Riff on the original ruling. Easy to write, because there's so many parallels: 2 groups, transwomen and women, both at risk of being hurt. Yes, it's essential to consider how to protect the latter; what I find disturbing is the denial of any need to even acknowledge the former... The parallels are painful...
Judge Tayler said the tax expert was not entitled to ignore the legal rights of transgender people and the “enormous pain that can be caused by misgendering a person”. He concluded: “If a person has transitioned from male to female and has a Gender Recognition Certificate (GRC), that person is legally a woman. That is not something Ms Forstater is entitled to ignore. Ms Forstater’s position is that even if a trans woman has a GRC, she cannot honestly describe herself as a woman. That belief is not worthy of respect in a democratic society. Even paying due regard to the qualified right to freedom of expression, people cannot expect to be protected if their core belief involves violating others’ dignity and creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating, or offensive environment for them.”
Judge Tayler COULD HAVE said HE was not entitled to ignore the legal rights of WOMEN and the “enormous pain that can be caused by ESSENTIALLY DENYING a person'S BIOLOGICAL SEX." He concluded: “If a person IS FEMALE, that person is legally a woman. That is not something I SHOULD BE entitled to ignore. DESPITE THIS, MY position is that, even if a trans woman IS DIFFERENT TO A NATAL WOMAN (AND ENTIRELY WORTHY OF RESPECT ON HER OWN TERMS), NO WOMAN NOW SHOULD BE PERMITTED TO honestly describe herself as a woman WITHOUT EXPANDING THE DEFINITION TO INCORPORATE MALE-BODIED PEOPLE AND ACCEPTING THE ASSOCIATED POTENTIAL FOR SEVERE DEGRADATION OF THE SEX-BASED LEGAL PROTECTIONS TO WHICH SHE IS ENTITLED. That belief is not worthy of respect in a democratic society. Even paying due regard to the qualified right to freedom of expression, people cannot expect to be protected if their core belief involves violating others’ dignity and creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating, or offensive AND POTENTIALLY LESS SAFE environment for them.”