Any idea how Courage Calls could be perceived as transphobic?

[NeverKnowinglyTransph0bic]

Following Maya's call to be brave today, I recently used "Courage Calls" as an alias for an anonymous letter calling for my employer to review their membership of Stonewalls Diversity Champion's programme.

The organisation has a constitution that allows employees to express their views anonymously "without fear of repercussions" and to receive helpful replies from the most relevant manager. Letters and their replies are published in the internal staff magazine, but it seems that my letter based upon Kate Grime's published article in the Health Service Journal, has been rejected.

Today's intranet has the following message regarding my letter which has not been published.

Editorial note: this letter has been edited with the chairman's agreement. as it commented on controversial content that is unrelated to [Organisation]. While much of the letter has been edited, we have been careful to retain the writer's main point about [organisation]'s relationship with stonewall. The Pseudonym of this letter has also been edited as it has been brought to our attention that - whether or not it was the writer's intention - it could be construed as having transphobic undertones. We remind all [staff] to be respectful of others and of the letters guidelines.

So two things. I can't see that even an edited version of the letter has been published, either on the intranet or in the printed version of the magazine, but this is perhaps not a total surprise. And secondly, how the fuck do you construe "courage calls" as transphobic?

I've name changed for obvious reasons, although I clearly need to find a new job. Any thoughts I may have had about working from the inside are done with now.

Good grief. Are there no rational people left in charge of UK retail businesses? Really disappointed in JL if that's who it is. I love shopping there.

Well paid for someone afraid to see suffragette words inline.

www.thetimes.co.uk/article/95372752-a38d-11eb-949b-ab1b919d4f89?shareToken=d81a44e62ee18a83dcf8c35a242eb06a

Over a million a year.

Everything is transphobic. Did you not get the memo? Getting pregnant and being happy about it was transphobic on Twitter the other day

There was a woman a couple of years ago who had to apologise to a trans friend for talking about her cervical cancer and showing off her privilege.

@BaronMunchausen

That's a very serious development.

They are actively treating suffragist slogans - or extracts from suffragist speeches - as bigotry.

Potentially any feminist statement could be censored as 'could be construed as having transphobic undertones' based on what one TRA says.

isn't it?

I'm more annoyed by that than by the refusal to publish the letter. How dare the words of a campaigning woman be described as a transphobic slur?

OP if you are definitely looking for a new job, you don't have much to lose. I'd start by asking where my letter was and how exactly your nom de plume is transphobic. Who brought it to their attention and what evidence was given?

It was said to women by a woman, so it must be transphobic, mustn't it?

The quote is used to encourage women to stand up for their sex based rights.

Women having sex based rights is framed as transphobic, as it is incompatible with natal male people having uncontested, unrestricted access to all women's spaces and resources regardless of impact to natal female people. Women wanting sex based rights is therefore perceived as transphobic. Women resisting the removal of those rights are most definitely perceived as transphobic.

I think I'd explain this, and then explain about gynephobia and seeing female humans' needs and interests as lesser, wonder why they believe that it is right and good that all female humans should be stripped of needed sex based rights to benefit male people who do not in fact need those female biologically based rights, and that Stonewall are being described in the national press as 'controversial' and 'extreme'.

@StillWeRise

OP if you are definitely looking for a new job, you don't have much to lose. I'd start by asking where my letter was and how exactly your nom de plume is transphobic. Who brought it to their attention and what evidence was given?

That's a good point. Most letters are replied to within the week. Looking at my notes, I sent in my letter on the 11th June so they have waited (and consulted?) before replying.

As I said, most of my text was taken from Kate Grimes' excellent letter to the HSJ. This is what I wrote.

Following recent court cases and revelations should [ ] review their membership of the Stonewall Diversity Champions Scheme?
As [ ] we are rightly proud of our values and strong ethos of embracing diversity, but now risk litigation and reputational damage. The University of Essex recently apologised after a review found its policies misrepresented the law “as Stonewall would prefer it to be rather than as it is”, to the detriment of women.

The implications for female customers and partners are significant. Allowing transwomen to choose the fitting room of their choice, exposes women to the distress and dangers of sharing private space with men who are strangers when they may be vulnerable post mastectomy or other surgery. Religious requirements are disregarded and the fears of women who have experienced male violence or sexual trauma are ignored.

There are also serious ramifications for [staff]. Female [staff] are losing their rights, enshrined in law, to separate bathroom and changing facilities. Anyone who speaks up may face disciplinary action, as our policies are aligned with Stonewall’s view of inclusion. Additionally, the censoring of discussion – sometimes through these very pages given the recent revised letter guidelines - suggests that the [ ] has been well and truly captured by what some now describe as an extremist trans lobby group.

Through [ Hr System ], the partnership collects data about the gender of partners and not their sex, undermining our ability to accurately review pay gaps and understand the proportion of women working at senior levels. This is simply wrong and it is worrying that the [ ] does not have a system reflecting the 2010 equality act
.
I believe that Stonewall’s influence is undermining our crucial relationship with our female customers, risks opening-up [ ] to litigation and is no longer compatible with our [ ]values.

Signed Courage Calls.

OP my H is also waiting for letters to be published on this subject, and has also had his user name edited - the name he had used was 'Adult Human Male'.

@flowery

Everything is transphobic. Did you not get the memo? Getting pregnant and being happy about it was transphobic on Twitter the other day. Apparently pregnant women should hide themselves away for the duration, not be pleased and certainly not have anything as inconsiderate as a baby shower, as it would be upsetting for their transwoman friends.

Someone replied to that tweet with

I was told I was transphobic because I told my story of my high risk pregnancy on a page dedicated to hr pregnancies. A tw took Offence that I didn't centre them or their feelings in my hr pregnancy and deemed me transphobic. Other women on the page agreed with the tw and kicked Me off the page.

Silly twits. What possible discussions could they have?

FGS woman, being female is transphobic, don't you realise that by now

Given the way the world seems to work, they probably showed your letter to Stonewall to ask for their advice on how to handle it.

Bring it on. The more absurdity like this, the more things that are labelled as transphobic, the quicker everyone normal gets bloody sick of it.

I’m going to start asking ‘what does transphobic mean exactly’ and get people to spell it out rather than just throw out the word for anything that they vaguely don’t like (for whatever reason).