Your comments for Penny Mordaunt

[gendercritter]

I just read on another thread that Justine is meeting with Penny Mordaunt soon.

In Justine's words: 'You should also know that I’m due to meet soon with Penny Mordaunt to discuss “any ideas you may have on the women and equalities agenda’' and I will of course reflect the strong opinion of many Mumsnetters wrt to this issue and ask her to do a webchat too.'

I thought this was worth highlighting so people can leave comments here for @justinemumsnet to mull over and raise with Penny. Perhaps, Justine, you could print them all off and hand them over to her when you see her.

Thank you.

I would ask her to define 'woman' - which should be a piece of piss seeing as she's the Minister.

I would ask her what the point is of calling for consultation if you don't believe the central question of that consultation is up for debate,

And I would ask her why she believes transwomen are women but not that transmen are men. Because if she did, she would be arguing for transmen to inherit.

Who is a transperson?

I am stuck at the first question as I am not sure if I am. Under the old rules, I am definetely not as I do not have dysphoria.

But it seems the new rules do not have a diagnosis of dysphoria as central to being trans. So cross dressing (wearing trousers) every few days and feeling masculine (reading maps well, don't coo over babies, enjoy carpentry and diy, no makeup, no high heels, stem education and job) should be enough.

Is there an objective criteria or is my say-so enough?

Do you think that the class of people born with vaginas have any experiences that are unique to that class, or suffer any forms of marginalisation, oppression or violence which affect then exclusively or disproportionately, as compared to the class of people born with penises?

If so, does the class born with vaginas need or deserve any protection in law, or spaces away from the other class, or rights or opportunities to redress the balance? Should we track rates of crime committed against the vagina class by the penis class? Should we track whether there's a pay gap between the two classes? Whether there's a difference in rates of representation in elected office, in STEM fields, in media, in corporate leadership positions? Should this group have their own sports, private spaces, opportunities to talk together and organise to fight their oppression, marginalisation, brutalisation?

If so, what word can we use to describe the vagina class - all of them, and only them - so that all of the above is even possible?

I would like to draw Mordaunt's attention to this unrolled twitter thread which discusses the different and contradictory meanings of the terms sex, gender, male, female, man and woman, as used in the Equality Act, the Gender Recognition Act and the consultation document.

Clarification is needed from the govt & @PennyMordaunt, because this is not academic, it has serious and widespread implications.

I would like Mordaunt to state clearly what she means, in terms of all these contradictory definitions, when she confidently asserts that 'transwomen are women'. I would like her to explain how this could possibly be the starting point to this debate when 'women' has no clear definition.

Has penny read the ATH manifesto?

What are her thoughts on it?

It's a bit left field (not in the party political sense) but I wonder if Penny Mordant MP might add the following books to her summer reading list?

(I know the newspapers often run articles about this around now)

George Orwell 'Animal Farm'
George Orwell 'Ninety Eight Four'
William Golding 'Lord of the Flies'

I would suggest Germaine Greer's 'The Whole Woman' as well.

How does Penny Mordaunt propose to undo the damage done to the integrity of the single sex exemptions in EqA in the wake of Maria Miller's disastrously prejudicial and biased report that proposed to remove them. Since then, organisations - for example, women's DV orgs, the Guides, YHA - have removed their exemptions in an effort to "get ahead of the law"

To that list of organisations who've gone ahead of the law I'd add: The YHA, The police, Swim England and the Caledonian Sleeper

How does Penny Mordaunt propose to undo the damage done to the integrity of the single sex exemptions in EqA in the wake of Maria Miller's disastrously prejudicial and biased report that proposed to remove them. Since then, organisations - for example, women's DV orgs, the Guides, YHA - have removed their exemptions in an effort to "get ahead of the law"

Further to this, I would like to know how Government plans to respond when the first serial rapist - someone like John Warbuoys - has exploited these new unisex spaces that were previously sex-segregated and used them as hunting grounds? What will Maria Miller say when the "Caledonian Sleeper rapist" or the "YHA rapist" is up in court and the public is baying for blood?

Will Penny Mordant as 'Women's & Equalities' minister be looking into those public figures & representatives of charities who have targetted abuse and smeared a series of women?

Will she also agree that terf is a sexist slur?

Why would you throw women under the bus like this?

Does this Government actually care about biological women and their daughters?

Why are you not listening to us?

What do you think of those slurs of Terf and Cis? Why is that not called out?

I'm gutted that we would be treated this way and just bullied and assaulted and threatened. Who protects our rights?

Oh and why is it acceptable for the Speaker of the House John Bercow to air his misogynistc views during the consultation?
And quoting hitler. There are too many dicks dick-tating right now.

Oops quoting Chuchill! Had dictators in mind and lack of free choice, Freudian slip 🤣

These questions should be sent direct to Penny Mordant not left to be ignored or watered down by Justine. I have zero faith that Justine will represent our views following her outrageous comments.

Why is updating the GRA so pressing?

When it passed in 2004 thousands of transsexuals were easily able to apply and very few failed apart from a handful of cases where there were small administrative issues. Why is this application process suddenly so demeaning? Is it because the original influx were already certified transsexuals in the days before crossdressers and other autogynephiles started claiming they should be classed as women? Why the change in definition of transsexual/transgender to now include them?

Anne - I agree completely. I suggested this on another thread, but how about the voices of mumsnet compile an open letter to Penny? Laying out the basics - starting with what a woman is and why it is important to acknowledge our biology?

I agree goldenbuns. These questions are very important and a valid part of the consultation. There’s not a chance that Justine is going to actually represent our interests in this. She’s barely been back to her own thread.

I would definitely be a part of that GoldenBuns.

WhereDowe

Yes.

We've had several 'old-school' transexuals agreeing that the system isn't demeaning as it stand

Why are single sex exemptions

1. optional
2. so rarely used

A huge amount of formerly sex segregated spaces are operated by local and national government, or th public sector (hospitals, prisons, schools, leisure facilities,). Why aren’t they using them? Why are the tories allowing mixed sex wards by stealth?

Also, how can exemptions be used if individuals can get their birth certificates changed and their files sealed?

What is her definition of transwomen? What is her definition of women?

Women have been punched and received bomb threats for simply trying to talk about their legal rights.

a. Why have you not condemned this?
b. What do you think this tells us about a consultation that affects women and children's protections is provoking violent threats when women try to discuss how to keep these?
c. How will you ensure women who are too frightened to speak because their livelihood or safety is under threat have their voices heard? Isn't the consultation just a sham if this is not addressed?

What is your opinion on the cultish use of the current antidemocratic trend for #NoDebate in mainstream media and the use of no platforming in universities?

One more although I'm sure it's already been asked:
Does the Minister for Women and Equalities understand the difference between sex and gender?

It's probably already been asked,

What are the advantages of segregation by gender,

What are the disadvantages of segregation by sex,

What measure are you putting in place to stop women and girls being hurt from male people abusing the system?

As minister for women, is Penny Mordant aware of the increased rate of domestic violence following international football games?

With England through to the next round of the World Cup, will she read this thread as a matter of urgency please and liase with organisations and charities supporting women who have been the victims of violence?

OP LordPanofthePeaks comment:
"Posters may or may not be aware of the significant rise in the experience of DV at the times of football tournaments, and most specifically the World Cup.

Anyone googling this issue will read some startling statistics, and would appreciate that as the tournament draws near this is a heighten time of risk to women. In the borough where I work the highest ever reporting time of DV was when England played Paraguay last time ( and won).

I don't wish to killjoy a fabulous event, but the darker side of it should not be ignored.

Nationally, DV incidents reported 'spike' at these times, and we can speculate why.
I do have a professional ( and personal) interest in this, and am keen to promote an awareness of this danger. I do have responsibilities in a public organisation for Domestic Violence, as well as Children and Families, and have noticed a lack of promotion of this danger which can be so easily predicted.

So I am inviting a discussion and pointers for how people, both perptrators and potential victims can do what they can to avoid this nasty experience. MN do not ahve a current DV campaign, though the strength of opinion from posters may change this."

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/978768-Domestic-Violence-and-the-World-Cup