Experiences of a Trans Person

[invalide]

I think it might be healthy to document here the experiences of someone from the other side, and for you to pay it some mind.

I'm an early-twenties STEM student working in renewable energies, and outside of my course I'm a photographer and musician. I've travelled a fair amount and adore my home country of Scotland. Living in Glasgow, I have found a queer community of beautiful people who create a joy to everyday life I treasure.

At the beginning of this month there was a 'Let Women Speak' rally held here that some of you here attended; I have seldom felt more unwelcome and stripped of dignity than while in your crowd, carrying out my photojournalistic duties (images 1&2). While capturing Kellie-Jay Keen pathologising my friends as subhuman perverts and members of the crowd flaunting their homophobia and their use of dogwhistles (subliminal far-right messaging) I was being brazenly looked up and down, receiving steely gazes and pursed lips and hushed whispers behind my back. While photographing the first speaker after Keen, who began her piece portraying autistic people as children devoid of agency, I was approached by one of you who made it clear I looked too queer for their liking and was squaring up for assault. I made my way out at this point (captured at 8:42 here and 9:09 here).
The atmosphere your movement brought to George Square was one I've only before experienced while documenting far-right rallies in Eastern Europe, where I have been hounded through the streets and beaten up for the same reason. I assure you, your ideology would feel very much at home there.

At the other side of the square things couldn't have been more different, you were bathed in colour and music and hugs and laughter, the place is full of friends dancing and dressed resplendent in whatever camp pretty things they felt like (images 2&3).

Ours was a crowd of locals; I strained to hear a Glasgow accent in yours.

Ours is a city that at short notice manages to fill the top of Buchanan Street (image 5) in solidarity with the queer community - the last time I saw it like this was during COP26. It's one that fills George Square in a candlelit vigil for Brianna Ghey.

Your movement has meant I'm called a pervert and a groomer while going about my average daily life. Our morally vacuous, increasingly fascist political class (thinking also of Magnus Hirschfeld and of Martin Niemöller's famous poem) is picking up what you've started and they're running with it. You may not call yourself a homophobe, a white nationalist or an antisemite, but you're sitting awfully comfortably considering that those that do find your movement incredibly attractive.

The problem is men telling women they need to behave, shut up and stop saying no to them.

This!

Kellie looks so good in red nice photo OP.

Their destruction will come about by the same political movement. Keen, who you lot rally behind, rubs shoulders with anti-abortion activists and white nationalists.

Is this going to be one of those identikit threads we've seen before.

We had one last week.

The answer last week was no. I think I can go so far as to say this week it's still no.

We don't need educating thanks as most of us are well aware of the issues and many of us, shock horror, have actually met trans people.

It's not about you. It's about women's dignity and privacy. It's about their mental health. As well as safety. Which your OP clearly doesn't recognise or respect.

I'm just going repeat this for the people that missed it. Be careful

"AlisonDonut*
What is existential violence anyway?

Women won't believe you are 'women" and say no, and in order to retaliate you want to decapitate us.

So the violence is towards us in retailation for saying no to men?

Male violence towards women isn't existential."

Existential violence isn't real violence, like what happens to women, it's the kind of violence that happens when women say things men don't want to hear.

This.

I'm in my 50th year of being non conforming. I don't hate non conforming people, I just don't think they have changed into the opposite sex when they wear different clothes.

Do all that then turn up at a blm rally called “let black people speak” and see how you get on. Likely much worse than the op claims he did with a crowd of remarkably tolerant women.

You've come to a forum site and accused everyone here of following KJK. It's like going on reddit and making a post accusing everyone of being an incel. I really wish this could have been an actual insight into the life of a trans person, because I think that would have been really valuable.

@HorribleNecktie I agree with you

The problem is patriarchal, which doesn't equate to male. Male is a physical descriptor while patriarchy is a social construct that needs to be taken down.

Males are the patriarchy. This is a movement that seeks to organise society to benefit males and only males. However they identify. To the detriment of females.

We are all very well aware of the patriarchy and vile men… it’s the men we are concerned about. Two sexes and there is one we are protesting to keep out of our female single-sex spaces. It’s very simple.

@invalide thank you for posting into what you quite rightly describe as an echo chamber. Sadly you will receive no understanding or compassion here, as has already been demonstrated. Look after yourself!

ffs no one is accusing you of being a pervert.

but if gender is purely subjective, internal, unprovable but unchallengable then there is absolutely no way to tell the difference between a male who wants to be in female spaces because he gets a kick out of violating boundaries and having access to women when they are at their most vulnerable vs a male who is there because they feel uncomfortable and out of place in men's spaces.

I truly have sympathy for people in the latter category but only a total narcissist would actually think it's ok to endanger women and children with rule changes which open up women's spaces to both the above categories, because they are impossible to tell them apart. unfortunately there are plenty of total narcissists in the pink&blue banner movement.

there are also plenty of lovely trans people who would far rather use a third space and be sure that they aren't encroaching where they aren't wholeheartedly welcome, but such people wouldn't write anything like the OP.

If you or anyone else has experienced violence than that's awful. I say that whoever it is. I do find it unsettling that I'm yet to meet a trans person who has put themselves into the shoes of a biological female and tried to understand those concerns and worries. It is a very one sided topic at the moment, with the trans community, until very recently, getting all the positive news. The community you represent literally threated the life of a writer. I'm always getting the vibe that it's all quite selfish and a very stomping feet toddler type 'I deserve this because I asked for it' type of thing. I'm astounded that this energy isn't put into demanding more therapy for people who have gender dysphoria and that support.
I don't know a single woman who was worried about trans rights until the trans activists started attacking female spaces and trying to literally change the scientific understanding of sex. Not to mention robbing girls of their rights to fair sport and raping women in prisons and elsewhere.
I feel for everyone who has experienced violence because of this, that should never ever happen.

Just to save time (and before the thread is deleted)

OP no

Did you hear me?

No

Behold…

The irony of a man saying violence against women is a moral good when they don't do as they are told, and then saying he's not part of the patriarchy because he's a lady, is just too much.

Oh look, another man lecturing women on how to think and behave. Must be a day of the week with a Y in it.

We've heard it all before mate. Your movement had its chance to get women onside, but you blew it. And now every time some TW rocks up on here with some bad faith scolding, it just highlights how very male their behaviour is.

Op, had you considered making a blog?

Hello Op,

You seem to have missed the purpose of the event which was to 'Let Women Speak'. Very few attendees ventured over to the side of George Square where the TRA crowd was put by Police Scotland. Your 'side' was the one that went to disrupt a prearranged event. I wonder if you were the one with the camera who wandered over to the Let Women Speak side and tried to take photographs in my face, or of the children who were playing on the grass with the numerous dogs that were also there.

Did you listen to the women speaking ? Or were you so consumed by your preconceived notions of what the event was about that you failed to notice what was actually going on ? This event wasn't about you or your friends. It was about me, and all the women like me. It was about all the women in my life, the women and children in all our lives.

Police Scotland did an amazing job, relaxed but firm. I enjoyed my day. If it was all so happy, clappy and dancy on your side, why on earth didn't you stay there instead of intruding somewhere that wasn't about you ?

There is a video of the full event online and kjk did nothing of the sort. Just more silly rubbish from the MRAs. Maybe he’ll grow out of it.

Pervert maybe not, but he posted a tracker if you click on his link.

Which isn't normal.