Solidarity in Aldi today!

[JaneyHenderson]

This is my first thread in a very long time but I wanted to share the uplifting and fabulous experience I had today in Aldi😂

I reached 'peak' during the last lockdown and lurk regularly on here while trying to make sense of the madness.
DH is supportive to a degree but very nervous of me being vocal about my GC views as we are both teachers. I am a middle leader in a secondary school and he worries about me getting sacked
So I can't discuss this much IRL.

Anyway, queing outside Aldi today and saw a woman a few people ahead of me with a 'Woman
Noun
adult human female' tote bag. I was thrilled and as soon as there was an opportunity (by the fruit and veg) I told her I liked her bag and that I knew what it meant.
She said I had made her day; I replied I she had made mine. Then she said 'Solidarity sister and see you on the next march'
We went on our separate ways but bloody hell it was brilliant. To vocalise it and be recognised. Felt a bit emotional and even now re-writing it, am a bit teary.

Just wanted to share. It was wonderful.

Stickers.

www.standingforwomen.com/shop-1

[quote Awning10]Try this for an explanation:

[/quote] I actually couldn't watch all that, whoever the man is made my skin crawl. He was quite aggressive with his delivery and it made me really uncomfortable. Like he was talking down at women for daring to have and defend their own words. Maybe my current PMT is making me oversensitive, but 15 seconds of him talking and I switched it off.

@SingingSands you can get stickers here -

www.standingforwomen.com/product-page/i-love-jk-sticker

How awful, you don't get this sort of thing in Waitrose.😉

Like he was talking down at women for daring to have and defend their own words

I’d say you’ve very accurately captured the essence of Dr Harrop there!

www.standingforwomen.com/product-page/women-only-stickers-x-20

Different stickers.

@Viviennemary

Never heard of GC. I googled it and got golf clubs. I wish people wouldn't use these obscure acronyms.

Not sure MN is the best place for someone who doesn't like acronyms, although, since you didn't RTFT, perhaps I'm wrong :-)

Gender Critical- I posted an explanation at 19.20.

What did you love about it? Sorry, this is a genuine question. I often don’t understand the posts on the feminism board and am trying to learn. It's a definition of woman that is often used by GC feminists. But I am still learning myself so am sure someone more knowledgeable can explain better than me.
I don't get the post either! But I don't get the answer either! What are GC feminists, please?

Sorry, cross-posted with the previous poster. Thank you

Oh this makes my day! Thank you

Well having continued reading my cockles are now on fire. Just the lift I needed.

Joyous thread

Thank you, OP, you give me hope that my children might not be actually doomed to spend their secondary years being taught by brainwashed, science-denying idiots.

Thank you for the link @Impatiens and @Hatia

I'm tempted by the lanyard too, but reckon that would not go down well at my firm. (We all had our lanyards changed to rainbow lanyards with no discussion so I now carry my pass in my pocket).

@RagzReturnsRebooted I can't listen to him either. He sets all my spidey senses tingling.

Arabella Scott

Do you think what you have posted is really a clear explanation of the issue, as, to me, it is still confusing for people, like me, not fully up to speed with the debate.

Gender isn't a recent made up word. It's been around for ages. It used to be thought to be like sex: male and female genders. So anyone not up to speed will be thinking: "Hold on, 'gender critical' means people are dubious about there being only two genders - male or female. GC must mean there are lots of identities and people can choose which to identify with or shape their own unique identity'.

Why not make it crystal clear for posters who are asking for clarification what all the current controversy is about.

@SingingSands are the rainbow lanyards anything to do with Stonewall?

Solidarity Sisters!

^^^^^ needs to also be printed on t shirts and bags!

@HeronLanyon

I’ve just ‘come out’ at work having been asked to have a ‘preferred pronoun’ start to a meeting I’m running shortly. Part of wider policies including emails etc. All kicking off. I will not be doing so but if someone else wishes to then won’t be joining in. Previous threads here invaluable for approaches but tbh if this is the hill my career dies on, so be it. Lovely aldi moment op.

I'd be tempted to go with "I usually use I and me"

Primary senior leader here.

Recently had to complete a equality diversity & inclusion survey with my trust and will be getting on the resultant working party to keep things balanced.

To the poster who compared this to the Hitler Youth. I think you are wrong. The Hitler Youth were the banner waving, confident majority.

I think being a Gender Critical Woman trying to defend the rights of woman and girls is more like being in the French resistance. You know that you need to stand up to the domineering aggressor, but you don't know who else is on our side BECAUSE TO STAND UP FOR WHAT IS RIGHT MIGHT MAKE YOU PUBLICLY DENOUNCED, CONTACTED BY THE POLICE, JOB THREATENED etc…
(and yes, I know that the French Resistance were amazingly brave and faced possible execution etc but this is an analogy)

To speak the truth is now scary.

I'm another one who would also like to wear the t-shirt but feel I can't because I have teenage dc still living at home who have very much drunk the Kool-aid. It causes so much friction if I even mention it; I had to stop myself from commenting on the Keira Bell case to avoid yet another evening of conflict. Youngest dd in particular is unable to engage in the smallest discussion about the GRA and the possible implications of self-id without accusing me of hate-speech and causing 'literal harm' to TW. She has thrown out all her Harry Potter books and memorabilia, and JK Rowling is now persona non grata. I'm hoping as she matures things will get easier and she's able to understand some of the concerns. Like pp I deal with this issue in my work life too, and it is like treading on eggshells. My professional body has steered well clear and refused to provide any advice. I have decided that when the inevitable 'state your pronouns' directive comes round I will be refusing, and actually it's a hill I am prepared for my career to die on. I realise not everyone has that choice - it is frankly terrifying.

@Wearywithteens

What warms my cockles more is that you’re both teachers - and secondary! I thought all teachers were firmly signed up to the twaw dogma. Brilliant share - thanks OP.

We really aren't!

I had a similar moment with a woman I passed recently in an 'I heart JKR' T-shirt. I said 'oooh, love your T-shirt...' was exchanged over our masks.

Puuuullll.

Somebody tied suffragette ribbons to the railings at the end of our street . Small gesture but it made me feel good. Been removed now though.

@Diverseopinions

Arabella Scott

Do you think what you have posted is really a clear explanation of the issue, as, to me, it is still confusing for people, like me, not fully up to speed with the debate.

Gender isn't a recent made up word. It's been around for ages. It used to be thought to be like sex: male and female genders. So anyone not up to speed will be thinking: "Hold on, 'gender critical' means people are dubious about there being only two genders - male or female. GC must mean there are lots of identities and people can choose which to identify with or shape their own unique identity'.

Why not make it crystal clear for posters who are asking for clarification what all the current controversy is about.

Diverse, The issues are so wide ranging I can see that it's frustrating to try to get a handle on what's happening. Gender critical feminists are women who are challenging the ideology that says people can identify into the opposite sex and become them. We believe that women's oppression is rooted in our sex and biology and are battling to stop women's rights and child safeguarding being removed. It's a wide ranging issue from women's sex based language being (cervix havers or menstruators instead of women), little children being taught nonsense in schools that they might be born in the wrong body, women's sport being handed over to mediocre male athletes who will succeed against women where they failed competing against men to name just a few. Hope that helps a little?

@Impatiens I'm not sure, I think it was an internal drive by the inclusion and diversity team.

We are a Stonewall top 100 employer though. And our firm is global so they'll be pleased about that.