A Green Party leader to 'welcome politically homeless women'

[GreenGretel]

A candidate in the Green Party election contest wants to welcome back women who have been left politically homeless by the assault on sex-based rights.

I'd urge any Green-minded people to join or re-join the party by 27th Aug in order to vote for Shahrar Ali. You can join (if only temporarily) for as little as £13 here: join.greenparty.org.uk/

Shahrar Ali stands a good chance of winning, having previously been deputy leader and gaining 24% of first-preference votes in 2020. He is speaking up unequivocally for women's sex-based rights. You can read his full statement on Facebook here: www.facebook.com/ShahrarAliGreenParty/posts/190051301345352.

He is also in the Guardian here: www.theguardian.com/politics/2021/aug/17/green-transgender-rights-row-leadership-shahrar-ali-sian-berry

If Shahrar wins, he will be the first leader of a British political party willing to stand up to gender identity ideology.

I’ve joined. I only hope this works.

@WarriorN

Although I've been a member for a year or so I've only recently joined the boards.

I'd strongly suggest channeling the extremely polite and respectful mn approach to debate if you do, along with a robust Bunbury attitude, as a number of the pro trans lot seem to fling a lot of goady slanderous labels around, 'phobes etc and general hyperbole.

Emma's responses are fantastic despite the goading. It makes them look childish next to her measured responses.

One tra poster clearly reads Glinner and is aware of women joining to vote for SA.

There are boards? We could organise an outing from FWR. I'll pack sandwiches.

I've voted Conservative my whole life but have joined the green party purely so I can vote for Ali.
Any good questions I should ask in the Hustings?
Is: "Do you believe transwomen are women?" too obvious?

According to the Green's Facebook page, they've had almost 2000 people join so far this month.
It's impossible to tell how many of those intend to vote in the elections, but their last elections had around 7000 votes in the first round so its possible that it could have quite a substantial impact
en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/2020_Green_Party_of_England_and_Wales_leadership_election

You have to join the Green Party of England and Wales to vote for Shahrar, You can join if in Scotland, just be aware Scottish GP is a different organisation.

Yes. They will just say yes. 😭😭 Best to ask how candidates will heal rifts in the party and welcome back those who left in dismay at attitudes to Women's rights. Or something along those lines. Then it's harder to ignore you or give a one word answer. 💚

Take gin n sandwiches and you will be fine 😵 If you don't drink, surround yourself with kittens and chocolate supplies.

Some women in the Gp are enormously pissed off with him for that comment as they have been working tirelessly within the GP and haven't left. Which is a fair point, though many did. but I don't think they're on the GC side.

The "floater" video is marked as private just now when I tried to view it. Very brave.

It was when I first clicked through to view it, but I could play the embedded video. You're not missing much in terms of content anyway, it is exactly as people have represented it.

You can see the floater comment in the clip here which will play

twitter.com/bloominanna/status/1428051884854628359?s=20

For the millionth time, it strikes me that we are supposedly the 'hateful' ones, yet I have never and will never refer to anyone else as a floater, vermin, infestation or any other of the horribly dehumanising terms that I've seen trans activists use for women.
I'm glad they put that video out though. It's not going to persuade anyone who is unaware of the issues but its quite possible that unaware Green voters will see it and think 'WTF'.
Anyone talking about other people like that has no place as leader of a political party.

For the millionth time, it strikes me that we are supposedly the 'hateful' ones, yet I have never and will never refer to anyone else as a floater, vermin, infestation or any other of the horribly dehumanising terms that I've seen trans activists use for women.

Same. I am genuinely shocked by not only the fact someone would use a dehumanising, degrading term/description like that, but that they apparently think this is a Good Thing and perfectly acceptable to share publically as part of their political campaign.

Vichy feminism is such an apt term. It sums it up perfectly.

What if the two silly girls were to drum up enough support from the trans side (and other mysogynists) to win the leadership? I couldn't see the Green Party ever recovering from the embarrassment :)

If lots of people join and vote but the Green party don't get a GC leader and then lots of members leave it may make Labour/Conservative realise that there are a lot of voters out there that they could scoop up if they took a solid women's rights position. I can't see a downside to signing up.

@Puffincrossing

If lots of people join and vote but the Green party don't get a GC leader and then lots of members leave it may make Labour/Conservative realise that there are a lot of voters out there that they could scoop up if they took a solid women's rights position. I can't see a downside to signing up.

And to add, if SA does win, please don't leave thinking the job is done. iirc there have been a few policy votes and amendments that have squeaked through because no one was paying much attention. He's also going to draw the full ire of TRAs. He'll need support from within, even if it's just voting on motions or similar when they come up.

I will be very happy to stick around and help if we get a leader who will stand up for women as well as deal with climate change. I am desperate to have a political party I can support!

Aren't they entering a coalition with the Nats? I thought I read something in the Speccie or the NS

@GreenandCommon

Hi Faybian re SA, there were accusations of anti-semitism but when I read the quotes there wasn't anything that bothered me. I think it was campaign Against Anti-semitism I found them on but it was a while back.

A long-standing member in my local party thinks his views are sound but he's not good at the politics bit.

As regards your comments on TO. I feel a bit uncomfortable about calling an individual problematic. I don't like some of her views but on a public forum I'd rather criticise what she says than her personality.

Posts from here have appeared on Green Spaces before and the Green code "In all interactions with colleagues, assume the best of them" gets trotted out along with "Look at the terrible transphobes being mean in public. Not a Green attitude." I think if you said that on Green Spaces you'd be open to disciplinary action...except there is barely any moderation.

From what I can work out from a couple of conversations on there, there is some doxxing too. I name change regularly now - never felt the need before joining the Green party!

Shahrar is not anti-semitic; he is critical of Israels' treatment of Palestians. The accusations were part of a witch-hunt against him, partly because of his support of sex-based rights for women.

Aren't they entering a coalition with the Nats? I thought I read something in the Speccie or the NS

Scottish Greens are a separate party, but yes.

More than 2000 new members joined the party this month - and we're hearing many of them are Green-minded feminists looking for a home. Anyone who joins by 27th Aug is entitled to vote: join.greenparty.org.uk/

I’ve just gone to fill in the form to join and I can’t make myself do tI! Im thinking do I want to be a member of a party who support the
likes of Amy Chandellor and think women like me are “turds”. Is anyone else feeling like this?

@LizzieSiddal

I’ve just gone to fill in the form to join and I can’t make myself do tI! Im thinking do I want to be a member of a party who support the likes of Amy Chandellor and think women like me are “turds”. Is anyone else feeling like this?

I really struggled with it. But then I remembered how much Momentum were able to change the LP from within and figured better chance of changing it from the inside than anywhere else. Having another major political party on the GC side would make a big difference I think, especially a left leaning one.

@LizzieSiddal

I’ve just gone to fill in the form to join and I can’t make myself do tI! Im thinking do I want to be a member of a party who support the likes of Amy Chandellor and think women like me are “turds”. Is anyone else feeling like this?

I think that what you need to keep in mind is that it's not the whole party that thinks like that, just certain individuals. This is a unique opportunity to not only support those Greens who have been fighting against the horrendous sexism and safeguarding failures of Challenor, Womack and their ilk, but alsofinallyget a political party leader who openly and explicitly supports women's rights. I don't know if Ali will win but I do know that it's long past time for our voices to be heard politically. If we can land a resounding GC success with the Greens, it might send a message to the other parties that they need to put on their big girl pants and deal with this issue, instead of cowering in fear of TRA tantrums.

I struggled with it last year, but then I also knew women who were at the time actively arguing and campaigning within the party for better safeguarding rules and guidelines etc. Which is one of the reasons why I joined, to help give my voice. And I don't intend to leave, despite me thinking I may after a month or so last year.