Compulsory trans awareness training

[invinoveritaserum]

Apparently all staff (public sector role) have to go on compulsory trans awareness training. We have already had to do online training, but this is a half day training course. It is NOT being run by in-house training, which makes me wary of who will be running it. (I should find out later this week).
I'm worried by this. I simply cannot sit there and swallow the usual woke bs. I refuse to lie about biological fact. I refuse to be called a cis woman. And yet I know I risk being called a transphobe.
Any advice as to what to do/how to get through this?

Just do the training, avoid making any transphobic comments, and you should be fine.

Do your colleagues know you're GC?

No, I don't think they do.

Why would anyone make a transphobic comment Mabel
And why does anyone have to go on compulsory training on trans awareness training
What if you don’t believe in this cult stuff

There was a recent thread from someone in a similar position OP. There were some excellent ideas about how to respond / pose questions safely. I can't find it - this board is so busy these days - but maybe someone has it saved?

Then you have a few choices. You could ask them some "innocent" questions, designed to get them to clarify certain phrases which they will be using their newspeak for. For the benefit of everyone.

"So you mean even when a trans woman has a male body, they should be placed with the women then"?

That kind of thing.

Ring in sick with a woman-specific complaint.

Read the official guidance trans orgs will have helped write for your sector (I'm sure it will exist) for ideas to tailor the questions.

I sympathise. I think my approach in a similar set of circumstances would be to keep referring back to the protected characteristics in the Equality Act, which include sex, sexual orientation and gender reassignment, but not gender identity. Religion or belief is also protected and there is an obvious clash between certain religious beliefs and a move to mixed sex spaces. I'd also want to be very clear on the difference between sex and gender. The GCSE Biology exam muddle could be helpful here as it's in the news at the moment.

fairplayforwomen.com/equality-act-2010_womens-rights/ Useful guidance here.

Good luck.

Are you gender free?

I’d be going in with that. I don’t have a gender apart from the one society forces on me. i don’t “feel” like any particular gender.

If you are under the umbrella then you can’t be cis, or a transphobe.

Take along the original guidance notes about the equality act that state it's acceptable to preclude male people from female spaces, and the EHRC notes that confirm the comparator for any male person without a GRC is another man, not a woman.

(If it were me I might email links to other attendees before the training because I'm so very keen to learn )

Or yes if you really can't take it, I'd ring in sick. It helps that no one knows your feelings about it.

But I think I would suck it up and go for that opportunity to raise some awareness among colleagues, some of whom probably aren't woke.

I did an E & D training a few years ago in one job and it came up. I didn't even have to ask any awkward questions myself, other people did. And they weren't impressed by the answers.

@littlbrowndog Would you genuinely not consider calling trans people a cult to be transphobic?

Do you feel brave enough to have a list of questions that you ask in an innocent manner: "can you explain what you mean by having 'manly thoughts'/'just knowing' you were born in the wrong body". "Oh, I thought that sex not gender identity was a protected characteristic in the Equality Act. My mistake!". "So I assume that most MTF people get surgery/specialist treatment?". Then look forward to their response without saying anything controversial yourself. Depends how gutsy you are feeling obviously, but it might be enough to prompt other people to ask questions. I have no idea how I would do in a similar situation, but most of my colleagues are fairly anti-bullshit.

Yes if you're brave you could go as genderfree. If the trainer looks confused say "I don't have a gender" and they'll assume you mean "agender."

Would you genuinely not consider calling trans people a cult to be transphobic?

She called gender identity ideology a cult not trans people themselves. Keep up.

How about going in with an open mind?

Just do the training, avoid making any transphobic comments, and you should be fine.

The general thinking these days is that the word “transphobic” has become meaningless so it’s hard to work our what is transphobic and what isn’t.

How about going in with an open mind?

In what way is knowing that people cannot change sex, a closed mind?

It is literally basic biology.

"Open mind" = believe biological sex isn't real or lose your job

Yeah I do consider what’s going on cultish behaviour

I don’t believe anyone can change their sex. Present how you want

But no I don’t believe anyone can change sex

I think I'd ask for any risk assessments for a policy change.

And ask how this thing happens. How does a man change into a woman and at what point does this change happen. And when they say 'when he says he is' ask how we are supposed to know if this is genuine or fake aka Karen White.

Yes, risk assessments and equality impact assessments. A 10 second Google threw this up, which looks as if it might be useful. www.acas.org.uk/media/pdf/s/n/Acas_managers_guide_to_equality_assessments.pdf It says if a manager decides an equality impact assessment is not needed, this should be recorded with reasons.

I work in the public sector. I was sexually harassed by a colleague. I was told it was "just his culture".
I should have taken it further.

Compulsory training on women's rights.

Does that ever happen?

How about going in with an open mind?

Good to get them to clarify their terms though, I'm sure you agree. Better for everyone.