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Mermaids review

224 replies

Glinner · 17/12/2018 14:19

Good news for people who don't believe gender non-conforming children should be told they're in the 'wrong' body, and may need a lifetime of drugs and/or surgery to 'fix' that.

twitter.com/lecanardnoir/status/1074664349854298113

OP posts:
Efferlunt · 17/12/2018 19:41

I really hope the Lottery take a long hard look at Mermaids and consider if it really has the best interests of children experiencing gender dysphoria at heart.

@Glinner I mostly lurk but I’m a huge fan of your comedy especially the incomparable Father Ted. What you are doing is very brave and principled.

AspieAndProud · 17/12/2018 19:45

Whatever the outcome of the review, are we entitled to see the full report under the Freedom of Information Act?

WrathofRancidKlop · 17/12/2018 21:00

Today on Twitter,
·Mermaids_gender twitter announcement
16 Dec
We have a NEW helpline number: 0808 xxx xxxx - It’s FREEPHONE and won’t show up on your phone bill!

Exclamation marks as well, they think of everything don't they.

VickyEadie · 17/12/2018 21:03

Now why, pray, would anyone want this number not to show up on a phone bill?

Terfing · 17/12/2018 21:03

This reply has been deleted

Message deleted by MNHQ. Here's a link to our Talk Guidelines.

ItsAllGoingToBeFine · 17/12/2018 21:06

Now why, pray, would anyone want this number not to show up on a phone bill?

TBF if they were a legitimate help line then this would be fine, Samaritans etc don't show on phone bills.

HandsOffMyRights · 17/12/2018 21:41

I note the Leather Sellers CF are saying that they might increase their grant to Mermaids
twitter.com/LeatherCharity/status/1074711049545416705
E Lord is a freeman of this company. I wonder if Lord has any input into grant decisions.

Oh really? That is interesting!

HandsOffMyRights · 17/12/2018 21:54

I note the Leather Sellers CF are saying that they might increase their grant to Mermaids
twitter.com/LeatherCharity/status/1074711049545416705
E Lord is a freeman of this company. I wonder if Lord has any input into grant decisions.

David Santa-Olalla is a Trustee of The Leathersellers' Company Charitable Fund.

David is a Governor at the University of Northampton and received an honorary fellowship in July 2018

Edward Lord OBE joined the Board of Governors at the University of Northampton on 1 August 2018. He is the son of a leather merchant.

Curiouser and curiouser...

HandsOffMyRights · 17/12/2018 22:02

Not sure if there are any familiar names/faces here (sorry, can't do clicky link):

liverydatabase.liverycompanies.info/networks/598/index.html

Sorry to de-rail the thread, but a company offering to increase its funding to Mermaids has a trustee who is a co-governor at the University of Nottingham with Edward Lord, who for those of you new to this, is calling on the City of London (he holds various key positions in the City of London) to make all toilets there mixed sex.

He also hit the headlines when the Masonic Lodge (of which he is also a senior member) says it will welcome transwomen, but not biological women (looks to R0wan for key links?)

arranbubonicplague · 17/12/2018 22:42

I can not believe some of the people on Twitter using the #IStandWithMermaids tag - including Neil Gaiman. Neil Gaiman had some sane things to say during the vaccine disputes so to see him supporting Mermaids is very disappointing.

twitter.com/neilhimself/status/1074773638874841088

Nobody is disputing the need for love and support - but the support should be evidence-based. And Mermaids does not have the body of evidence that should mandatory before embarking on such interventions. And from reports of their training, it sounds like the materials should be made available for public challenge and scrutiny.

HomeStar · 17/12/2018 23:07

I'm really confused as to why Glinner is getting the brunt of their abuse, instead of Andrew Gilligan.

Obviously not saying Andrew Gilligan should be abused, I'm just curious about how they latch on to their targets!

Glinner seems to get as much hate as a woman would, these days. I remember noticing that the hate against him had ramped up when he opened up about having cancer. I think they go for people who they see as vulnerable, and by being ill Glinner has become a viable target. I hope he has a good Christmas - take care, Glinner, if you read this. And thank you!

Also, Neil Gaiman is a friend of Roz Kaveney so he may have been prodded to jump into the fray without being fully informed of what Mermaids actually does and what the ramifications of that are.

AspieAndProud · 17/12/2018 23:27

Gaiman is an adult. If he can’t be bothered looking into something before he jumps on the bandwagon he can fuck right off.

arranbubonicplague · 17/12/2018 23:30

I'm genuinely saddened by some of the people tweeting in support of that hashtag - some people I've admired for many years and whose judgment is sound on so many other issues.

@lecanardnoir123 seems to be a very lone voice amongst the better-known sceptics.

This is getting to be as bad as being shocked by that letter signed by all of those US academics/researchers etc.

HomeStar · 17/12/2018 23:52

The Twitter noise on this is appalling, but I did enjoy this accidentally wise thought from Shon Faye:

If you're a cis gay, lesbian or bi person who doesn't know much about Mermaids - you could consider fundraising for it

If you're a person who does know anything about Mermaids, you obviously couldn't.

ReanimatedSGB · 18/12/2018 00:04

Is it really that great to make it obvious that a charitable foundation can be pressured to rethink its decisions if a group of people with a particular ideology object? There are, after all, plenty of people who disapprove of abortion and contraception who might decide to go after funding for charities like BPAS... And many charities who, while doing good work by some standards, are disapproved of or objected to by certain groups of people (eg for medical research on animals, or for having too much religious content).

OvulaRasa · 18/12/2018 00:12

Thanks @Glinner
I'm hardly post but as a mum of a NGC kid, i'm very grateful.

DandelionsAreNotLions · 18/12/2018 03:29

ReanimatedSGB

Is it really that great to make it obvious that a charitable foundation can be pressured to rethink its decisions if a group of people with a particular ideology object? There are, after all, plenty of people who disapprove of abortion and contraception who might decide to go after funding for charities like BPAS... And many charities who, while doing good work by some standards, are disapproved of or objected to by certain groups of people (eg for medical research on animals, or for having too much religious content).

It absolutely fine by me if every funding decision has its recipients scrutinised to hell.
Most charities can provide evidence of need, track records, outcomes where their stats stand up to scrutiny with an ethical backbone to match. Any that don't, well too bad for them.

Why do you think Mermaids have been trying to whip the twitter hoarded in to a froth to try and stop any scrutiny?

Blockyiursekf · 18/12/2018 06:18

"Why do you think Mermaids have been trying to whip the twitter hoarded in to a froth to try and stop any scrutiny?"

Exactly this. Mermaids are going to make such a fuss that everyone will back down without ever looking at what exactly they do. I hope they get sued to hell in years to come when the realisation dawns.

teawamutu · 18/12/2018 06:59

Neil Gaiman? Nooooo Angry

TheSteveMilliband · 18/12/2018 08:01

Do we need a place to collect the various evidence relating to mermaids?
The court case they were excluded from, promoting the Webberleys, the pro transing kids statements?

ReanimatedSGB · 18/12/2018 08:40

Quite a lot of wild claims are made on both sides - but generally, funding bodies go in for their due diligence and are satisfied as to the legitimacy of the charity before they award any money. And, again, the idea that any charity can be clobbered just because one group objects to it for any reason and can make enough noise... it's a bit worrying. Always be cautious of rules and regulations that you think are only applicable to your opponents, because your opponents will find a way to use them against you, too.

TimeLady · 18/12/2018 08:40

The Big Lottery can't ignore an article in The Times which suggests any impropriety. Particularly if they read the comments, which are a far better indicator of public opinion than Twitter.

The bigger the Twitter pile on, the more those doing it look unhinged.

hackmum · 18/12/2018 08:45

ReanimatedSG - I don't know if you're deliberately missing the point, but our objection to Mermaids isn't an ideological one, it's about safeguarding. It's exactly the same objection we'd have if the lottery funding body had decided to give a grant to the Paedophile Information Exchange. Mermaids are promoting practices that are harmful to children and that are currently illegal.

Ereshkigal · 18/12/2018 08:46

Quite a lot of wild claims are made on both sides - but generally, funding bodies go in for their due diligence and are satisfied as to the legitimacy of the charity before they award any money.

Mermaids are problematic in a number of areas, so I can't see how that could be. Hence the review, I guess? This is public funding. They are accountable for their decisions in the court of public opinion, at the very least.

hackmum · 18/12/2018 08:46

By the way, Neil Gaiman is as woke as they come, so no surprise there.