Milli Hill: I will not be silenced

[TheFleegleHasLanded]

I love Milli Hill’s work and know many other women on here do too. Check out her latest blog:

“But too many women have been silenced, and I don’t want to join them. There are conversations about women’s rights, women’s bodies, and the words we use to talk about women’s issues, which need to be had, but which have been made taboo in our current culture. And this is not healthy. Worse still, women like me have been used as an example to others of what happens to you if you raise questions. And others have seen these public draggings, and decided to keep quiet themselves. This kind of behaviour, in which dissidents are made a public example of in order to ensure compliance to dogma, does not have very good historical precedents. And yet it currently describes itself as ‘the right side of history’.”

www.millihill.co.uk/2021/07/10/i-will-not-be-silenced/

I'm pretty appalled at Birthrights. Since Amy Gibbs started they've veered towards a swivelly-eyed approach to gender unfortunately.

It is horrifying that a charity ostensibly set up to campaign for human rights in childbirth is unable to recognise that obstetric violence is violence against women.

I'm going to sit on this for a few days and then write to birthrights to tell them how upset I am.

Another woman being put through hell and having her livelihood attacked relentlessly because she failed to genuflect on command.

How many other women are there out there who have been subjected to the same horrific treatment, without society being made aware of the process?

Those social media posts she quoted were so spiteful and wicked. They egg each other on and tell lies to make her out to be a monster so that they can pretend to be brave warriors attacking her. Like the cowardly throng attacking that woman in the pink shirt at the Wi spa protest. Their behaviour is despicable, and they ought to be deeply ashamed of themselves.

Just read it. Simply appalling. What a world we live in.

Good wishes Milli, I 'm going to get your books now, and you are clearly a compassionate and thoughtful person, subject to horrible bullying by vicious trans activists, but also by the compliant professional bodies and organisations that cave in through fear and cowardice.

This has been picked up by the Mail on line and the comments are all totally supportive of Mili.

maybe I'm being stupid, but surely obstetric violence affecting the fragile sex (female) applies to all 'birthing people' anyway since all those who give birth are female. Their sex is female even if their gender is not. so why is it offensive?

totally support Milli, just can't get my head around why this is offensive. I mean I know we are supposed to pretend that men can give birth too but that's not true so...?

This is shocking, of course only women give birth. What could be more obvious? I've never heard of Milli but good on her for speaking out, it's a very well written piece. Off to buy a book to support her.

When I followed Milli on Instagram the comments were turned on and although mostly supportive, she did have a few people saying that they were disappointed in her for not using inclusive language and that nobody is taking away the word women. She's turned the comments off now.

Right underneath her post, was this, on one of the GC feminist accounts I also follow.

We're not women according to this person. We're Bio-Holes. I really wish I could have shared this with the people telling Milli we're not losing our sex-based language to the TRA mob.

Hell's teeth!

@Unicornish

I'm pretty appalled at Birthrights. Since Amy Gibbs started they've veered towards a swivelly-eyed approach to gender unfortunately.

It is horrifying that a charity ostensibly set up to campaign for human rights in childbirth is unable to recognise that obstetric violence is violence against women.

I'm going to sit on this for a few days and then write to birthrights to tell them how upset I am.

I see on their Facebook page Birthrights is digging in. I played a vvvv small role helping set Birthrights up and I am so disappointed to see it's treatment of Milli.

It’s great to see Milli Hill getting support. She has been treated horribly by people who have accused her of racism (wtf?) and bigotry.

This blog post on with-woman.org says something similar about language.

I think the most important thing Milli is saying on Instagram (although she's hidden the comments now as quite rightly needs a break) is that, yes, it's fine to disagree with me, it's fine to have a different viewpoint to me, but the reaction to what I said is spectacularly out of proportion.

That's such a clear message. Her rational viewpoint was met with a vitriolic pile on. The contrast was really stark.

Ive been following birthrights for a few years now and I've NEVER seen them post the words birthing person without also saying women. They've been a lifeline to me and i can't believe that people think that this argument over trans people and this woman's hurt feelings is more important than fighting for the rights of women around childbirth. Fucking appalling that they've had to close their social media down because of the abuse they're getting. They're entitled to choose who they work with. Transmen and non binary people need their help too, just as much as women but if they refer to women only they're automatically excluding very vulnerable people. What's the problem with saying women and birthing people? Is it that you're frustrated because you think they should identify as women if they're pregnant? I understand every argument about the language I've been following the gender debate for a long time but this is fucking ridiculous. Leave birthrights alone to get on with what they do - sticking up for everyone who is, has been or will be pregnant who suffers due to ignorance of their rights. They don't need to know you're disappointed in them.

Seeing how they have misrepresented Milli on their website I have absolutely lost respect for Birthrights.

They are betraying women. Have a look at the link posted by tiktok at 18:04 yesterday. The arguments in favour of women centred care and women centred language are clearly detailed there. The trans and non-binary identifying demographic who refer to themselves as “birthing people” will also be protected if we are able to fight for our rights as a sex class and we need accurate, clear sex based language to do that.

Aggressive, sinister and relentless pile on designed to economically punish a woman - dismissed as 'hurt feelings'

Facts about the reality of the target of obstetric violence being females - violence.

Whatever. Your Humpty Dumpty cry bully shite doesn't play here without answer, and we centre women, however they identify.

They've been a lifeline to me and i can't believe that people think that this argument over trans people and this woman's hurt feelings is more important than fighting for the rights of women around childbirth. Fucking appalling that they've had to close their social media down because of the abuse they're getting. They're entitled to choose who they work with. Transmen and non binary people need their help too, just as much as women but if they refer to women only they're automatically excluding very vulnerable people. What's the problem with saying women and birthing people? Is it that you're frustrated because you think they should identify as women if they're pregnant?

According to Milli Birthrights twisted what she said to claim that she "disputed obstetric violence could happen to trans or non binary people". That is a false interpretation of someone saying that obstetric violence is sex based violence against women. She is entitled to call that out.

Obviously you don't centre women however they identify. You centre the ones that identify as women. You seem to think you're some sort of white knight leaping in to "battle". Against a charity that uses both women and birthing people, thereby serving those who do identify as women and those who don't. Yeah fair enough, if they didn't use the word women. But they do.

Aggressive, sinister and relentless pile on designed to economically punish a woman - dismissed as 'hurt feelings'

Exactly, and yet Birthrights is to be pitied because they also received pushback on Twitter for their dubious behaviour, "and had to close their social media down"?

Mill responded to a post about simply "birthing people", not "women and birthing people". The pile on came from that.

Women's organisations need to stick up for women and girls as a sex class, not avoid the issue or promote misogynistic attitudes.

Yeah fair enough, if they didn't use the word women. But they do.

But they made a false statement about what Milli said/believes. They should apologise.

Riiight. A charity which is part of an orchestrated pile on towards a woman for stating her concerns about de-centring women in in obstetric care. A woman with a credible history of supporting women in pregnancy and childbirth. Because only those with a female reproductive system face obstetric violence, and obscuring that will hurt all women, including the women who are comfortable enough with their female reproductive system to use it, but not to use the language that accurately describes it.

And gosh, they use the word women as well as obscuring that reality. Well done them. They also bully other women whom I can only assume they perceive as rivals in the field. I'm not battling them. I'm standing with a woman who has been treated shamefully. You stand with the bullies if you want. I know how vital woman-centred obstetric care is, and how hard it has been to shift the system towards it, and I don't support a charity that seeks to undermine that, however naively unintentional they may be.

Obviously you don't centre women however they identify. You centre the ones that identify as women.

Women don't "identify as women". We are women. No "identifying" needed. We're tiptoeing around the ideology here, but males cannot give birth, and no one is neither male nor female. Only women can give birth. Woman is simply the term for an adult human female. Nothing more and nothing less.

She is entitled to call that out.

And theyre entitled to work with people who they feel will support their mission and the way they choose to work and not put off traumatized transmen and non binary people.

They're not responsible for other people piling on her. They're a charity dedicated to helping women who have suffered trauma in childbirth. Their work is way more important than people objecting to them using the words "birthing people" as well as women. How can they possibly stand up and support milli when transmen and non binary people might come to them for help? Why is she more important than them when they're the ones who have suffered trauma, possibly in part due to their identity? Of course they have to distance themselves from her. Their greater responsibility is to the people they help.

I've been here years. Fully on board with some aspects of the gender debate. I've posted about this issue and been as fully indoctrinated as the rest of you. But you're really missing the bigger picture here. Birthrights work is vital.

Birthrights jumped on a nasty bandwagon, and they got called out for it.

A lot of charities and organisations do vital work. That isn't a free pass to do anything they like without censure.

Women don't "identify as women". We are women. No "identifying" needed. We're tiptoeing around the ideology here, but males cannot give birth, and no one is neither male nor female. Only women can give birth. Woman is simply the term for an adult human female. Nothing more and nothing less.

I've seen and heard all these arguments before. I've been here a long time under various names. You feel that way, not everyone does. You've just adequately proven that you don't centre women who don't identify as such. Their feelings are less important than yours.