Hi, I'm Liz the Glitch! Ask me anything.

[glitchliz]

The thread I wrote about attending Posie Parker's panel on gender identity and social media has attracted a lot of attention, and I thought it might be good to establish more of a dialogue. Ask me anything!

Also, to get this one out of the way: my babysitting rates are £15/hr, plus flights, and I'll provide a clean CRB check 😂

Hebe have you discussed this with the rest of the admins? Is this an official position? Seems quite a combatitive line to take.

Should I have heard of you? Are you important?

Yes I would like to know what "woman" feels like. Specifically, woman, not just not matching your body or whatever. I've suffered from anorexia and BDD so I don't need incongruity with self perception explained. Just how to tell you are a woman.

Hi everyone,

We've had a conflab about this thread and decided we made a mistake deleting it.

When we took it down we did so because we thought the OP was not here with genuine intentions but we have since spoken to her and think we got that wrong.

We've suggested she come back and do the AMA again (although will be under a new nickname as the previous account has been deleted). If she does come back we will of course be keeping a close eye on the discussion and ask everyone to post with our guidelines in mind and keep the conversation civil.

Many thanks to all those who raised this yesterday with us and apologies that we acted a bit prematurely.

Good call 😊

Fantastic. I missed reading it. I really think it is important to allow these debates.

Thanks MNHQ - do appreciate your desire to be even handed, but it's so important to show we're open to debate and conversation.

Thanks @MNHQ. I think reinstatement is the right call.

Is this supposed to be back?

Thank you Mumsnet, absolutely brilliant that you've listened to the forum members here.

Oops. Posted too quickly.

It's obviously a Balancing act but banning and deleting a thread before any wrong doing had happened is not on.

Yes. Good call. Thanks (as ever) for listening.

I have 2 questions:

1. Who is Liz in relation to all this.

1. I'm white, female and 5 foot, currently breastfeeding my baby. If I told you I was male, black and 6'2" would you honestly accept my own view of my identity enough to say it's ok for me to access organisations or support for a black man? For example a college scholarship.

Pleased this is back. I hope Liz comes back to answer some questions.

I was anxious because I had no idea how people would react to a trans woman being there.

And you were left alone.

Interesting isn't it. For all the accusations you people level at us that we're fascists and bigots, time and time again we are shown to be remarkably tolerant of other views.

And here is the difference:
MNHQ listening, thinking, talking, reviewing and even apologising rather than threatening, shouting, accusing and getting out the baseball bats.

Thank you MNHQ

Liz said they would return on that Twitter link. No sign yet though. It's informative to read their daft views of MN - did you know that if your post doesn't attack 3 TAs then MNHQ remove it? And I'd been thinking if we did attack them we'd be deleted. We're even getting that wrong, it seems. Where would we be without them to put us right?

Hi Liz, I notice you said you would address questions here after work?

You said:

I'm happy to accept as women anyone who describes themselves as one

Sex is a protected characteristic under equality law, but if anyone can be any sex, how does that work?

Thanks.

So where is the OP then?

Thankyou for re-instating. How can we get anywhere if we can't talk to each other?

So where is the OP then?

At work. They said on Twitter they would come back after work.

Yes my question is in relation to the statement by Liz that Datun has quoted.

The bat and any other hitting, stabbing, mauling or shooting implements really, that male people wield against female people signify male violence and the oppression of female people by male people.

A bat as a signifier of empowerment seems to me a typically male way of expressing dominance over the unarmed and powerless. I cannot fathom why anyone in their right mind would view it as acceptable or harmless, let alone come to a feminist board and proclaim it as such.

Male violence and aggression is what the bat signifies and so it broadcasts only one thing, unambiguously, unashamedly, very loud and very clear - these are not women.

Thanks for putting this thread back up, and presumably Liz will be back to answer questions.

Here's mine:
Considering that those people with vaginas have:

• historically been prevented from voting, owning property or being independent,

-currently make up up the vast majority of domestic violence and sexual violence victims, --and are still discriminated against at work based on perceived pregnancy risk or because they're mothers:

Do you genuinely not understand why women have a problem with being instructed that womanhood is anyone who 'feels like a woman' (whatever that means) and being told that we're bigots for even wanting to discuss it, especially considering that it's not possible for us to 'identify' out of any of the above issues?