Mermaids sending free binders to teen girls

[rogdmum]

www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2022/09/25/exclusive-trans-charity-mermaids-giving-breast-binders-children/

Can also be found in the usual place.

“A transgender children’s charity is giving potentially dangerous chest-flattening devices to 14-year-olds against their parents’ wishes, an investigation by The Telegraph has found

Mermaids, which receives funding from the taxpayer and runs training for schools and the NHS, offered to send a breast binder discreetly to a girl they believed was only 14, even after they were told that she was not allowed to use one by her mother.

Evidence obtained by The Telegraph shows that the charity’s staff have offered binders to children as young as 13 who say that their parents oppose the practice.”

We sometime get the odd poster here denying Mermaids does this (or saying there is no evidence that it happens) despite people with direct experience stating that it does. And yes, it does happen.

Cleaning up their act? But that is their act. Promoting transition without question to children and young people who have gender issues and to parents who think their children should transition. It's what they do

Sorry, should have clarified. Cleaning up their act in terms of GenderGP. They were told by the National Lottery to stop endorsing GenderGP. All that happened was that publicly they stopped doing so - references removed from website, if you ask their chat line they say they aren’t allowed to endorse any private providers etc. All that happened was the public face re Gender GP was removed but in the private forums, both parent and youth, parents and adolescents were happily recommending GenderGP to each other, giving great detail about their experiences without any comment from moderators.

In the private forums, both parent and youth, parents and adolescents were happily recommending GenderGP to each other, giving great detail about their experiences without any comment from moderators.

Ah, I see what you mean by cleaning up their act.

This will be useful for when LGBA eventually get their own service for young people going. They want to start helpline type service that respects safeguarding, don't they? And they want to research how to do it. Mermaids are giving a live tutorial on how not to do it.

Actually I went back and reread the National Lottery report. It wasn’t as strong as telling them to remove the GenderGP references (though they have taken it to mean this if you ask on their live chat). The National Lottery told them:

”Cleaning up their act? But that is their act. Promoting transition without question to children and young people who have gender issues and to parents who think their children should transition. It's what they do.”

The Mermaids response to the concerns included:

”Mermaids states that it does not refer directly to any private GP. Mermaids also states that it does not, and would not refer, to any suspended GP.”

and

“Mermaids states it does not encourage families to go to private practice.”

Which is misleading in terms of what goes on in the private forums where parents and adolescents do the encouraging. Ie Mermaids don’t need to- they have plenty of users doing it for them and the mods turn a blind eye to it.

www.tnlcommunityfund.org.uk/media/documents/Mermaids-UK-Review-Report_February-2019.pdf?mtime=20190219142027

I just saw this tweet by Helen Joyce:

twitter.com/HJoyceGender/status/1574655729168166912?s=20&t=RR4zalYfV8cYRqyFxJf7Qg

I can't read the article, but is it true? Are the Charity Commission investigating Mermaids?

Icake Not quite. They are assessing whether they should investigate. 🙄

So possibly there will eventually be an investigation.

Àaarrrrrgggghhhhhhh!

<deep breath>

Thank you.

Binders are such a jarring thing. I watch Jamie Raines (jammidodgers) videos quite a lot. Watching his fiancée talking about how great it was when he had mastectomy because he bound so tight 24/7 and it was much better to have had the surgery.. the self loathing in that image is really distressing.

I find Jammidodger’s videos incredibly painful to watch.

It’s as if the two of them are fully submerged in a folie à deux…

and then a million teenage girl subscribers are dancing along behind the trans pied piper.

It makes me quite worried for Jamie, actually.

This thread is a woman joining Mermaids forum for her 10 year old. Within 3 weeks, her daughter has a binder ordered directly from Mermaids and a prescription from GenderGP for puberty blockers following recommendations from other forum users.

twitter.com/nurtural_uk/status/1574703142016524288?s=21&t=NYEIvgtUhUNMe4LSMB-zgw

And they are already talking about getting testosterone despite not even starting the blockers!

It's almost as if it's been decided already that this child will be transitioned. So much for the "its just a pause" justification.

They are and they aren't. I wouldn't want to know how I'd come across if I did a series of extremely intimate videos about my entire life and medical history. I find it scary the way all these really quite extreme things are talked about in the videos, and the very repressive upbringing of the fiancee to the point that she wasn't allowed to speak to boys at school. She surely would never have been allowed to consider she might be gay. And maybe she isn't, relationships don't fit into neat boxes. I hope they are as happy together as they present.

They are assessing whether they should investigate

One small step for the CC... but it's in the right direction.

HJ says the CC need evidence from people who have dealt with Mermaids personally. So if you do have complaints now's probably a good time!

Tesco made a hefty donation to Mermaids a couple of years ago too. I emailed the Chief Executive at the time, but only got a holding response.

So many supporters, funding breast binding.

I'm wary of the idea I've seen that complaining now is a great idea. As given here, the Charity Commission has had evidence before. There have been stories before about Mermaids and other groups sending out binders. Nothing has happened to protect children as a result. They've been in schools in that time!

Fine, put it in again or make a new complaint but keep a track of everything. If there is a desire to bury this forever, dealing with all the complaints now in one go would be an ideal way to do it. And be careful what you agree to in getting involved in the process. Protect/preserve your position.

Yes I feel very jaded by all this by this point!

Re-reading this Spectator piece on the Mermaids residentials and their breast binding sessions fir children. www.spectator.co.uk/article/why-is-mermaids-promoting-breast-binding-at-events-for-young-people-

Is that Spectator piece, this?

debbiehayton.com/2021/11/16/why-is-mermaids-promoting-breast-binding-at-events-for-young-people/

(Because the link doesn't work.)

The Hayton link is from Nov 2021. It includes this from Mermaids' "Digital Enhancement Manager":

"'The highlight for me was our binder safety session, where trans masc and non-binary young people were able to learn how to properly measure and fit their binders, before going off to try them on. Watching them come back into the room, grinning from ear to ear, was witnessing gender euphoria in action and it made my queer heart soar.’"

On age, the Hayton article says:

"Mermaids do not disclose the age ranges of the children which attended the residential event, nor the age of those who were able to participate in breast binding. Photos on their webpage promoting future weekends show both pre-schoolers and late teens."

Hayton said in that article "The situation is serious and it is urgent". That's almost a year ago. Before then, the data breach in 2020.

It's still serious and it's still urgent.

Telegraph:

Chest binding could be child abuse, say police amid ‘mounting horror’ at Mermaids trans charity

www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2022/09/27/breast-ironing-could-child-abuse-say-police-amid-mounting-horror/

"On its website, the Metropolitan Police describes the offence of “breast ironing (also called breast flattening)”, which is a form of female genital mutilation most commonly practiced in Cameroon.
The force describes it as “child abuse” and says that “sometimes, an elastic belt, or binder, is used to stop them from growing”.
The description led to questions over how the practice differs from the use of binders on children who believe that they are trans.
Ian Acheson, a former Home Office official and visiting professor at Staffordshire University School of Law, Policing and Forensics, said: “I'm really confused. Is this not 'child abuse’ if the same process is advocated by a UK registered charity acting in collusion with a minor against the wishes of parents?”
'Potential child abuse'
According to guidance from the Crown Prosecution Service, breast ironing is an offence “regardless of consent. It is not possible to consent to serious assault”.
A Metropolitan Police spokesman told The Telegraph: “The supply of a breast binder on its own is not a criminal offence.
“However, if an individual case of someone using a breast binder or undergoing the practice of breast ironing is reported to police, it would be investigated jointly with social services as potential child abuse. The same approach would be taken regardless of culture or community.""

ResisterRex · Today 21:19

Telegraph:

Chest binding could be child abuse, say police amid ‘mounting horror’ at Mermaids trans charity

I hope those at Mermaids are absolutely sh*ting themselves.

I want to ask them why do you believe a child is transgender? What makes them so?

Let's fucking have it.

Yes, thanks for posting the text. Not sure why it didn't work.

On Tuesday, Baroness Nicholson of Winterbourne, a Tory peer, said: “I have been following very closely the Mermaids saga with mounting horror that this so-called charity is allowed by our laws to abuse the essential parental responsibility of health and welfare of their children.

“I will be ready to crowdfund myself for a court case if this shocking behaviour is allowed to continue unchecked.”

Go Emma!

Was it Lush that was involved in the supply of binders too?

That was openly advertised wasn't it?

Yes, I'm sure that's right. You could pick them up at the shop or something.

Yes Lush is another shop that I boycott.

I also never liked being fondled by the overly familiar staff in the guise of showing you their products (weird arm and hand massaging while looking intensely into my eyes).

Some parents who've been colluding in transing their daughters, however reluctantly, may find themselves caught up if this goes anywhere.