting in the glad-it’s-not-all-in-my-imagination sense. So only a bit comforting.

Just to clarify a couple of details in the Reddit account...

Helen has tweeted that she wasn't distributing leaflets, but supported the right of the two women to do so.

Also, the two women who did distribute leaflets left after the initial confrontation. The subsequent hour and a half abuse and name calling was specifically directed towards Helen.

This is so upsetting to hear about.

I feel like I should be doing more to support these women. Maybe bringing my big dog with me and attending some of these events.

The lack of respect towards the social justice campaigner Helen Steel (taking on McDonalds!!! a heroine!!!) is appalling. I imagine they didn't even know who she is or what she's done. The ignorance.

There is a tweet thread here from someone who was there, covering the bit where Helen was being intimidated/threatened/called a terf cunt.

It sounds horrendous and properly frightening.

twitter.com/pasttense/status/924749766046691328

The ignorance

Indeed. This nonsense has been playing out online for so long, I suspect the Tumblerites are going to be in for a shock as it starts to seep out into the mainstream.

More and more people with a track record and proven cred are questioning it.

There is a certain fascinating inevitability to the process. People who are merely curious start to ask questions and then face the normal massive overreaction. Which only serves to provoke more questions.

And when that results in threats, it blows the lid off the instability of the ideology and the people who support it.

Most people who spend any time looking at this quickly realise it doesn’t stand up to scrutiny. And the whole process is speeded up by transactivists’ own reaction to it.

The sheer desperation to shut down debate, re-write events and besmirch people is going to be chalked up as one of the worst strategies ever.

It’s perfect really. They have to shut down debate because debate exposes the flaws in the ideology. So when perfectly reasonable people call for debate, even in the most minimum of terms, they simply can’t do it.

I’ve been reading a thread on Gendertrender which is very interesting. Women, regular women, are identifying as trans. On the basis that although they are born women, they now identify as transwomen. Because gender identification has absolutely zero to do with biology, right? It’s just how you feel. Unquestionable and undeniable.

The horror from transactivists is palpable. According to their own ideology, you can’t tell women that they are not allowed to identify as transwomen on the basis that they are born women, because biology has nothing to do with it.

They are saying, or rather they want to say, you can’t do that because biology matters. Except, according to them it doesn’t.

They are saying women cannot appropriate trans-womenhood. But if transwomen are women (on the basis of a feeling) then women can be transwomen, on exactly the same basis, right?

The messers become the messees - as Monica would say.

Does anyone wish they’d been there? I bloody do.

hipsterfun

I was thinking this. The furious sense of outrage makes you think you would behave in a certain way. Is that what you mean?

But after a little more thought, I realised that 30 odd men hellbent on intimidation would have been petrifying and something I would have fled from.

I'm not sure I completely understand the trans issue ( other than some trans activists are nutters) but that leaflet doesn't help.
It's terrible! Really badly written, with typos and repetition. It's also quite unclear (and a bit over dramatic sounding) to anyone not familiar with the ideas.
They should get someone with proper communications chops to do a better one.

Datun
Just read that thread and it's hilarious. The spluttering indignation.

Datun funnily enough I am a massive coward about 99% of most physical dangers (including motorways, heights, electric appliances, flights - you name it and I'm frightened of it), but men being arseholes, even physically, tends to mean I automatically step forward instead of back. I put this down to early training with my dad, who was a violent drunk. When he kicked off, you were actually safer standing up to him than running, because even if you got hit, you didn't get hit as much, and you also left the encounter feeling much more in control.

Similar thing with me, Annie.

Assigned

I was struggling with that thread at first. And then I realised it was because I was applying my own logic (i.e. biology does indeed matter).

But as soon as I whipped out my own logic and replaced with trans logic, it made perfect sense.

The wims on there are pissing themselves.

ArcheryAnnie

Yes, I admit, I too have a slightly aggressive reaction to intimidation. And I do come over all Walter Mitty about these situations.

It’s the arrogant complacency of some men who intimidate where ever they go, fuelled by entitlement.

My initial reaction is rage. It’s automatic and not something one can control.

But faced with scores of them, I can’t help feeling that fear would become the governing emotion.

It is, after all, the basis of the power dynamic. Without the fear of violent repercussion, inequality wouldn’t have any legs.

I’m sorry you suffered at the hands of your father. If it’s any consolation, as I read your post, I had an unbidden, fleeting, mental image of solidarity as we faced him together.

Fuckers.

IfNot

If there is anything that isn’t clear to you about the trans issue, don’t be afraid to ask.

It’s complex and multilayered. And fraught with unfamiliar terminology.

I don’t blame you for finding it as clear as mud.

hipsterfun solidarity!

Datun what a lovely thing to say, thank you. (This is a really fucked-up thing, I realise, but it's weird to think that learning how to deal with violent men was probably the most valuable thing I ever learned from my dad.)

Datun
Just seeing that this was a thing on twitter over the weekend too. A lot of GC women have a lot of fun with it. Brilliant