Women's Rights Demo, Scottish Parliament 11am 2nd Sept

[Scout2016]

Can't see this elsewhere, apologies if I'm duplicating. I'll stick it on the Scottish action thread too.
Is anyone off here going, or involved?

What a shame I didn't know about this, I would've went. I did drive past yesterday and see the crowd, I wondered what it was for.

A counterprotest attracted about 50 activists.

LOL. Not really any way to spin that, eh Times?

The Times articles about Scottish opposition to the GRA changes always seem to be by male journalists, who appear to be a bit clueless, biased towards TRAs and stubborn when their mistakes are pointed out on Twitter etc.

@InvisibleDragon

I'm really annoyed about the picture the Times photographer chose for their article about the protest.

Midway through the speeches, an activist from the counter demonstration forced their way into the crowd and started using a megaphone to shout "get hate off our streets" over and over again. They were aggressive and refused to move, despite being repeatedly asked to leave by women, PCSOs and police officers. That person, deliberately disrupting the peaceful demonstration, is the person pictured at the top of the article.

The picture has a bit of aggro, a bit of interest, but it deliberately misrepresents what was happening at the protest and centers someone who was not part of the peaceful rally, but deliberately disrupting it.

You should consider writing to the Times about that.

Midway through the speeches, an activist from the counter demonstration forced their way into the crowd and started using a megaphone to shout "get hate off our streets" over and over again.

Ohhhhhh is that what they were saying?! None of us from a distance had a clue what was being shouted. Everyone around me that I asked looked baffled. It sounded like dog barks - woof woof woof woof woof. Someone said maybe they are trying to mock and disrupt our demo by making dog noises and we all nodded with serious faces haha. 🙈

The counter protestors really need to work on their skills.

Someone said maybe they are trying to mock and disrupt our demo by making dog noises and we all nodded with serious faces haha.

Word of day. Was she thinking snp msps

It really was a great event. To hear some MSPs describe us as "aggressive" is ridiculous. I was surrounded by women who were passionate, knowledgeable and enjoying being around women who shared their views. The speeches were great, especially Caroline McAllister. And yes, Glinner is taller than I expected. Proud to have been part of the event and let's keep up the pressure

I had a look through some twitter threads and the fact that at least two Tories were allowed to cosy up to y'all and claim "pro women" credentials when they have been systematically making the lives of women worse (think rape clause, all the cuts that increase poverty, poverty of mothers, make women more dependent on partners etc) is sickening.

It looks like Marion herself won’t be there in person at the next hearing as she isn’t needed to appear.

@CatherinaJTV

I had a look through some twitter threads and the fact that at least two Tories were allowed to cosy up to y'all and claim "pro women" credentials when they have been systematically making the lives of women worse (think rape clause, all the cuts that increase poverty, poverty of mothers, make women more dependent on partners etc) is sickening.

Other MSPs could have have come out to speak to us, many of us emailed our MSPs to ask them to do that. (I believe one Labour MSP may have done so). The fact that so-called "progressive" parties like SNP, Greens are the ones ignoring women, talking over us, telling us there's no debate, does them no favours. Come out and defend your position politicians! Argue your case. If you are unable or too scared to do that then don't complain when other parties step in.

I had a look through some twitter threads and the fact that at least two Tories were allowed to cosy up to y'all and claim "pro women" credentials when they have been systematically making the lives of women worse (think rape clause, all the cuts that increase poverty, poverty of mothers, make women more dependent on partners etc) is sickening.

You might like to talk to the TRAs about Sue Pascoe and Tara Hewitt, as well as Crispin Blunt, Caroline Nokes and Maria Miller.

Other MSPs could have have come out to speak to us, many of us emailed our MSPs to ask them to do that. (I believe one Labour MSP may have done so). The fact that so-called "progressive" parties like SNP, Greens are the ones ignoring women, talking over us, telling us there's no debate, does them no favours. Come out and defend your position politicians! Argue your case. If you are unable or too scared to do that then don't complain when other parties step in.

They stepped in to use you as "proof" they are pro-women, when everything they are doing, their entire voting record over the past 11 years has made (especially) women's lives more difficult. Our lives are not going to get an iota better under these types. Rape clause, happy not to feed kids, happy to cut benefits, making single UC payments that tie abuse victim to abuser, I could go on and on. You gave yourselves as window dressing to a far greater threat than any trans person and now you are even defending this?

You might like to talk to the TRAs about Sue Pascoe and Tara Hewitt, as well as Crispin Blunt, Caroline Nokes and Maria Miller.

you lot cosied up to men who systematically made women's lives more difficult. I am talking about that. It's shameful.

you lot cosied up to men who systematically made women's lives more difficult.

"We're the good people, and we're going to tell you to fuck off, so don't you dare talk to those bad people, or that means you're bad people too".

Are you 12?

I am not talking about myself. I am talking about the women who were there, claim they are feminists, and let two anti-feminists use them as advertisement material (and there are a lot of "thank you for talking to us" type messages under these individuals' tweets). What kind of a message is this:

"Hey, you voted for the rape clause, but you are willing to talk to me, and I am so grateful"?!

@CatherinaJTV

I am not talking about myself. I am talking about the women who were there, claim they are feminists, and let two anti-feminists use them as advertisement material (and there are a lot of "thank you for talking to us" type messages under these individuals' tweets). What kind of a message is this:

"Hey, you voted for the rape clause, but you are willing to talk to me, and I am so grateful"?!

Building bridges is important. Educating people is important. You can't do either if you refuse to interact with people who don't meet your purity standards.

You gave yourselves as window dressing to a far greater threat than any trans person and now you are even defending this?

No, you gave them an open goal.

‘Trans’ no longer has any objective meaning, so it’s impossible to say whether any trans person would or wouldn’t be a threat.

To make arguments about climate change, the economy, rights, you need to be able to use clear language and statistics. Unfortunately the Greens, the SNP and the libdems have abandoned Science. Of course the Tories are taking advantage.

I think that the 'look at those allies' has lost any ability to shame at this point.

Let's see. We have a thread about a lawyer, who is also a trans activist and has political contacts (indeed spoken on political panels), stating in the law guide book they co-authored that Women and children are effectively ok as collateral in the progress of trans rights because they question why males who identify as women cannot be accepted as females (not new but good to have it published in a book on law) and also question the relevance to a traumatised female who requests a female counsellor if a male can somehow 'pass' as a female.

And you have many allies and activists at the moment doubling down stating that the WiSpa incident happened, some even still deny it happened, the person has been targeted as a sex offender because they are trans. Complete denial that the person is, in fact, a sex offender who habitually exposes their penis where they are not supposed to. And seems to have done since 2002 or 2003.

Last weekend, a lone gay man was abused, assaulted and feared enough for his safety he sought police protection by a group of trans protesters. We even had posters come and tell us he deserved it. One man targeted by a large group for the act of wearing something that that group did not like (not doing anything illegal).

We have seen politicians from the parties we are told are the best advocates for women's and children's rights publicly defending these acts.

And yet, you are here again talking about 'right wing' allies like it is some kind of gotcha.

Please do keep posting in that line because it really shows the readers the complete lack of integrity and empathy in those tactics. It also shows that all your intention is, is to silence those who are discussing their concerns.

Anyone who supports the actions I have mentioned above is NO ally to women or children at all. It doesn't matter who else 'aligns' with your views. It simply doesn't matter.

two anti-feminists

I also think that the term 'anti-feminist' gets bandied around by those who are really still only interested in silencing discussion.

Well. Laurie Penny is supposedly a 'feminist' and many others. I think that term is quite powerless now too as in this era of destabilising language. But again, crack on.

@Helleofabore

two anti-feminists

I also think that the term 'anti-feminist' gets bandied around by those who are really still only interested in silencing discussion.

Well. Laurie Penny is supposedly a 'feminist' and many others. I think that term is quite powerless now too as in this era of destabilising language. But again, crack on.

Go on - defend the indefensible. Hang out with folk who voted for the rape clause and to make women poorer. What's in a word, as long as you get attention.

So CatherinaJTV

Are you happy defending the male CEO of the Edinburgh Rape Crisis Centre who left the SNP, who they were going to be a candidate for, because the legislation made it clear that a woman can ask and have reasonable expectation for a female medical examiner? And recently stated that bigots (in this case meaning females who rejected male counseling staff) needed to expect to reframe their trauma?

Are you comfortable supporting the activist that advised the Girl Guides that over the past day or two made racist remarks about a young woman, an activist who also advocates for extreme porn to be legalized and to lower the age for porn actors, who also has put the emphasis of murdered women’s deaths on their egg shell heads rather than the males who killed them?

We can do this all day. But that is great because it highlights to those reading to see more and more of the people who are pushing an agenda that is detrimental to women and children in the name of inclusion.

As I said, please crack on.

By that reasoning, you should have opposed the move in 2018 to reform the GRA, catherina, because it was brought by a Tory government, who are responsible for the misery and suffering of countless women, as you say above.

Did you oppose it?

Back in the real world, If anybody wishes to effect political change, then they are going to have speak to and build bridges with politicians of every hue

Anyway, it looked like a fab day, and what a turn out it was for a movement that’s entirely composed of half a dozen man haters on Mumsnet and Glinner!

@Sophoclesthefox

By that reasoning, you should have opposed the move in 2018 to reform the GRA, catherina, because it was brought by a Tory government, who are responsible for the misery and suffering of countless women, as you say above.

Did you oppose it?

Back in the real world, If anybody wishes to effect political change, then they are going to have speak to and build bridges with politicians of every hue

Very good point. I’d like to hear the answer.