Momentum and misogyny

[Patodp]

Hello, I support Corbyn and joined the Labour Party in reaction to my support.
I have also donated to the "Keep women only Shortlists Female" fundraising page and have seen comments made in light of this, how Momentum are misogynistic.

I'd like to know how exactly please?(In my opinion they are a load of teenagers crying out for representation and are not out to hurt women)

How is breaking both the Equality Act and Labour Party rules that protect women a good idea?

Imo they are harming women and girls by not only supporting but pushing the Trans ideology. It is putting men onto women only shortlists. That's plenty for me.

I wouldn't be surprised if they were to push for every women's list to include at least one trans. Groups like this often overplay their hand.

That’s why I’m a bit bemused by Jennifer James’s comments lauding Jon Lansdam and his new seat on the NEC, she’s a massive Corbyn /Momentum fan but aren’t they the ones driving the whole Trans self id thing?

Am I missing something?

Well really, you'd have to ask the people that made those comments, we cant speak for them. But I dont see any Momentum followers supporting womens rights to women only psychiatric wards or prisons.

'Momentum' on a Twitter profile is pretty much internet shorthand for 'probably a sexist wanker'. (See also: any guy that calls himself a 'male feminist').

Bromentum are pretty notorious for their dudebro style harassment of women within the party. This article from the Evening Standard mentions their antics...

www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.standard.co.uk/lifestyle/london-life/how-did-labour-become-the-new-nasty-party-for-women-a3300161.html%3famp

MPs who have raised feminist criticisms of the leadership have also received an online onslaught. Much of this abuse is believed to be coming from activists in the hard Left group Momentum (or “Bromentum” as some feminists have dubbed it), although there may also be misogynists who’ve jumped on the bandwagon and send abuse under the label of Momentum.

There have also been reported incidents of sexism at Momentum gatherings, including one of Corbyn's supporters named Clive Lewis being filmed shouting at a woman to "Get on your knees, b*tch."

Maybe it's a few bad apples, but honestly the ones that I've interacted with online seem to be uniformly sexist and aggressive towards women.

I campaigned with a Momentum group at the last general election. If I had to profile the average person it would be: female, 30s, public sector worker, anti-austerity. They were all lovely. And trans issues didn't come up at all, on the doorstep or off it. It was all anti-austerity stuff.

But I'm not in/near a big university centre or big city, where ID pol seems to be at its most intense. And I'm also not in a constituency with a vocally anti-Corbyn MP so there's been no friction in the CLP.

I think there's a big difference between the online Momentum activists (and the Momentum leadership) and the ones who just want decent public services restored.

I am female and a Labour member and a feminist and while I am not a Momentum member, I do know a lot of them.
Yes, there are some misogynists in the group but I do think there are fewer than in other factions and other parties.
Most of the stuff read in the media about Momentum is either nonsense or exaggerated.
With regards the link, George Osborne's Evening Standard isn't going spend any effort writing a fair article when they can throw faeces instead.
Clive Lewis said that to a man and a friend as a joke - still a jerk move - but not to a strange woman as is commonly reported. A good example of how the narrative is exaggerated. [Not excusing it! But we do need to make a decision on things that were said on the basis of what actually happened]
There are actually a lot of female members, and most are ordinary people - teachers, nurses etc, not the hard line trade unionists the DM likes to think they are.
Judging a party by their worst members on Twitter is just daft. There are trolls from all political spectrums on there.
And as a woman on the left, I've had a lot more abuse thrown at me from the hard right than the hard left.
You can dislike Momentum as much as you like, but I strongly recommend getting to the source of the story - YouTube video, statement etc - before deciding they're a bunch of misogynists because that is definitely not my experience as a woman and a feminist.

Yes, there are some misogynists in the group but I do think there are fewer than in other factions and other parties.
With regards my statement on this, I should say I haven't met a single misogynistic Momentum member in rl even though I've done a lot of campaigning, only the occasional online troll who might be.

I'm happy to stand corrected. I've only dealt with them online, and while those that I've interacted with have been uniformly sexist and aggressive, I accept that it may not reflect with IRL membership.

I've met and campaigned with very high profile Momentum people, VERY close to Corbyn.

Rife misogyny. Including strategic planning of all women shortlists in order to make sure men got the safe seats. Men who hit their wives. Foul cover ups. Use of prostitutes.

The Momentum infiltration turned the LP into a cesspit and I actually believe it traumatised me. I'll never vote for them again. And I'd never voted for any other party.

I saw this article today: see if this is useful to you?

fairplayforwomen.com/questions-left-wing-people-support-self-definition-woman

I've met and campaigned with very high profile Momentum people, VERY close to Corbyn.

That, I can believe. It's sad for all the lovely and well-meaning people who have joined and put in lots of effort and who just want an end to austerity, decent housing for all, and public services that work.

It is sad.

I'm a lifelong leftie. Always voted. Always voted Labour. But I've seen too much now. I personally find it to be more or less an aggressive cult. That's my experience.

Jess Phillips? What she has to say about the misogyny at the heart of the Labour Party doesn’t make pretty reading: www.thetimes.co.uk/article/jess-phillips-labour-under-corbyn-feels-like-i-ve-been-locked-out-of-my-home-laura-pidcock-amber-rudd-maria-miller-stella-creasey-jacob-rees-mogg-gs5xp8mh7?shareToken=a0f3d40fa1b529f5617b2b8434d0738c

Thanks for your thoughts and links. Glitterypink great read.

Jiggly I know Jessica Philips, and Stella Creasey, Yvette Cooper and the rest on that little club hate Corbyn so what they say is not exactly a surprise. 600 rape threats in one day though that is made! Like WTAF mad.
It does not say that the rape threats were all from Momentum people though. I very much doubt they were.

Stella Creasey "resigned" from Corbyn's shadow cabinet during that mass resignation coup led by Hillary Benn, when she didn't even have an offer of a place in the Shadow Cabinet. They have conflicts which aren't anything to do with Momentum.

Gacapa Which safe Labour MPs are hitting their wives and using prostitutea ? ? Is Any of that true? Unbelievable.

Just on the transwomen are women thing.

From the outside it looks like Labour are fast-tracking all TIMs into women's positions. Fast-tracking at the speed of light it seems.

Sophie Cook and Anna Lees both got onto the Jo Cox Women in Leadership course.

Heather Peto (TIM) was on an AWS and got elected to contest the Rutland and Melton seat.

Lily Madigan got the job of Women's Officer at the CLP level.

Questions for me are:

Are there any TIMs in the labour party who have not been fastracked into women's positions?
Are we seeing TIFs being handed power in the same way and in similar numbers? If so, where are they?
What role, if any, is Momentum playing in this?

Transwomen do seem to be massively over represented that's true.
I assume because Momentum has mostly a youth/young adult core, they will be of the "Trans is so cool and Transwoman are women" variety... as you find this in practically all youth groups.

Who'd have thought grown ladies would end up fighting against what the kids want!

Well if you're just going to dismiss their experiences and opinions out of hand because they're not team Corbyn, there's not much of a discussion to be had is there?

@Popchyk - Madigan is a Momentum candidate for sure. Don't know about the others, but wouldn't be surprised.

Momentum mobilised well enough to see off Eddie Izzard though, didn't they?

I think you have to be the right kind of trans (ie young, TIM and unquestioning) to get Momentum backing.

My own experience of Momentum has been fine in my area. Lots of older women at the top who don't take any shit.

Still, I got shouted down in other lefty groups I am a part of for calling out John McDonald's mansplaining bollocks about the gender balance of the shadow cabinet. The majority of men there seriously don't see the problem.

I have also had to leave a number of online forums/groups due to the rape apology expressed without question. In fact I got hounded/booted off one for suggesting they didn't break the law and post potentially identifying information about sexual assault victims.

There are potential male feminist allies on the left, but they let everyone down when they don't call this shit out, in a way they would never leave comment about Palestine hanging.

Never fear! Baldrick's here!

Sorry, Sir Baldrick.

www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2018/01/16/labour-completely-taken-leftist-clique-says-sir-tony-robinson/

I only know a couple of members irl and they are concerned about struggling with low income, high cost of everything and restoring a bit of hope for non-wealthy people. I don't have bad experiences from them but I guess online would be different.

But nice to see other left wing feminists here. It sometimes seems that as a low income woman with no support network my main concerns are so far removed from those of the average commentator here on mn.

TBH Corbyn comes across as a typical grumpy old man stuck in yesteryear's dogmatic socialist ideology. He is like most older men, stuck in his ways, inflexible in his thinking, single track mind. He must be a bloody nightmare to live with. I am also well with the asual antisemitism displayed by Corbyn's nearest and dearest.

I certainly do not see Cobyn as a feminist, not way. Which is

• typical as in a grumpy old man who is stuck in the thinking of his youth. Completely inflexible mind. Not a leader but a petulant and puerile man.