Trans rant to local Labour agent. Help me not to feel like I have embarrassed myself!

[SuePerbly]

Was contacted by the agent for a local Labour councillor candidate yesterday. I had offered to help with campaigning as the candidate is a great guy who has already done a lot for my small town.

I was limited in the help I could give because I rescinded my Labour Party membership over the throwing of women under the bus re all women shortlists.

Explained this to the agent who replied that "Labour have always been against discrimination" and they work with a transwoman, but would go away and find out more.

I then proceeded to.....well.....rant a bit, about Labour discriminating against women and Trans women with a GRC, by accepting anyone who "Identifies" as a woman onto the shortlists. I told him about Labour losing women's votes by supporting a policy which would allow "Barry with a beard and a leer in his eye" to bathe elderly women in care homes if he said he identified as a women, every bit as much as a genuine transwoman with a GRC. And if the woman refused = hate crime/transphobia.

I told him women weren't scared of genuine Trans women, but of perverts and chances using loopholes as a way to access women.

He didn't reply.

I now feel so embarrassed as he made me feel I was being transphobic

Have I made a knob of myself and have I been transphobic?

@Justhadathought you are soevil....

Nice one.

Around the time of the consultation regarding the GRA, I visited my local Labour MP to put forward my concerns regarding allowing, in particular, men to self-ID as women. She was pretty hostile to start with, apparently having recently had a transwoman and her parents in her office explaining the difficulties of their situation. I kept calm and carried on, as I had made brief notes to keep me on track.

All of a sudden the MP came out with the old trope that a large percentage of young people presenting as trans attempt suicide. Unbeknown to her, I had attempted suicide as a teenager, due to pressures of school, social contacts etc. I was only saved as my mother returned home early and I underwent months of much needed psychiatric help as a result. I blurted this out with tears in my eyes and with an emotion I had long since forgotten. I surprised myself at how deeply this still affected me!

She was taken aback at this sudden confession and was even more so when her assistant (who was taking notes) agreed with me that many young people find their passage to adulthood difficult and even traumatic. The meeting at this point took on a more sympathetic tone towards my concerns, brought upon directly by my unexpected outburst.

I have since had a further conciliatory communication from my MP, but I think this was more aimed at getting my vote in a future GE than an appreciation of my skill at presenting my case. In any event, I think I made far more of an impact by my emotion than by my well-honed presentation notes!

@Billy

You demonstrated a point that MPs are blind to.
They don't know what traumas, fears and experiences have prompted women from all walks of life to speak out. Their bias and inclination to give less weight to women's evidence-based concerns, has been appalling. Why do they reserve their 'compassion' for trans people but not women?

If MPs are so concerned about the safety of transpeople then what is their solution? Asking women to budge up and shut up is a red line for us, so where do they go from there?