Artistic Director of Queer Up North speaks out on trans activism, Stonewall and women's rights

[SanctimoniousMorph]

medium.com/@JonnnyBest/the-story-of-my-first-brush-with-trans-activism-and-what-i-learned-3ef13e31fd37

The Speccie article is only 800 words and I probably won't have space to quote more than one or two people - depends how the draft works out. But I will be writing a longer piece on this subject and will have much more space to incorporate more of your real-life examples and thoughts.
Thanks.

Here are some threads on MN where we have talked about the definition of transphobia:
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/3228034-Is-it-possible-to-have-a-discussion-about-coming-up-with-a-definition-of-transphobia-that
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/3185803-If-you-think-mn-is-strongly-transphobic
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/3236288-Excellent-article-on-the-problem-of-transphobia

Trans Activism and the Lesbian community:
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/3146166-Transactivism-and-the-lesbian-community

"Gender Critical Greatest Hits" gives a good overview
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/3318916-Gender-Critical-Greatest-Hits

Then there have been the cases of women being reported to the police:
Posie Parker
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/3190731-Woman-questioned-under-caution-and-banned-from-leaving-the-country-for-criticising-Mermaids
Linda Bellos
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/3237264-Linda-Bellos-arrested-Title-edited-by-MNHQ-to-make-clear-that-she-was-in-fact-interviewed-under-caution
An anonymous poster tells her story here:
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/3329006-as-i-was-saying-about-the-police

And we can't forget James Caspian, a psychotherapist who specialises in gender and was blocked from researching detransitioners due to "political correctness" (i.e. alleged transphobia) despite the man being a trustee of the Beaumont Society
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/3042941-Gender-surgery-regret-Academic-blocked-from-researching-it

Spiked

www.spiked-online.com/newsite/article/women-dont-have-penises/21722#.W3qnMYqxWhA

Yeah, Pippa Bunce. Woman some days, man some days, depends on how they feel when they get up in the morning

And I bet he doesn't take a pay cut on the days when s/he decides she's she.

And Jonnybest - strength to your writing arm (as an academic, I hope the PhD doesn't suffer too much ) - maybe you might like to include something somewhere about the fact that even with a GRC an [aristocratic] transman cannot inherit his father's title if born female (even though a GRC allows the altering of a birth certificate).

And an [aristocratic] transwoman can still inherit her father's title because born male (even though a GRC allows the altering of a birth certificate).

To me, this shows the ultimate proof that at the very centre of the British (English) establishment, no-one believes that "transwomen are women" #nodebate

as a very entitled undergrad tweeted at me before inciting a formal complaint to try to get me sacked

Here's a couple of threads about being gender critical in the workplace/academia.

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/3162788-Whats-it-like-being-gender-critical-in-your-workplace

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/academics_corner/3097123-Coming-out-as-critical-of-trans-ideology-impact-on-career

JonnyBest
There is a new thread on the specific question of examples of silencing in the debate, started by Mamaryllis:
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/3341433-Examples-of-Silencing-in-trans-debate

The BBC did a hatchet job on fair play for women, you could link the spec James Kirkup piece to yours via a quick mention.

Thanks, everyone. I appreciate all of this.
J

Thanks for doing this JonnyBest.

We can give you loads of info, but you have the platform.

You've no idea how frustrating it is having all this data and no means of disseminating it.

So thanks.

Ask any therapist why they dislike working with Cluster B: splitting, shifting goalposts, hyperbolic sense of being under attack and responding in kind. Constant boundary violation. Constant and escalating need for validation.

This. With bells on.

Datun writes:
We can give you loads of info, but you have the platform.

It's worth remembering that all I did was write something and stick it on Medium. I am not a journalist. I have never written an article before. It reached an audience because those people with thousands and thousands of twitter followers thought it worth re-tweeting. The only thing I had was a little bit of LGBT capital as the former director of Queer Up North.

Nobody is more surprised by all the interest in my Medium piece than me.

My message to everyone is
Please don't let the thought that you don't have a platform stop you from writing yourself

It's worth remembering that all I did was write something and stick it on Medium. I am not a journalist. I have never written an article before. It reached an audience because those people with thousands and thousands of twitter followers thought it worth re-tweeting. The only thing I had was a little bit of LGBT capital as the former director of Queer Up North.

Mate. I'm not being funny or nothin'. You're a bloke. It makes all the difference in the bloody world.

Please don't let the thought that you don't have a platform stop you from writing yourself

Yep.

We are. Hundreds of us. Thousands of us.

There are 12 million women accessing Mumsnet. Hundreds of us, thousands of us writing about this.

Women.

I'm not being funny or nothin'. You're a bloke.

You got the gig because you have a penis.

Now here are three pages of the history of women writing - begging to be heard.

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/3341433-Examples-of-Silencing-in-trans-debate?watched=1&msgid=80370237#80370237

datun
I didn't mean to patronise - my apologies. I just don't agree that I have a platform - I'm just some guy who wrote a thing. Yes, a bloke - and I am horribly aware of the fact that I don't get the abuse.
I didn't mean to offend.
Sorry.

datun

This is a mis-step for me. I am not going to be defensive when I make a mistake and express myself like a bit of an idiot. I am going to try and face it head-on and own it. I meant well, but when you write something, your judgment can falter.

So...yes. I've heard you. You're 100% right. Thank you.

You'll find that people here are pretty unoffended by someone being unaware of something and then going "ahh, I see" when it's pointed out.

This place works well with robust debate and people tend to be open to talk so long as there's no gaslighting, made up science, denial of reality, instructions that men have to be put first, arguments to dismantle safeguarding, etc.

thank you nauticant
I can tell you one thing for certain: this will happen again
It's bound to. I resolved last week when I decided to wade into this stuff, that when I wrote my first stupid thing - whether on twitter, in an article, or anywhere else - I would try to just take a moment and then suck it up.

It's not always been in my nature to do that (!) - but....gotta learn some new skills here because this issue really matter to me and I am determined not to screw it up.

JonnyBest

Lord. I'm not offended.

It's not complicated. You will be listened to, more than women. You will not be subjected to same level, or amount of, abuse.

You will be listened to.

Listened to.

I'm not offended. By you.

I'm thanking you.

There is absolutely no doubt I'm not being listened to at work on this because I am a woman.

So...yes. I've heard you. You're 100% right. Thank you.

Well said. Well done. Seriously.

Datun is right, you know. People listened to what you had to say about this because you are a bloke. How many women bloggers writing about this for the first time have been given a platform by the Speccie?

Helen Saxby? Jeni Harvey? These are the first two women who come to mind, but I could name dozens.

Cheers datun
You know what happened is I read "you have a platform" and was immediately embarrassed and wanted to deflect it.
The great thing about writing an article is that clever people edit it for you and take out all the stupid stuff....!!

I know, LangCleg, I really do. I feel so awkward about it sometimes because it's so ridiculous. It's so stupid a situation. But yes, I get it. You may have to tell me again though.

Thank you for listening Johnny. We do just badly need men stepping forward and saying what we're already saying. It is v much appreciated that you are coming back and properly engaging. It feels a little odd when there are so many other men dismissing what we're saying and calling us bigots.

It shouldn't be like this. There are some properly massive brained women on here But there we go, it is.