Feeling really low today

[Sasketchewoo]

I know it's best to step back for a bit if this is upsetting me so much but this is really getting under my skin so I wanted to post here first. I had been following TT Exulansic on YT and seeing her followers grow was giving me such hope that lots of people were being reached regarding the full horrors of the surgeries that are performed. The way things have played out with her have really knocked me. She was genuinely achieving something before things too the turn they did.

I keep getting a WEP person on my TikTok (I think she is one of their deputy leaders) posting things that make my blood boil. How are we in this situation where a new party with fabulous potential to help women is just sticking a dagger in our backs? This TikTok account (I really don't want to make things personal and name her) is so enraging, I want to cry for the many women and girls who need strong politicians and some real change when women with some voice are getting caught up with all the gender nonsense. I think because of Afghanistan and now Ukraine I am feeling more fragile about things at the moment. There are so many things we could be focusing on if we weren't having to fight these silly battles about gender.

I just had someone from Labour knock on my door asking if I'd vote Labour - I used to but had to say not a chance in hell right now. She didn't look surprised. I didn't have the heart to get into a debate today.

I know we're making progress, it helps so much to see lots of strong women stand up and fight for single sex spaces, etc. I just want to be able to flick a switch and have this all go away.

You're not making progress. Most people believe do not have the concerns they do, because they manage to keep a more rational perspective. That's all you need to do to flick that switch, come back to the real world, understand that trans people are people like the rest of us, not some enemy wanting to cause you harm.

I think many more ordinary people are seeing how absurd the situation is. From my point of view, I've had my father in law round the other night astounded at what is happening. And on a night out last week the talk was about women's sports and how unfair the current situation is. So don't despair. It's anti science and anti reason and will not prevail.

@Sasketchewoo when you feel like that it’s definitely time to take a step back

We are making progress - the pushback now is almost constant. The sunlight continues to pour in.

Sask, completely understand how you feel. Take a step back, we will all keep on fighting the good fight. It may take 5 years but things will return to sanity soon. 💪🏿💪🏿

It’s a constant that posters who are feeling down, or worried about a situation in their life related to this issue, or upset on behalf of a family member, etc, will attract bullying comments from the usual suspects. They attack anyone they think is vulnerable; it’s repulsive behaviour.

So I hope that didn’t get to you, OP. Bullying is literally all they have, as has just been neatly demonstrated, and eventually that will become obvious to everyone.

Keep your chin up OP, although I know it's hard. These things take time but the truth will out, as Theeyeball says sunlight continues to pour in.

Often these things are 2 steps forward and 1 back. We will get there, the rights of women and girls are too important.

Keep your chin up, take a step back if you need to. Go and and look at all the daffs and snowdrops coming out.

I can sympathise OP. I find the betrayal by various women in positions of power and women's organisations cut really deep. And I have lost a lot of trust in many institutions that I used to think were capable of rational and evidence based policy making. It's so obvious how little women and girls matter to so many people that they will easily roll over and accept an ideology that places the sexist desires and demands of males over us, or at least pretend in public that they support it even if they don't believe any of it.

Gender identity ideology is the most offensive and awful anti-woman movement I have ever come across. It can be hard to stay positive at times when so much hard-won progress for women is being rolled back so quickly. But it can be helpful to channel that anger and frustration into more concrete actions. Try to find like-minded women to connect with in person. There are women's groups all over the UK.

More and more people are realising the dangers and idiocy of the gender identity movement. And many women are really angry and upset. The only reason this movement has gotten this far is because its activists sneak around behind the scenes pushing their agenda on politicians and lobbying without any transparency. Decent social movements are not like that, and it's why gender identity ideology will ultimately fail. It's a nasty, narrow-minded, selfish ideology that seeks to control and dominate others, and its main proponents demonstrate those qualities regularly.

We're in this for the long haul, but we will win and secure our rights in the long-term. This ideological movement took us for fools and exploited our goodwill. We women won't let it happen again.

Look after yourself and take the time away that you need.

I'm cautiously optimistic that more people are seeing the parts of the jigsaw, and looking back over the past 4/5 years we have made progress. Stonewall's interpretation of the law as they would like it to be isn't being accepted quite so easily and the issues whilst not out in the open at least have more ears.

flick that switch, come back to the real world,

:

Oh this real world?

Don't worry OP, it's disheartening sometimes but enough of the right people are getting it now. Including younger ones.

It will take time but we will get there.

@NonnyMouse1337

I can sympathise OP. I find the betrayal by various women in positions of power and women's organisations cut really deep. And I have lost a lot of trust in many institutions that I used to think were capable of rational and evidence based policy making. It's so obvious how little women and girls matter to so many people that they will easily roll over and accept an ideology that places the sexist desires and demands of males over us, or at least pretend in public that they support it even if they don't believe any of it.

Gender identity ideology is the most offensive and awful anti-woman movement I have ever come across. It can be hard to stay positive at times when so much hard-won progress for women is being rolled back so quickly. But it can be helpful to channel that anger and frustration into more concrete actions. Try to find like-minded women to connect with in person. There are women's groups all over the UK.

More and more people are realising the dangers and idiocy of the gender identity movement. And many women are really angry and upset. The only reason this movement has gotten this far is because its activists sneak around behind the scenes pushing their agenda on politicians and lobbying without any transparency. Decent social movements are not like that, and it's why gender identity ideology will ultimately fail. It's a nasty, narrow-minded, selfish ideology that seeks to control and dominate others, and its main proponents demonstrate those qualities regularly.

We're in this for the long haul, but we will win and secure our rights in the long-term. This ideological movement took us for fools and exploited our goodwill. We women won't let it happen again.

Beautifully said.

Hope you are okay , OP. It can really get to you , can't it? I'm the same. I have been really upset about the state of the world and gender ideology. I'm Scottish (don't live there now) and I am so angry about the state of the SNP government and what they are doing to women's rights. And Labour are useless. I ended up coming off twitter the other day as it is so upsetting. Have a break . Things are slowly getting better in that more people are becoming aware of what is happening to women and how toxic this ideology is for women and girls. In particular, lesbian women . Take a wee break, OP and come back refreshed.💐

I hope that you can have a break and meanwhile take heart in the legal cases being fought and the everyday conversations that women are having up and down the country.

These cases are putting up new defences for women and gurl for the future. Every conversation starts a ripple effect. Every time we write to our MP it helps. It’s not a one way street even if it feels that way sometimes. Every day, women are (democratically, legally) fighting back. Fashions change and politics always moves on for good or bad, but women will always need to look after each other and to fight sexism. We are doing that together in all our different ways.

Gurl

OP

It gets us all like that sometimes.

Remember your self care. Look to the helpers.

For all the horrors and nastiness uncovered in this fight, there are also brave, brilliant and incredibly strong women in this fight, whom I would not have had the pleasure of coming across. I've genuinely never had an experience like it in my life.

And the wee glimmers get you through. See a ribbon in the wild, overhear a snatch of conversation, marvel at the cool and calm collected response of so many women in the face of vicious attack and outrageous slings and arrows. Too many to list. We'll get there. Things now, honestly are so different than they were in 2017, 2018. We have made incredible progress.

Women have been here since humans evolved. We're not going anywhere.

Take heart. Tak tent. Take time.

@LizDoingTheCanCan

You're not making progress. Most people believe do not have the concerns they do, because they manage to keep a more rational perspective. That's all you need to do to flick that switch, come back to the real world, understand that trans people are people like the rest of us, not some enemy wanting to cause you harm.

Trans people are indeed people like everyone else. They include the same portion of sex offenders as the rest of the population, meaning that trans people who are males pose the same risk to females as all other males do. That's why I and so many others, will never stop fighting for protected spaces for women, which is obviously inclusive of any trans men who want it.

Trans people are indeed people like everyone else.

Yes. This is 100% true. Just as likely to break the law, commit offences, attack women, etc, as others. (The converse is also true, of course).

What women are arguing is that transpeople are exactly the same as other people and should have no special treatment.

Thanks everyone, it really helps to read your responses. I am surprised by how miserable this has made me today, I think Ukraine isn't helping. I will take a break from reading too much about it all.

Most people believe do not have the concerns they do, because they manage to keep a more rational perspective.

Ah good. Tips very welcome! How do I feel rational please about the people leaving death threats and posing with baseball bats on Twitter, who scare the shit out of me with their male bodies and aggressive tone? How do I feel rational about the Irish surgeon in American who is operating on the perfectly healthy bodies young women without doing any kind of assessment of their mental health or past trauma? I could waste an hour listing all the other things that are frightening me but that doesn't really fit with me stepping back and taking care of myself for a bit so I won't.

We've all been there. Take a break, look after yourself, we need you.

You see that's the thing that really frustrates me. If we're pro women we're perceived as anti trans. But I'm not anti trans, I'm pro women. And children. Let them grow up to be who they are without the sinister medical pathway that leaves people sterile and needing lifelong medical treatment.

No @LizDoingTheCanCan

Not anti trans, pro women and girls rights. The two groups could co exist and have a lovely supportive relationship but TRAs (both trans and non trans) won’t allow this.

But all you had was #nodebate and the fact that most people didn’t know what was going on. That time is over, and the more you push, and the more idiotic/corrupt/virtue signalling/whatever the fuck is behind their capitulation MPs try to force this bullshit through, the more light there is on this issue, the more people become aware and push back. There was a Scottish poll today with 90 per cent of voters against self ID. Detransitioner Awareness day is coming up, how good do you think that’s going to look for you? And the lawsuits are starting too. There’s going to be a lot of money in fighting this awfulness, maybe not as much as the vile, venal surgeons are making by mutilating desperately vulnerable young people, but enough to kick up a stink.

What is upsetting is that so many vulnerable young people will be chewed up and spat out by this and left scarred, infertile, and requiring lifelong medical treatment. There are already 27k plus members of r/detrans - how many more by next year, in five years, ten... A generation of young people left with mangled, malfunctioning bodies because they weren’t given the proper care, care that we know they should have and are fighting for them to get.

Anyway, every time I really a shitty, spiteful little comment like this it reminds me to contribute to Maya Forstater, to Raquel Rosario Sanchez, to Emma Bateman, to Shahrar Ali, to Keep Prisons Single Sex, to For Women Scotland and all the other groups, the substacks I subscribe to, the organisations fighting for girls and women’s rights every day. So thanks for the reminder

Anyway OP, I’ve shared your feelings of lowness this week upon hearing the outright lies shared by various female MSPs on the subject.

However all this does is draw attention to the many, many examples of how self ID endangers women and girls, so we have:

www.scotsman.com/news/opinion/columnists/abusive-men-will-exploit-proposed-new-gender-recognition-law-susan-dalgety-3596504

www.sundaypost.com/fp/mandy-rhodes-single-sex-spaces/?fbclid=IwAR1awQT39ZBopvwe52gbGM6ZlYcPN1cWnOtkkXIeULX2RLYGG4WU0pyvlhw

Glinner wrote this to share directly with Shona Robison
grahamlinehan.substack.com/p/predators-pretending-to-be-something?s=r

So I will be doing that, and donating, and emailing MPs and amplifying the messages of campaigners and organisations and everyone who stands up for the rights of girls and women.

Take time out and off when you need to and look after yourself. It is exhausting, but we will prevail.

understand that trans people are people like the rest of us, not some enemy wanting to cause you harm.

Feminists who care about women and girls do understand this. It is a myth promoted by gender ideologues (in place of actual evidence or logical arguments to support the beliefs they wish to impose on others) that wanting to protect women’s safe spaces and protect minors from a medical pathway is about hating or fearing trans people, wanting to get rid of them or not thinking they are human. But that’s clearly bollocks if you give it some thought.

If i hated or excluded trans people for being trans, I wouldn’t welcome trans men into female spaces for a start. It is because I understand that a confused, suggestible teenager who identifies as trans is human and normal and could well change their mind, that I oppose irreversible medical steps at a young age. It is because I understand that transwomen are (statistically) normal and as likely as any other male to be a sex offender - more likely in the case of self-Iding prisoners - that I think female only spaces should stay female-only.

On the contrary, it is transactivists who act as if trans people are some kind of special non-human super-race, who are not capable of ever doing wrong, and the act of saying you are trans by definition means you are, and so could not possibly be perpetrating a deception or be a victim of social contagion - when we know those things are quite common behaviours in humans.

It is not fear or hate of trans people. It is a sensible understanding of human behaviour - which includes all humans including trans people - and how the opportunities offered by self-ID can lead to harm, which may not be done by trans people at all, but by non-trans people faking it. There is also the harm suffered by minors who think they are trans but are quite likely not to be. Again, statistically.

It is not hate to point out that identifying as trans does not necessarily make you either a) trans or b) incapable of wrongdoing.