"Transgender man, 34, loses legal battle to be named as the father on his child's birth certificate as Supreme Court refuses to hear his case"

[Malahaha]

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8953783/Transgender-man-34-loses-legal-battle-named-father-childs-birth-certificate.html

Don't know if this was already posted but it's a glimmer of hope that soe judges have their heads screwed on tightly.

The father to be is an anonymous sperm donor.

You're right though, it's not complicated at all. The human species has survived for centuries as a result of simple biological reproduction.

This. It's not possible for McConnell to father a child because McConnell is female and father refers to a male parent, whether biological or adoptive.

Excellent points, OldCrone !

Also,I don’t think “birth parent” is an option anyway. It would mark out someone. That then will be used as ‘proof’ that all birth certificates should only have this option so that no-one appears differently. A kind of ‘we should all declare our pronouns’ thing.

Nobody who goes through pregnancy and gives birth can claim to be triggered by a simple word. And what if some classmate of this child accidentally misgenders FM? FM can’t insulate themselves from reality. It will break through regularly.

Also, I'm firmly of the belief that it's nothing to do with transmen, and everything to do with transwomen. We here all the time about males who want to be called mums.

@Highwind

I moved to the other side of the country a few years back and have been estranged from my family until somewhat recently. I had told my family that I eloped in Bora Bora ... but I actually got married in the local church. My husband took great pride in marrying in the same place as his parents and grandparents.

My family is coming to the area to stay for a week or so around Christmas and I just know my wedding/marriage is going to come up....

Any ideas on how I can get my marriage certificate altered to reflect Bora Bora? It gives me a huge amount of distress that Bora Bora is not listed as the location as it was always my dream but I just couldn’t afford it and I don’t want my certificate to out me as either poor or a liar.

Thanks all.

Was that meant ironically?

It strikes me as rather dishonest to sign a sworn statement to live as a man for the rest of your life and then promptly pursue fertility treatment.

It is also rather dishonest to claim your child does not have a birth certificate when your child clearly has a passport in a bid to raise funds.

Only women can give birth. Every child has a mother and for many children, that name is a really significant anchor point to their place in the world.

Whatever the identity of a child's mother, the birth certificate belongs to the child.

Birth parent and mother both do that job. It's really not that complicated.

@DadJoke - so what on Earth is wrong with using the word mother? Why should its use offend anyone? I don’t understand why you can’t see the sexism. What additional meaning is being attached to the word that implies that it doesn’t include Freddy?

@Datun

Also, I'm firmly of the belief that it's nothing to do with transmen, and everything to do with transwomen. We here all the time about males who want to be called mums.

Totally agree. All of the changes to words for unique female biology and experiences are nothing to do with being inclusive of transmen, but not being exclusive of transwomen. It’s all to separate us from our biology. This just does not happen to men.

Totally agree. All of the changes to words for unique female biology and experiences are nothing to do with being inclusive of transmen, but not being exclusive of transwomen. It’s all to separate us from our biology. This just does not happen to men.

Exactly. You're not hearing the likes of DadJoke bang on about why not call the other parent the inseminator, the fertiliser, the ejaculator. I've never heard a single person, organisation or authority call men by their bodily functions.

It's all about decoupling women from their biology, and using transmen as the means. Exploiting women twice.

I feel sorry for that poor child. At least they will have a sibling so there will be another person who understands how confusing the whole situation is.

A child who knows that if they need help their parents will drop everything and prioritise their wellbeing is a secure child.

Part of being a parent is learning to put your own needs and desires beneath those of your child.

It takes some people longer to realise that their children are their own people and do not belong to you, I guess.

I'm fairly new to this debate but surely if you are so hugely opposed to being legally labelled as a child's mother... don't give birth?!?

That would be far too logical a conclusion to draw.

Quite Mavis. There are different routes to being a parent, I wonder why this one was chosen when it’s obviously triggering for FM.

@OhHolyJesus

Does the government interpret law or write it?

[[https://www.instagram.com/p/CVSauZ3D1mB/?utm]]medium=copyy_link

Just in case anyone missed this - extract of the text in Freddie's Instagram post (both mum and dad in the hashtags BTW).

Extra problems for Nonbinary parents, it seems. How dreadful!

I just want to scream:

"IT'S NOT ALL ABOUT YOU!! - IT'S ABOUT THE BABY!! - THE BABY WHO WILL GROW INTO AN ADULT AND DISCOVER IT HAS BEEN USED AS A PAWN TO BOLSTER AN IDEOLOGY!"

I find it so repugnant that any parent would use their child in this way:

-----

It’s interesting to see what different reporters focus on when talking about this situation. That is, the situation for UK trans parents, not just my family.

It’s such a complex issue, there are legitimately multiple stories to tell and angles to take. I’m very conscious that lack of legal recognition affects so many more families and in many different ways.

For example, the Sweden solution doesn’t help nonbinary parents, who can’t register as ‘parent’ in the UK if they give birth or were assigned male at birth. If two trans men have kids together and each carries, one after the other, they are likely to be registered as ‘mother’ / ‘father’ on one certificate and then switched to ‘father’ / ‘mother’ on the next. If a trans man’s cis wife gives birth he’ll probably be able to register as ‘father’ even though he technically isn’t allowed to, according to this govt’s interpretation of the Gender Recognition Act…

I could go on but it makes my head (and my heart) hurt.

If you are a journalist or have media contacts, I’m always open to talking. Whether it helps our crowdfunder or draws attention to the wider legal issue, I’ll talk about it until the queer cows prance home.

And if your family or a family you know is affected by this chaotic birth certificate situation, please shoot me an email so we can connect (emails preferable to DM). We are stronger together and historically we haven’t been, which is why consecutive governments have ignored and discriminated against us. We can and must change that. We will be recognised. ✊

#transfamilies #transfamily #transparents #transparenthood #transdad #transmum #ren #lgbtfamily #lgbtfamilies #lgbtparents #lgbtqparents #queerparent #queerparents #queerparenthood #mum #dad #transequality #transliberation

The Family Court in the UK is the most misogynistic institution we have.

That which oppresses women cannot protect children. As a standard, the Court records all their hearings, for accountability as well as its own records. But in practice these audio recordings often go missing when the judiciary is being held to account. I have experienced these dangerous corruptions as a mother and I am issuing a Call to Action to reform this oppressive Court.

I am represented by Charlotte Proudman, Ms Proudman is at the forefront of changing legislation and she bravely holds the state to account on violence against girls and women. The judiciary have long and well documented history of minimising and dismissing male violence against children and women, commonly called domestic terrorism.

Ms Proudman’s work switches a light on in this hidden world. Violence and child abuse is the most serious issue facing women and children who appeal to the Family Court. The pandemic of violence committed by men against children in their care and against the women in their lives is directly enabled by the Family Court ethos of maintaining parental contact at all costs. These costs all too frequently include a woman’s or a child’s life, or years of continued abuse.

The present failings of the Family Court are directly responsible for “exposing another generation to emotional and physical harm.” So says author Rachel Watson. “By denying domestic abuse, failing to address behavioural problems and awarding equal or sometimes sole parenting roles to unsafe parents, the family courts are conditioning children to believe it's ok for one parent to be in control and hurt others without consequence.”

The Domestic Abuse Act 2021 acknowledged in law that children are victims of domestic abuse in their own right. The Act legislated that abuse victims are entitled to special measures to protect their privacy and to minimise the retraumatisation that is nearly inevitable in reliving violent events in court. These measures include screens, so that the perpetrator cannot see the victim; the perpetrator also can no longer intimidate and manipulate his victims by cross-examining them in court.

In my case these provisions were not followed. My Appeal is a call to action. We must reform this unsafe Court system. My Appeal will particularly highlight the judiciary’s failure to carry out the requirements of the Domestic Abuse Act 2021 Early feminists the Suffragettes were pioneers for child safety. Suffragette action brought about the 1925 Guardianship of Infants Act which gave married women rights to their own children for the first time. We all intuitively know that the child is usually safest with its mother. Yet Mr Justice Lawrence called this basic fairness and common sense “an insult to God”. And although in law women now have rights to their children, in reality men’s rights usually trump the right to safety for women and children.

Enough is enough. It’s not ok for women’s and particularly for children’s safety to be betrayed by the Courts. To contribute to the cost of this Appeal or simply to be kept up to date on its progress please send your email address to [email protected]
All funds are sent directly from Crowd Justice to the barrister Charlotte Proudman.

I find it so repugnant that any parent would use their child in this way

I do too, and it continues.

Following the crowdfunder to pay for the birth in Sweden, McConnell has launched an additional crowdfunder to pay for it to be filmed (and later made into a film with further money?) and a government petition which is now live.

In this Instagram post FM explains that the judge ruled that son SJ should be given a passport so I previously had this wrong, though most people have to register their child in order to get a passport, FM got special treatment due to the legal action.

So SJ doesn't have a BC but does have a passport. I'm not aware of any other cases where you can get a passport without a BC.

https://www.instagram.com/tv/CW8xn8mt-EV/?utmmedium=copyy_link

Ugla says

"This is a simple change of registration that will affect no one but the trans parents who need it."

Not the kids then?

https://twitter.com/uglastefania/status/1468905074269331460?s=21

Campaign Instagram account

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CXRYidOAa0l/?utmmedium=copyy_link

If SJ doesn’t have a birth certificate, then I owe Freddy McConnell an apology - I’d never heard of anyone having a UK passport without a birth certificate before. I

That said, didn’t Freddy lose his final appeal in the UK courts? If so, I’m surprised SJ wasn’t registered after that.

SJ is the same age as my DD, so I know he’d normally be due to start school this year. Our Local Education Authority keeps track of DD and her cohort - they know which nursery she attends, when she is due to start school and whether a primary school application form has been submitted on her behalf. Would this process work for a child without a birth certificate? I suppose the LEA might know from the hospital records that a Baby McConnell exists.

I’ve seen Freddy’s petition and am concerned by the reference to surrogacy. I don’t believe that the attempts to legally sever pregnancy and birth from the role of “mother” are putting children’s best interests first.

A baby begins to bond with his or her mother before birth and afterwards has a strong instinct to stay close to her. The mother and baby remain biologically linked, with skin-to-skin contact affecting lactation, for example. The birth mother might identify as a “surrogate”, but that isn’t child-centred language.

I know there are situations where babies need to be cared for by someone who isn’t their birth mother, but at least child-centred language helps people to focus on the children’s needs, not the adults’ feelings.

“I’ve seen Freddy’s petition and am concerned by the reference to surrogacy. I don’t believe that the attempts to legally sever pregnancy and birth from the role of “mother” are putting children’s best interests first.”

This x 100

Also, as I understood it, if the birth hasn’t been registered within 6 weeks by the parents, it becomes the responsibility of the midwife who attended the birth to do it.

There are babies born in the UK who are not registered. They are born to women here illegally, enslaved in brothels or sweatshops. They aren't born in hospital and their mothers have no medical care. Some of these babies are sold to paedophiles.

Sorry to make such a disturbing point, but this happens.

Having the woman who gives birth registered as the legal mother means there is an adult who is legally responsible for that baby.

One adult. Regardless of who provided the sperm and who married who and who commissioned who and whose eggs. There is one adult who the law can point to and say, this infant is your responsibility.

If we decouple the act of giving birth from legal responsibility for a child, as surrogacy campaigners prefer, what happens to the child when the commissioners abandon it, like the case with the paedophile from Australia who took one twin and left the other in Thailand because he had Down's?

Anything that could lead to more motherless children is exceptionally dangerous. This child is not registered, and whatever the passport office decided, technically he has no parents, and no record of his birth, his age, or his nationality by birth (so why he was given a passport I don't know, but I can't get into all that).

I agree with pp that birth certificates should reflect parenthood. There should be a record of which humans were responsible for the creation of the child, which woman gave birth, and then whoever bought or adopted the child afterwards. In no cases should lies be published on a birth certificate form.

Also the GRA is entirely unfit for purpose. There's no way to rescind a GRC, even when it is obvious that it was obtained for political reasons. Getting pregnant is not something a man would do.

FlyingOink - There's no way to rescind a GRC

Yes there is and the Sec of State was asked by the Court in Freddie's case if he intended to revoke Freddie's GRC as having been obtained fraudulently. The Sec State elected not to do so.

GRA2004, Section 8 "Appeals"

www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2004/7/section/8

Case No: FD18F00035
Date: 25/09/2019
Before:
The Rt. Hon. Sir Andrew McFarlane
President of the Family Division

• - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Between: Claimant THE QUEEN (on the application of TT)

• and -

Defendant THE REGISTRAR GENERAL FOR ENGLAND AND WALES

• and –

SECRETARY OF STATE FOR HEALTH AND SOCIAL CARE [1] MINISTER FOR WOMEN AND EQUALITIES [2] SECRETARY OF STATE FOR THE HOME DEPARTMENT [3] YY (A Child) (By his Litigation Friend, CLAIRE BROOKS) [4]

See para 45:

www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/TT-and-YY-APPROVED-Substantive-Judgment-McF-25.9.19.pdf

Thank you FlyingOink for that post. These are huge potential risks for children, it’s very concerning.

It makes sense that the person who gives birth to a child has automatic parental responsibility for that child, unless there are safeguarding concerns. I’m not persuaded that abolishing this legal convention is generally in the best interests of children.

[quote Bosky]FlyingOink - There's no way to rescind a GRC

Yes there is and the Sec of State was asked by the Court in Freddie's case if he intended to revoke Freddie's GRC as having been obtained fraudulently. The Sec State elected not to do so.

GRA2004, Section 8 "Appeals"

www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2004/7/section/8

Case No: FD18F00035
Date: 25/09/2019
Before:
The Rt. Hon. Sir Andrew McFarlane
President of the Family Division

• - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Between: Claimant THE QUEEN (on the application of TT)

• and -

Defendant THE REGISTRAR GENERAL FOR ENGLAND AND WALES

• and –

SECRETARY OF STATE FOR HEALTH AND SOCIAL CARE [1] MINISTER FOR WOMEN AND EQUALITIES [2] SECRETARY OF STATE FOR THE HOME DEPARTMENT [3] YY (A Child) (By his Litigation Friend, CLAIRE BROOKS) [4]

See para 45:

www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/TT-and-YY-APPROVED-Substantive-Judgment-McF-25.9.19.pdf[/quote]
Very interesting thanks.

What do you think would actually class as fraud then? It can't be changing legal sex to inherit because primogeniture was not affected by the GRA.

Nothing will ever count as fraud I suspect. How could ‘fraud’ be proved when it’s completely in people’s own heads how they feel? It’s just a pointless, undefined addition to the Act dressed up to look like some kind of a safeguard.
The whole premise is so poorly conceived- no acknowledgement of women who get pregnant, no provision for people with GRCs to change their minds and remove their consent to have ‘changed’ sex. Feels like it was just scribbled out on the back of an envelope at a drinks reception and then turned into binding law. Its bizarrely full of holes. It wasn’t even made law that long ago.