The latest in UK children's publishing and the racism of gender ideology

[notyourhandmaid]

For anyone not aware, children's publishing is pretty woke...

The current crisis is a 'known transphobe' being appointed to - essentially - write some blogs. Authors, agents and others in the field are earnestly sharing their vague denouncements - sample here.

twitter.com/Magic_Kitten/status/1369064586029240320
twitter.com/claravulliamy/status/1369181157795971072
twitter.com/alibelle/status/1368961402287894530
twitter.com/andtheHare/status/1369067423006097410
twitter.com/ldlapinski/status/1369209722407186432

This is the awful woman they refer to - an award-winning writer for young people, who also runs two charities, one looking at the trafficking of girls and women in the UK, and the other providing funds for refugee aid teams.
www.booktrust.org.uk/news-and-features/writer-in-residence/#!?q=&sortOption=MostRecent&pageNo=1

The accusations of 'transphobia' are based on a speech at a WPUK meeting in Sept 2019 womansplaceuk.org/2019/10/01/the-sheer-audacity-of-our-existence/

"As I look around in today’s world, I see more and more bewildered women and girls feeling confused, alienated and afraid.
Women like myself and my Sikh or Hindu or Jewish friends who need single-space places to safely unveil, wash up and reconfigure ourselves; or women who are breastfeeding and lactating and needing a space to let it all hang out; or women going through the menopause or chemotherapy who need safe spaces to just be looked after, or young girls on their first ever periods or sprouting breasts who need space for support and reassurance."

As with JKR's essay, there is no suggestion that people might actually read things for themselves and make up their own minds. The writer's been labelled as one of the bad ones. That's it.

These are mostly (though not exclusively) white, middle-class women criticising a woman of colour who writes about and works to support refugees, victims of domestic violence, victims of trafficking. But not overtly - perhaps because they know that it would look incredibly racist to do so (many of them have condemned JKR on more than one occasion). Perhaps because 'transphobia' is supposed to come from 'the far right' and be allied with 'white supremacy'. Perhaps because they know that with all the evidence to hand, no one in their right mind would think that someone like this is 'bad' rather than 'good'.

It reminds me of the abuse Hibo Wardere and other FGM campaigners get, for focusing on material reality rather than inner identities. And it reminds me of the ways in which 'black women' and 'trans women' are so often paired together as the groups that must be included in your definition of 'women', as though these are simply two different kinds of women when 'black women' is an obvious subset of 'women'. It just seems so unbelievably privileged and the kind of behaviour that gender ideologues/TRAs claim GC feminists engage in.

The level of DARVO-ing is too much sometimes!

Thanks for this thread, OP. I'd not heard of Onjali Rauf before but I've now bought four of her books for my children.

It's absolutely craven the way these authors are gunning for her.

I'm going to go buy her book about the boy at the back of the class.

The article above talked about this and it sounded like a good concept for a children's book, and something a bit new.

There has been a massive increase in books for young children over the last 20+ years and I wonder if there is a dislike of competition from those who have established themselves.

My child adores her books. They are so clever, insightful and kind. I am appalled at this shitty behaviour.

I think certain authors have carved out a space for themselves that is partly 'social justice' rather than simply 'creator' and it's gone to their heads. RS is an excellent example - the main character in her series is an Asian girl within a very white British school. So she talks about the importance of diversity - while herself being a white woman who engages in this kind of bullying behaviour.

Yes and in those books, she writes about the racism that the Asian girl receives ... go figure

Good work people. The other week Onjali Rauf stuck her neck out and retweeted Hibo Wardere.

I know many of us don't dare show dissent offline, because then we'd get cancelled. We need our jobs because we have mortgages, and children to feed.

We silently dig for crowdfunders because we can do it anonymously. But it's not all we can do. People used to joke about the Mumsnet effect because of the weird things they'd bought off rhe back of a thread. If mumsnet can drive the sales of goodness knows how many Babyliss Big Hair* hairdryers, it can drive the sales of children's books. You can do your part to make standing up for women something that is good for a woman's literary career.

*I bought a steam cleaner just because of a thread

I can't read poisonous Clara's tweet because she's blocked me.

'We write for trans and non-binary children' says one of her acolytes tweets.

Ascribing gender identities onto children is so creepy. We don't talk about tiny heterosexual children or little gay ones. So why are we talking about non binary ones.

And I know people say that it's not a sexual orientation. If it isn't, what's it got to do with LGB?

At least one of those linked makes a big thing about being kind and inclusive. Not very kind and inclusive to join in with all this, is it?

And Maz Evans who tweeted in support of Onjali Rauf and who is one of my favourite children's authors, has deleted her Twitter account.

Just hideous, hideous targeted trolling of women who don't go along with the rabid mob. How can anyone think this is acceptable?

Thank you for this thread, OP, I have ordered Ms Rauf's books for my DC, they sound great.

What an utterly vile bunch they are. Bullies through and through. Very disappointed to see authors like James Mayhew piling on. His Christmas concerts in collaboration with Hatfield Uni's orchestra have been a fixture in our diary. No more.

Tragic that nobody nobody at all in their twitter circles has replied with the link to her speech on WPUK.

It's all OMG I will be cancelling her immediately but with zero evidence of any transphobia, obviously, because she wasn't transphobic.

This section stood out to me:

What happened to all of us being able to like what we like, and be what we want to be, and wear whatever we want to wear, so long as we’re not hurting anyone and without having to change our physical realities?

The fear must be strong. Those dickheads in their Twitter echo chamber probably think everyone agrees with them when the truth is closer to nobody agrees with them but nobody dares say it.

@Clymene

And Maz Evans who tweeted in support of Onjali Rauf and who is one of my favourite children's authors, has deleted her Twitter account.

Just hideous, hideous targeted trolling of women who don't go along with the rabid mob. How can anyone think this is acceptable?

Poor woman.

It really brimgs it home how much pressure they're under. The reactions to even the mildest comment of support are so wildly extreme.

@blahfuckingblah

Thank you for this thread, OP, I have ordered Ms Rauf's books for my DC, they sound great.

What an utterly vile bunch they are. Bullies through and through. Very disappointed to see authors like James Mayhew piling on. His Christmas concerts in collaboration with Hatfield Uni's orchestra have been a fixture in our diary. No more.

Yes I am really disappointed in James Mayhew. My kids loved his books. I am definitely going to buy some of Onjali Rauf's books though - even though my kids are probably too old for them now.

Have now bought a Maz Evans as well. My DDs are going to love these new books.

the main character in her series is an Asian girl within a very white British school. So she talks about the importance of diversity - while herself being a white woman who engages in this kind of bullying behaviour.

That sounds very problematic. Is the performative woke bullying an attempt to stave off her own cancellation for "writing while the wrong race"? The rest of the pack could presumably tear her down in an instant if they got the sniff of wrongthink.

@GrouchyKiwi

Have now bought a Maz Evans as well. My DDs are going to love these new books.

The Who Let the Gods Out series is brilliant. My kids are too old for them now, but I loved reading them aloud (always a mark of a well-written book I think - is reading it aloud pleasurable?).

The fear must be strong. Those dickheads in their Twitter echo chamber probably think everyone agrees with them when the truth is closer to nobody agrees with them but nobody dares say it.

Yes, this.

The fact that DadJoke seems to think the text he quoted is an example of terrible transphobia that decent people would rightly condemn just shows how out of touch some people are with the wider world's views.

@NecessaryScene1

the main character in her series is an Asian girl within a very white British school. So she talks about the importance of diversity - while herself being a white woman who engages in this kind of bullying behaviour.

That sounds very problematic. Is the performative woke bullying an attempt to stave off her own cancellation for "writing while the wrong race"? The rest of the pack could presumably tear her down in an instant if they got the sniff of wrongthink.

Yes, I was thinking that! I think something similar may be playing out in other sections of the arts too - it's very white and middle class, and as 'trans/queer' is so vaguely defined it's something pretty much anyone white and middle class can safely claim to be or claim allyship with, and so claim 'diversity', without having to actually do anything that might sacrifice their position of dominance in the industry or society at large.

Yes, I was thinking that! I think something similar may be playing out in other sections of the arts too - it's very white and middle class, and as 'trans/queer' is so vaguely defined it's something pretty much anyone white and middle class can safely claim to be or claim allyship with, and so claim 'diversity', without having to actually do anything that might sacrifice their position of dominance in the industry or society at large.

I totally agree with this and I think it's one of several reason trans identity is so appealing to young middle class white people - it's their way of being special and persecuted instead of being part of the privileged class. For many allies, it's how they can show how morally upstanding and caring they are and fend off accusations of privilege because they don't know what it means to be poor, an an ethnic minority, or any other oppressed group.

I have met a LOT of people in children's publishing and they are absolutely overwhelmingly white, middle-class, and adhere fairly closely to gender stereotypes. Some of them are of course lovely and I'm not saying every single one thinks the same way, but it is one of the least diverse fields I've encountered. It's easier for many of these people to back the trans ideology horse than have any idea about the reality of sex-based oppression for the less privileged.

But so many of them have remained silent throughout the whole JK Rowling shit - and then Gillian Phelps and Rachel Rooney and now Onjali.

Not forgetting Amanda Craig who was cancelled for signing a letter objecting to bullying and death threats against J. K . Rowling - you would think that would be pretty unproblematic wouldn't you but apparently for KMH (one of the accusers here too) that meant that she felt too unsafe to judge a competition with her. (Would it have felt safer if she had supported death threats?! The mind boggles). At least the whole debacle meant I got to discover Craig's fantastic writing.

think something similar may be playing out in other sections of the arts too - it's very white and middle class, and as 'trans/queer' is so vaguely defined it's something pretty much anyone white and middle class can safely claim to be or claim allyship with, and so claim 'diversity', without having to actually do anything that might sacrifice their position of dominance in the industry or society at large.

^ Exactly this.
I know one of those authors IRL and she is as much of a self-serving narcissist as her sanctimonious Twitter circle-jerk would indicate. Hadn’t heard of OR until now but she seems highly dignified and sensible and I will be buying her books for my kids.

Yes that thought did cross my mind about Robin Stevens' books - maybe she is worried someone will notice about her main character and the woke police will come for her.

Maz Evans' Twitter account is back and she has written a very sensible, thoughtful statement - perhaps it's too much to hope that some of the ring leaders denouncing Onjali Rauf might reflect on their bullying behaviour.

I think something similar may be playing out in other sections of the arts too - it's very white and middle class, and as 'trans/queer' is so vaguely defined it's something pretty much anyone white and middle class can safely claim to be or claim allyship with, and so claim 'diversity', without having to actually do anything that might sacrifice their position of dominance in the industry or society at large.

This is absolutely spot on, @IvyTwines.

The regular suspects continue to be self-righteous, indignant and hyperbolic. It is so misleading to claim 'the very existence of trans people is at risk' when there is no murder epidemic, no greater risk of suicide than many other vulnerable groups (i.e. there is a risk but it is presented as unique and never put into context), and when instances of actual in-person violence are almost always (to my knowledge always) against women and perpretated by trans rights activists.

Again, it's just so much DARVO-ing and these are people being cheered on as great children's writers and role models.

I'm glad to see Maz Evans is back! Before this went down, she wrote a great piece for The Bookseller on 'the climate of fear' (citing Ishiguro) - www.thebookseller.com/blogs/climate-fear-1239411