Sex Equality and Equity Network - Gender crit network for civil servants.

[fromorbit]

Important new initiative for government workers. This is where a huge fight back is going to happen in behind the scenes government, in memos and meetings. If we don't win in the civil service, it doesn't matter how many demos or cases we win, how many twitter threads we write, sooner or later sex differences will be erased. If you work in government/public sector get involved asp.

seen-network.uk/

"We are happy to announce the launch of our new UK cross-government staff network, the Sex Equality and Equity Network.
SEEN is a staff network committed to promoting and supporting sex equality and equity between women and men in our workplaces, and helping all staff to thrive at work and fulfil their potential. The focus of our network is on challenging sex discrimination and upholding rights and protections that relate to sex (including the protections provided to those with the protected characteristics of sex, pregnancy and maternity and sexual orientation, as set out in the Equality Act 2010). We recognise that to achieve this and ensure sex equality and equity sometimes requires treating women and men differently, according to our different rights and needs.

We are also committed to the protected belief (covered by the protected characteristic of religion and belief in the Equality Act 2010) that biological sex is binary and immutable, that biological sex matters for both women and men in our everyday lives, including for our rights and needs in the workplace, and that biological sex must not be conflated with, or replaced by, the concepts of gender or gender identity."

Thank you Patti.
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petition.parliament.uk/petitions/623243

Everybody - the petition is anonymous. It is an official parliamentary one.

People don’t understand the implications of the meaning of the word ‘sex ‘ as disappearing till it is too late - like it is for Scotland!

Look how red Scotland is on the petition map, while England, Wales and Northern Ireland have signed so relatively few times that the map is still just yellow and orange….time to get more livid.

To sign and share the petition
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petition.parliament.uk/petitions/623243
This is what I meant about Scotland having realised while England, Wales and Northern Ireland are relatively unaware. The more signatures, the redder it is.

I've signed it, Scrolling. I thought about posting it on the yammer thread but it's not the done thing.

Although the LGBT+ people post links to petitions apparently, the gender critical people aren't allowed to.

Tallisker · Today 16:40
I've signed it, Scrolling. I thought about posting it on the yammer thread but it's not the done thing.

Although the LGBT+ people post links to petitions apparently, the gender critical people aren't allowed to

Every signature adds some hope. Tallisker.

What is the yammer thread, please?

Sorry Scrolling Yammer is our internal 'social media' at work. I'm pretty sure it's a Microsoft application. It's discussed upthread and mentioned a few times.

Tallisker · Today 19:02
Thank you for explaining.

I've just had an email from them, sounds like things are starting to move!

Same. Website up and running, with launch speeches, and promise of the actual joining link shortly.

I got the email too. Really hoping some 'jobs' in the network will become available, I respect the founders so much... also wonder if anonymity is going to be a requirement. I have such mixed feelings. I don't want to hurt any colleagues who have different views, especially the dysphoric, but at the same time, we aren't doing anything wrong.

Great to hear things are moving. I've not heard anything yet but I'm way down the pipeline not upper level civil servant.

Interesting stats for the Yammer page. Only 32 members but 408 individuals have at least read the threads in the last 28 days - 27 members and 381 non-members.

Total 7480 views of the page in 28 days.

I'm only in a couple of all company yammer groups but none have ratios like that.

If you’re a member of the FDA Union (the Civil Service Union for senior managers and professionals), they have launched a Trans Inclusion Consultation Survey. The link to the survey can be found in the FDA Update E-mail that came out yesterday.

Please do take the time to complete it as there are free text boxes to complete on your thoughts on workplace trans inclusions policies and what the FDA should consider. I’ve put a lot of detail in my responses (protected gender critical beliefs, the need to carry out a full equality impact assessment of any new policies, concerns about the influences of Stonewall et al, my views on pronouns in e-mail signatures and referenced SEEN as well).

We need to show the FDA just how many of us there are who have concerns about this, and while I’m still not convinced that they would have my back if I was discriminated against for my gender critical views, I welcome the fact that they are at least consulting on this policy rather than just imposing it.

After the hoohah following the launch of the new network, my union (not FDA) emailed all its members to inform them they were fully inclusive and TWAW no debate. Made me realise if I ever got in bother at work because of my gender-critical beliefs, I couldn't expect union support. I won't continue with my membership for much longer, I can't bear paying for people to dismiss women's concerns out of hand. Like Nicola Sturgeon did...

Please would anyone who has not signed the Sex-Matters petition to Parliament to update the Equality Act to make clear the characteristic ‘sex ‘ is biological, consider looking at the thread on mumsnet under petitions, the mumsnet petition site, or Sex-Matters and sign it if you agree.

The thread needs 100,000 signatures to get a debate in Parliament, but with about 18,300 to get before 20th April, is in danger of not doing so especially since N S’s resignation may encourage complacency.

There is no place for this especially since Lady Haldane’s ruling which has not been appealed, and meanwhile the Government response so far shows them dragging their feet and refusing to engage with the reality of complications between the Equality Act and Gender Recognition “changing a person’s sex”.

That's a lot of lurking, Papaya. Shame there's no way to disaggregate 'shy supporters' from 'monitors'.

Got my first email from SEEN today so it is trickling down. Loads of articles on the website.
seen-network.uk

Did anyone go to the SEEN talk today with the Civil Service Race Forum?

It clashed with another meeting for me, so I couldn’t. Would be very interested to know how it went.

Lots of supportive comments initially but I had to leave just as the discussion was getting more heated. They said they were recording it so hopefully that will be available.

Yes, I joined - I think there was a lot of support in the chat, and a smaller number of critical voices, including the two people who got to ask questions at the end. It was recorded. But unfortunately it did get rather heated, with one of the two asking questions at the end essentially equating SEEN to a hate group. Audience I think was about 150 people. I really liked the presentation based on Caroline Criado-Perez's book, as I think it is very difficult to argue against the importance of biological sex given the strong evidence based context, but I thought towards the end some of those critical of the SEEN viewpoint conveniently forgot these points. All the common arguments were wheeled out - most marginalised, intersex, erasing trans people...but I think all were quite firmly refuted in the chat box.

I was encouraged by the chat content on the whole. As Imicola says, all the tropes were trotted out. Someone posted a link to Mermaids response to the Cass review 😱

The tropes were trotted out, but they were very swiftly refuted. I did wonder how many mners were on 😁

I was there today, agreed it was like trope bingo! The thing is that by this time we've heard everything and can predict all the old arguments so can easily be refuted in the chat box.

I joined it too.

I thought the speakers were good - and very brave to speak out in this forum. Such a shame that they have to be so brave in these circumstances.

Some of the comments in the chat were predictable and it was pretty heated at the end.

Some really positive comments in the chat too though 👍

My absolute favourite line was "there's no sorting hats in the maternity ward"

My absolute favourite line was "there's no sorting hats in the maternity ward"

Oh I'd forgotten that! Well done that man!

(It's quite alarming that we probably know each other at work on here!)