Martina Navratilova states the obvious

[Glinner]

twitter.com/Martina/status/1075193284660785153

At first I was delighted to see thisat last a big name in women's sport is speaking up! but then I got angry all over again that this utterly obvious point has to be explained to an adult, in this case, a Guardian journalist. It boggles the mind.

@GrinitchSpinach

"What a special victim McKinnon is. So women are meant to race against RM and if they say, "hang on, this is not fair," THEY are bullies who need disciplining?"

Yes indeed, McKinnon is a real individual, a typical bully, always playing the victim, even convincing the UCI (Mind you they believed Lance Armstrong, so what does that tell you).

@howard97A

Indeed Howard, but as we see here, the lardarse would have got his butt kicked.

mastersworlds2018.veloresults.com/pdf/208M35spqr.pdf

History tells us that men who beat up women are seriously incapable of doing so againsy other men.
They are sad and sick individuals.

www.outsports.com/2019/1/6/18171654/what-to-do-trans-critic-support

Another whiny lecture from McKinnon directed towards Martina.

I think I sprained my eyeballs rolling them too hard. Cyclepath indeed.

from link above, this seems to be the re-education required by Dr McKinnon:

'Here’s what to do, and not to do, when you do something transphobic
Even people like Martina Navratilova can stumble on trans issues. How you react to that stumble can mean the world to trans people.'
(extract
"The same is true for Navratilova: While she has a close relationship with some trans women, including former pro tennis player Renee Richards, this doesn’t immunize her from having transphobic beliefs or committing transphobic acts.

In this case, there are real, tangible, factual issues with what Navratilova said publicly. A penis has absolutely nothing to do with sport performance. Genitals are irrelevant to hitting a tennis ball, riding a bike, or throwing a javelin. Recognizing this, the International Olympic Committee updated its transgender policy in November 2015 to remove the genital-surgery requirement.

Navratilova is supporting an outdated policy that was deemed unnecessary and unfair to trans women years ago.

Treating trans women with a penis as not ‘real’ women is, indeed, transphobic. Supporting the false claim that trans women can just up and declare themselves female, and that’s it, is transphobic. Being legally recognized as female is a difficult, complicated and sometimes impossible (depending on where one lives) process.

Eventually Navratilova gave what I think was a disingenuous “apology.”

“Ok- I take it back,” she wrote. “Clearly I do t know what u am [sic] talking about. So once again- I will defer to Renee Richards as she certainly knows what she is talking about. I will find that tweet and delete it. All I want is fairness. Thank you.”

I’m not saying Navratilova is a transphobe. That’s not my point at all. But when the overt transphobes, like Julie Bindel, think that you’re on their side, I think that warrants a serious reconsideration of your actions. Navratilova did say she would double back and do some research on the subject to educate herself. I hope she does.

Suggestions on responding to criticism
Yet looking at these exchanges between Navratilova and me, as well as other trans women, how could this have gone better?

I know that being called out publicly never feels good. It’s always embarrassing and feels bad. Yet sometimes people who think their intentions are good make mistakes. Here’s what not to do, as a cisgender person supporting trans inclusion in sports, when someone points out those mistakes.

In the moment, do not make the calling out about you and your feelings. When you step on someone’s toes, and they yell at you to get off, get off their toes and apologize. Definitely don’t demand that they ask you nicely.

Moreover, don’t respond to criticism saying that you might as well not be supportive of the harmed group of people if they’re going to be mean to you about you harming them.

Here’s what you can do.

1. Acknowledge that, yes, you did the harmful thing that people are calling attention to.

1. Apologize, and mean it. If the harm was public, the apology needs to be public.

1. Delete the harmful content (if possible).

1. Listen to the criticism and thank the people calling you out. People often only call out if they genuinely want the person to do better.

1. Commit to doing better, and put in the work.

I still have hope for Navratilova." (continues)

I still have hope for Navratilova.
Bwah ha ha ha ha
Priceless.

When you step on someone’s toes, and they yell at you to get off, get off their toes and apologise

The irony still occasionally has power to astound me

RM's whole recent trajectory comes across like a hard-hitting piece of performance art all about privilege and its consequences

It's unutterably embarrassing. I really don't get it, the self-awareness is appalling.

When you step on someone’s toes, and they yell at you to get off, get off their toes and apologise
Yes indeed, the toes I am concerned for are those of Carolien Van Herrikhuyzen, Jen Wagner-Assali and Sarah Fader.

When you step on someone’s toes, and they yell at you to get off, get off their toes and apologise.
Yes indeed, the toes I am concerned for are those of Carolien Van Herrikhuyzen, Jen Wagner-Assali and Sarah Fader.

I think all three of them would be expect to not just thank the cyclepath stepping on their toes, but offer to make the rest of their bodies available for treading on too.

Does RM have any advice to give a person who breaks into someone else's house without their permission and jumps on their head?

There's one thing I do agree with RM on:

In this case, there are real, tangible, factual issues with what Navratilova said publicly. A penis has absolutely nothing to do with sport performance. Genitals are irrelevant to hitting a tennis ball, riding a bike, or throwing a javelin.

Quite right. It should be irrelevant whether a male has had surgery or not, because that makes no retrospective difference to the development of their frame, lungs etc. No male should be competing in female sports.

It should be irrelevant whether a male has had surgery or not, because that makes no retrospective difference to the development of their frame, lungs etc. No male should be competing in female sports.

This. A million times this.

She’s just great

Well done Martina!!!

I think all three of them would be expect to not just thank the cyclepath stepping on their toes, but offer to make the rest of their bodies available for treading on too.

“I ask no favor for my sex. All I ask of our brethren is that they take their feet off our necks.” Ruth Bader Ginsberg

The Narcissist:

"Has a sense of entitlement, with unreasonable expectations of favourable treatment or automatic compliance with his or her expectations.The entitlement of the narcissist is difficult to deal with, because it leaves out the needs of anyone else. The narcissist's needs come first. They feel they deserve that royal treatment, and if you will not cooperate, they may take you down, make disparaging comments about you, try to hurt you, and withhold appreciation of you"

"Is interpersonally exploitative, and takes advantage of others to achieve his or her own ends., To the narcissist, the other person does not matter. It is only about what the person can do to help the narcissist in whatever endeavor they are pursuing. The narcissist thinks nothing of taking advantage of others to meet their own goals."

medium.com/@Antonia_Lee/of-sport-sex-and-gender-23b455e44b61

Factual and balanced piece.

medium.com/@Antonia_Lee/myonuclei-the-male-to-female-sporting-advantage-ae205110d4b2

Another contribution from Dr. Antonia Lee.

Martina retweeted it

Yet again that paper suggests that the Olympic position (like so many advantages granted to this group) is based on someone positioning themselves close to the centre of power and presenting fiction / fake news as 'facts' which is then uncritically believed because they're trans.
It's bloody everywhere and so many organisations just buy into the 'oppressed' mantra without looking at the facts and the context, let alone considering the impact on any other groups .

Yes, feministfairy. It's been an amazingly effective strategy across so many realms.

It also seems predicated on the notion that this is likely to have very little impact. I've said this before and I'll say it again - most men cannot imagine that any other man would want to transition for personal gain. And I think that informs a lot of the thinking.

I've just been reading the NCAA guidance and they only talk about hormone treatment or surgery. They also repeat the absolute nonsense that men's levels of testosterone falls to that of a woman after a year of treatment. But Andraya Yearwood will not be able to compete against girls at college, no matter how they identify, unless they have been on hormone treatment for at least a year.