Gender and identify

[KangarooKenny]

Isn’t it time we just refused to answer the questions ?
I don’t have a gender, nor do I identify as anything.
If we refuse to answer the question, might they stop asking ?

You are apparently in denial because of your cis privilege and the comfort that gives being so aligned

The more you say you don't have one the more it proves you are cis gendered

Reminds me of Mr Collins in P&P

Of course you don't have to answer. And people might well stop asking you. What is your point?

You are apparently in denial because of your cis privilege and the comfort that gives being so aligned

I am sure the female prisoners forced to share showers etc with male sex offenders are only too aware of their " privilege"* *

I’ve started to tick the ‘prefer not to say’ or ‘refused’ boxes on forms which specify gender or gender identity. It isn’t a protected characteristic in EA2010 so the service provider doesn’t have a clear legal basis for collecting it or monitoring it anyway. They are also failing to collect sex, so I’m not playing into the elision of sex and gender.

I never answer this question. And if there's a free text field I tell them exactly why.

Now then the female prisoners question I would say is different

Even if everyone has a gender identity, why does it matter ? Why would we discriminate on that rather than sex ?

See sone people have a clear identity, so what? Why should we give any credit to it ?

We can refuse to answer, OP, and where possible we can explain why. But there are times when moving forward with something important can only proceed if we give an answer. And there are times when we want to vote on something, for example, where not answering means we cannot vote and thus we are reducing our influence over things that may be important.

However we should bear in mind that the change from sex (sometimes gender as a euphemism) to “gender identity” didn’t occur because of some new and proven understanding of reality, but through organised complaining and lobbying.

Those with the loudest voices and highest willingness to moan do, quite often get their way, even if they are only a tiny minority, as here. It was on a different Mumsnet board, probably relationships, that I once saw some advice that resonated, as it was literally the opposite of my normal inclinations. One of the vipers suggested that to get your own way, you had to be willing to be the most bloody minded, awkward woman in the room. Make a fuss when you don’t get your own way. The only thing that’s stopping you is your worry about how others might see you. I think there’s a lot of truth in that. These organizations are often taking the path of least resistance. There are more of us. If we all object loudly, every time, then the chances of being listened to are much greater.