The Herald - Trans guidance for Scottish schools breaches 11 children's rights campaigners warn

[TensionWheelsCoolHeels]

https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/17393697.trans-guidance-for-scottish-schools-breaches-11-childrens-rights-campaigners-warn/

I'm off to find the Impact Assessment...

Here's the group twitter who have published the CRIA

https://twitter.com/wg_scotland/status/1090399146622795776?s=21

It's a long read, but my mind is blown already & I'm only on page 10 of 52.

"The guidance has been written with the intention of supporting transgender young people in schools, but there is no evidence that it has fully taken into account the needs of other protected groups of young people," she added.

This is exactly what the Transgender Trend schools' advice pointed out.

Which was why TRAs were shrieking burn it, bin it, shred it.

I'm glad this is being reported at last. I hope other papers pick it up.

• The guidance [LGBTYS] does not acknowledge any objections that young people or their parent(s)/carer(s) may have to sharing facilities with a transgender young person, other than suggesting their objections may be a result of ‘misconceptions’ and framing them as antithetical to inclusion, equality and respect. The use of the word “respect’ is particularly concerning, as it implies that the healthy boundaries girls may have around who sees them undressed could be considered “disrespectful”.*

This CRIA is outstanding.

"The framing of the right of girls to privacy, dignity and to boundaries around their own bodies as a set of fundamentally unreasonable requirements that are in conflict with inclusion, equality and respect is particularly concerning. Not only does this ignore the existence of these rights and the needs that give rise to them, but it ignores that these rights are crucial to female inclusion. Failure to recognise and respect these rights for girls could be discriminatory."

Many councils and schools have adopted the guidelines, without assessing the impact on other pupils, according to the group Women and Girls in Scotland

Is that usual? I would hope that before adopting any new guidelines, schools and councils would assess the impact on all children. I'm surprised that these organisations don't have anyone who understands the implications of implementing these policies.

Hopefully the Times might pick it up.

This is excellent, very clear analysis

The a Times in Scotland have it

https://twitter.com/wg_scotland/status/1090407651975024645?s=21

I can't stop reading this, even though I should be in bed!

Another belter from the CRIA:

"Women and Girls in Scotland were unable to ascertain what, if any, consultation was carried out by the authors in regard to this. James Morton, manager of Scottish Trans Alliance (who co- authored the guidance) has said that no impact assessment has been undertaken, but also that “I’m sure [an impact assessment] would show that there isn’t any negative impact on other pupils.” This does not suggest that there has been a formal undertaking to ensure that all children’s best interests have been explored and taken into account as a primary consideration when developing this guidance. James Morton has previously been involved in undertaking an Equality and Human Rights Impact Assessment for a similar trans inclusive policy in the Scottish Prison Service, in order to allow male trans prisoners to be housed in the female estate. This impact assessment did not acknowledge any potential impact on women."

So glad this is finally being called out.

Bloody good bit of work there. Well done. I should be asleep but stayed awake to read it.

That’s amazing! To see it being so elegantly torn apart, is such a beautiful sight to behold.

This bit too:

At present, and under the Equality Act 2010, young people are entitled to single-sex provision in order to protect their right to privacy, dignity and safety. In recommending a blanket policy where transgender young people are allowed to use the facilities they are most comfortable with, take part in the sporting category they are most comfortable with, and to share overnight accommodation with young people of the opposite sex, this guidance could jeopardise these rights.

The relevant rights identified are:

• Article 2, the right not to be discriminated against
• Article 3, the right to have all children’s best interests taken into account as a
primary consideration
• Article 5, the right for children to have parental support to aid them in
exercising their rights, and to have their evolving capacities taken into account
• Article 6, the right to life, survival and development
• Article 12, the right for children to have their views respected
• Article 14, the right for children to have a religious affiliation without this
hindering their rights to non-discrimination or privacy
• Article 16, the right to privacy
• Article 18, the right for children to have their parents take primary
responsibility for their best interests, and the right of children to have the state
assist their parents in fulfilling this responsibility
• Article 28, the right to education
• Article 39, the right to recover from abuse

Unbelievable!

Is that usual? I would hope that before adopting any new guidelines, schools and councils would assess the impact on all children.

You would think that ought to be the case. But I suspect the same thing is occurring here that is occurring in many other areas:

1. New guidelines are produced and sent out from a source that has been carefully designed and prepared to have the appearance of being both well-informed and reliable.

2. The guidance is passed on by governments or local authorities who have read it through, but failed to consider there may be impacts on other groups. Again this is down to careful preparation via the message that to be trans is to be more oppressed than other groups.

3. The guidance, which now appears to come from an impeachable source (produced reliably, vetted by the authorities) is adopted in full. It may be read again, but it has the appearance of being fair, given the current message that to be trans is to be more oppressed.

4. Nothing happens. Transition is still rare and thus the guidance is both untested and unchallenged.

5. Problems begin to occur and are raised. It is pointed out that the guidance has been in place for a considerable period without problems. The problems are dismissed as being an anomaly. Those questioning whether it is an anomaly are smeared as bigots and bullied into silence.

Of course, there has been an unfortunate error. Someone suggested the best place to trial this brave new policy would be prisons. If it could work there, in the most difficult circumstances, everything else would follow.

The results of this experiment have been immediate and very damning. Problems arose immediately. Yet still the preparation, propaganda, smearing and bullying are holding.

But the wheels are slowly coming off. Women are beginning to rally and object, The specific objections here have been sent to the authorities, who have failed to respond, revealing they either have not had time to assess them OR they are reeling as they have now recognised the impact and are looking for a loophole.

My worry is that the loophole grasped might be something ludicrous. The objections hang partly upon the fact that under 18s cannot, for now, be awarded a GRC.

If the government in Scotland are considering extending GRCs to teens, they may feel they need to do nothing. They are dangerously committed to the agenda, or so it would appear. The reasons why remain unclear, but I suspect in twenty or thirty years time, we may be looking back, aghast, at yet another scandal that was fomenting, even as others were being revealed.

This is brilliant

Well done to all concerned

That is a really good piece of work!

Excellent. Thank you very much.

Excellent analysis. Let's see the Scottish government wriggle out of this one. There are competing rights at play here and it is discriminatory for one group's demands to be repeatedly prioritised over the rights of other groups.

Hopefully people will use this approach with the English government who are allowing the same awful practices to happen in schools (and maybe the Welsh as well?) And then on to the sports bodies etc etc.

Truly excellent. But already the first reply writes it off as homophobic.

Its brilliant but will anyone actually listen or reapond? I think the trans ideology is too deep and unlikely to read it and go, "oops i made a mistake."

I would send that to the parents in Birmingham.

One Mum described her daughter being told she could be a boy then going home and putting on boys clothes announcing she's the opposite sex.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-birmingham-47040451

Absolutely brilliant.

Fantastic work, clear and unambiguous.

Therefore, when schools are considering which sporting category a transgender young person should be allowed to compete in, it would be legitimate to exclude them from their preferred category if they would have an unfair advantage due to their sex, and therefore their taking part may threaten the fairness or safety of the competition, but not for any other reason.

The guidance, in contrast, states that transgender young people “should be allowed to compete in the category which matches their gender identity” (p. 20) and makes no mention of the need to evaluate their inclusion on the basis of fairness and safety for the benefit of all young people taking part.

For example, a boy’s right to a fair and safe sporting competition is unlikely to be affected by the inclusion of a trans identifying young person who is female. However, for a girl who is competing against a transgender young person who is male-bodied, and therefore likely to be physically stronger, with greater lung capacity and a different physique, the impact is likely to be much more significant in terms of fairness and safety.

Thank you so much for this excellent work.

Fantastic article, surely one no-one can read and disagree with.