Stylist magazine deleted my comment on IG

[Mars27]

So, Stylist magazine posted on their Instagram a post earlier today with the "lovely" Charlie Craggs. It's a new weekly campaign from Strong Women UK (oh, the irony).

I can't copy and paste the post from my phone but then that's not really the point. I wrote a comment along the lines of "Hey Stylist, how about interviewing real women to talk about real women's problems such as endometriosis, domestic violence, discrimination at the workplace at the end of your maternity leave, etc?". I started getting abuse and obviously my comment was deleted. The abuse I was getting was from other women and I cannot understand for the life of me how some women cannot see that lived experience as man is different from a woman's, how insulting it is for that person to be taking the space from a female writer and so many issues stemming from that.

I know it's mostly like a generational divide and I feel so sorry for the women of tomorrow as they will be living in a truly horrible world (for them, obviously, as the patriarchy will reign supreme).

not have to be subject to harassment and violence based on our sex (which is also very much the case for trans women)

No, this is the opposite of the truth. Transwomen, being by definition male, do not suffer harassment and violence based on [their] sex. They enjoy the physical and social advantages of their sex.

Can you give some evidence of the violence we are constantly being told that they suffer? Relevant evidence from the UK rather than from South America (source of most stats on violence against transwomen), where women too suffer very much more violence?

Women's brains are capable of just as much as men's and thus we should be getting the same education, and most jobs and hobbies should be open to us. However, our bodies are different in several important ways - reproductive system, physical strength, for example. It's just as stupid to ignore these as to believe our different body types make us inferior to men. Different doesn't mean one is better and one is worse.

Feminism means centring women in your politics, and supporting women generally. It does not mean agreeing with women who choose to centre men. How could it?

I suppose the fundermental difference in stance here is that a welcome anyone who feels like their experience or the way they go through life is as a woman. I think being a woman is about emotions and behaviours and experiences as much as it is about vaginas, so we'll never agree and that's ok.

so how does one go through life as a woman? Just asking for clarity in case I’m doing it wrong? So what experiences emotions and behaviours do women have that men do not? Do you know how sexist you sound?

Absolutely this.

😂

How can men experience life as a woman?

Yes but no one is proposing to ignore them, it's about broadening and idea of what a woman is and what she is capable of beyond just her reproductive system

Reproductive class does not define your personality.
Or your intelligence.
Or your interests.
It should not define your life choices.
It does however define your sex.

Err…. @Lilyedem no one believes a woman is just a reproductive system unless they’re a misogynistic twunt. So does your idea of broadening what a woman is include encouraging girls to see they can be and do whatever they like, or does your idea of broadening what a woman is involve including males in womanhood as Linda’s they subscribe to the rigid stereotypes of being a woman that we are trying to get girls to ignore?

As long as even. Don’t know who Linda Is 😀

😂The 'idea' of being a woman is pretty broad already! Think of all the amazing women throughout history who have done everything from motherhood to rocket science! Women are fully capable human beings with a wide range of emotions, skills and experiences. What we have in common is our biology. I'm not sure we need to broaden womanhood further by including 'people with a penis '!

No, you lose the argument by not being able to make a logical and coherent case for your position.

Ad hominem statements do not win an argument because they do not meet the above. That means if all you have is ad hominem statements then indeed you cannot win the argument. However an ad hominem statement does not preclude also having a logical and coherent case. It's not an automatic failure.

I suspect by "win the argument" what you really mean is "capture people's support by appealing to their emotions". That is a fair point but it's a different thing.

It is noticeable that TRAs have gone entirely for the latter approach. It doesn't take much critical thinking to realise that this is because, unlike people who are realistic about sex, emotional manipulation is all they have.

Feminists have always known a woman is more than her reproductive potential, how does validating men who embrace then adornments of feminity help? It sounds more like reinforcement of oppressive stereotypes to me.

Perhaps you think that women can't demonstrate the breadth of their potential without men setting the standard for womanhood?

Give me a break. Utter nonsense.

Beyond her reproductive system yes.

But you are talking about a woman being a bundle of emotions and behaviours with any reproductive system.

Very different things.

Do you believe women can have any reproductive system?

I'm not asking whether women can have any variation, functional or not, on the female reproductive system. I'm asking whether your definition of womanhood includes the male reproductive system.

Please tell us about the complexity, behaviours, feelings of womanhood.

This.

Men and women have the same sets of emotions! You’ll just find more men at one and of the scale and more women at the other end. Eg. There will be more women at the agreeable end of the scale and more men at the disagreeable end, but of course there are disagreeable women and agreeable men.

Are we talking about the magazine that is distributed in supermarkets? There is always a huge pile of them - it's such rubbish that they can't even give it away for free!

Discrimination begins the moment we present as women, so appearance cannot be disconnected from it. I don't understand how anyone supposedly arguing for equality can then be perpetuating inequality against trans people?

The point is that there no single way! Women are not just their reproductive systems, we are all unique

I don't understand how anyone supposedly arguing for equality can then be perpetuating inequality against trans people?
Nobody is arguing for inequality for trans people.
What rights do trans people not have, btw? You can answer that after you have answered Francesca's question about "the complexity, behaviours, feelings of womanhood."

Yes, we are all unique. But what makes us women is our biology. Charlie is male. No amount of cross sex hormones or surgery can change that.

Women are not just their reproductive systems
Given that I can't see anyone on this thread who has disagreed with this point, I'm not sure why you keep repeating it. But your reproductive class is what defines your sex. In many situations this does not matter, however there are a small number where it matters a great deal, and pretending it does not us not only pointless but can be harmful to women and girls.

Pardon? Transpeople have the same protection as everyone else's under the provisions of the EA 2010. In addition they have the special privilege of being able to obtain a falsified birth certificate which suits their internal sense of self better.

Would it be discriminatory of me to say a 30 year old should not be entitled to claim state pension even if they say their authentic self feels 70? If you think this is ridiculous, I would agree, then you have not been paying attention. Transage is coming down the line, how do you propose we deny such a demand now we have set a precedent for disregarding reality in favour of feelings?