It's official, Marks and Spencer have fallen

[MrsSnippyPants]

I know we have 'known' this for a while, but this is now their official response. How many 'inappropriate' incidents will be necessary before they see sense?

#BoycottM&S

So disappointed Bricker’s post was deleted, can someone PM the screenshot if possible.
As for M&S who choose to champion personal identity bollocks over the rights of biological sex. Who are they again? I’ve moved on.

Goodness, a lot of deletions, today. Someone, or maybe a tag team, have dedicated some hours to reporting posts.

The fact is, this issue is never going to go away, and in certain respects the more public and visible the issues become, and the more women are negatively impacted and made to feel uncomfortable in their own spaces, the better, sadly.

Thee astonishing hypocrisy of calling for safe spaces and places in which people can feel comfortable, clearly does not apply to actual women. On one hand you are told stop making a fuss about nothing, but then there is one almighty fuss when the shoe is on the other foot.

The madness, and sheer unfairness of this, is astonishing.

Why do companies feel the need to make a deal out of this. If a trans person is dressed / looks like how they are transitioning to how will you know?

I would not be happy for a "man" to be in the changing room when I'm there just because he feels like been there

But it's Loose Women not Newsnight! The intellect and debating skills of a Tommy Teepee sippy cup.

@MNHQ I’d like to add my voice to the chorus of voices in support of Bickers post in which she very clearly set out the truth, showing what this is actually about.

Would you consider re-instating it please?

I think bickerins post was deleted because of the bit about pissy pants rubber wank man-it implied he was trans and that his actions were related to that but I don't think he is?
Not defending the decision, but I think that's why.

Yes, well done MN for continuing to delete comments that state the simple truth.

And Bicker's post was excellent!

Haven’t got a response from my email yet. I am disabled so talked about the curtains being unacceptable and the cubicles offering little protection.

I just remembered one time when I was trying on jumpers at H&M (unisex changing rooms) and there was a group of teenage boys arguing nearby. When they passed the changing rooms doors one of the boys suddenly opened the door to the one I was in wide and walked away. I'm guessing he could tell there was a woman inside and wanted a reaction. Luckily I was fully dressed and just stared blankly at him in surprise.
Women and girls shouldn't have the stressor of things like that possibly happen when we try on clothes.

I assume MN are squeezed between advertisers who provide their revenue and posters like us who provide their content. If they are to have any credibility as a forum where women can meet and discuss things of relevance to our lives, they need to leave this forum up. Yet a lot of work is being done to discredit the MN brand with advertisers. Flora are a good example. A complaint by Mimmymum suggesting MN fails to properly monitor discussion, leading to the dreaded accusation of transphobia, caused them to drop their advertising.

My guess is that MN have decided on a middle path. Defend the accusation robustly, but be more cautious in their monitoring. Post Flora we have had all sorts of odd deletions.

M&S is strange. We are a large part of their customer base. They are potential customers of MN. However they they appear to be prioritising other, relatively small, customer groups. MN won’t want to lose the potential advertising revenue so will be going overboard to keep discussion “respectful”. To be honest I would probably do the same in their position.

One thought....M&S are switching to using Ocado delivery services. Waitrose will now use their own. I assume there is no link, though it does provide useful scope for two boycotts in one.

Just sent this to M&S online feedback:

I'm disgusted to find out that you allow self identifying people transwomen ie men to use female changing rooms.

Like many of your core customer group, I am a middle aged female with teenage children. I have three girls and we buy all our underwear in m&s, always have. I bought many of my children's clothes there too, and recently started using your insurance service for both house and holiday, also euro exchange.

No longer: you have lost my custom and that of my children as you do not respect the core customers who have kept you afloat during several years of difficulties for your brand. I for one kept shopping there partly because I didnt want this much loved British institution to disappear.

Good riddance

I would much rather share changing facilities with all men, rather than only the men who have decided they want to go into the women’s.

This.

I don't want any self-selected "I'm more comfortable with the Laydees" in my changing area.

Years ago I used to go to dance classes and there was a really creepy man who liked hanging around the women's changing rooms. The owner of the dance studio told him to stop so he did. Would that creepy man be left alone nowadays in case he was offended? If said man simply insisted he was a woman/felt like a woman, would he be permitted to leer to his heart's content in a changing room full of young women and girls?

Could someone PM me
@BickerinBrattle's post too please. Thanks.

Yes should he be made welcome and told to hang out ‘wherever he feels comfortable’?

I've emailed too. I do the family shopping and they've lost a longstanding customer.

Piers Morgan gets it.

Self-identifying bullsht causing yet more distress for women.*
When are THEIR rights going to be protected?

M&S are so silly. How do they think they will stem the tide of men who are obviously creepy? What criteria will they use?

Self ID - there IS no criteria, you fools.

I can't wait for the, '...but he's wearing a ... he has a ... he looked like he might, um....'.

What exactly!?

Yes, it’s happening already in Canada apparently. I’ve read twitter feeds stating things like a man identifying as female entered the female changing rooms, stripped to underpants and sat stroking erect penis under clothing with door / curtain open. Staff informed but refused to get involved as the person identifies as female.

Naked men gender neutral changing rooms swimming pool in bath. www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/unisex-changing-room-bath-leisure-centre-complaints-gender-neutral-a8729096.html

Just realised I too have been deleted. Have absolutely NO idea what I said that was so contentious.

Just has a wee look at M&S twitter account. It's all just apologies (regarding food, drink and deliveries mostly), not a good look for a twitter account.

Weird. It looks as if they are chasing the Muslim market

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7633157/amp/M-S-food-giant-sell-label-halal-ready-meals.html?__twitter_impression=true

yet are simultaneously deterring Muslim women from shopping in their stores. Announcements on the same day. There must be a logic there somewhere.

Please could someone PM me BickerinBrattle's excellent post?

ChipOnMyOvary
That's exactly what I have said to them (when I cancelled my account). I stood by them (despite their awful Per Una range ) because I wanted to support them as a legacy British brand. Only to find that they are now so lacking in insight and empathy that they cannot imagine why a woman would not want to have a bra fitting in a mixed sex changing room?
I feel a complete fool for spending so much money with them.

But there is always the debate around animal welfare and halal (and it's going on on the twitter feed). And their 'plant' vegan food is just horrible. They seem to have lost their way.