Rape Crisis NI will be joining trans allies to protest Let Women Speak event in Belfast on Sunday 16 April 2023 1pm

[IwantToRetire]

My Mum co-founded the first Rape Crisis Centre in Northern Ireland. I told her about the below(*), she was shaking with rage and felt physically ill. I got a quote from her for @RapeCrisis_NI,

‘You are not feminists, what you’re doing goes against the ethos of any actual rape crisis in the world, which is about women being there for women and children. There will be true rape crisis counsellors at the #LetWomenSpeak event who have worked in this country for over 30 years supporting survivors of rape and sexual abuse whilst you handmaidens betray women.’

(*) See https://twitter.com/NoraUtd/status/1646874371129069569
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If you read the twitter thread you will see this in one of the responses

The original one that closed due to funding cuts was for women only. The new one that opened years later in 2020 seems to have changed the criteria to all. The previous one lost funding for being too specialist…. Wonder if this was a theme?
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The BBC have written a news story about the LWS Belfast event and planned protests and that The Women's Rights Network was able to show the film Adult Human Female in Belfast.

BBC report here with maybe a bit of a slant?! ie they aren't counter protests as LWS events are protest but freedom of speech for women events https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-65187388

Oh look, it's that thing again of:

X stamped on Y's foot BUT the real issue is that Y is upsetting everyone by objecting to being stamped on (and wasting time, resources, energy, upsetting everyone when they ought to swallow their feelings for the sake of protecting the whole situation.) X can go gaily on their way stamping at will, leaving Y to pick up the pieces and be the grown up.

No. Grown ups don't behave like this.

If activists had not harassed the living fuck out of women's Rape Crisis services and made them revolve around men, and made them inaccessible to women who's circumstances prevent them from revolving entirely around the needs and preferences and greater importance of men, and managed to leave some provision for everyone else's needs and inclusion, we'd all be a lot better off. Wouldn't we?

Wow,Belfast was brilliant!
Well done all you wonderful women!

You clearly don’t know Margaret Attwood’s “The Handmaid’s Tale”

Hence “ Handmaidens” for the male supportive women.

I much prefer Transmaiden. It seems more accurate

There is a women’s charity I can’t name where they had to prevent a TW from attending as the TW showed a woman pornography on their phone.
The TW called the person who banned them “ A Transphobe”

The TW attends another women’s space and DOES make women feel uncomfortable.

Many women who have been traumatised fear men- and can tell a TW a mile off.

A rape crisis centre for women should be for WOMEN.

It isn’t “Transphobic “ to say that.

I agree.
Transmaiden is more accurate.

If I was in need of counselling after a serious crime( Rape) This person would be the antithesis of who would be empathetic to a woman’s pain.
WHAT is happening to the World?
Are there no female only spaces left??

I honestly think men who want to be ‘involved’ in rape crisis centres are the wolves in sheep’s clothing that we should all see as one massive giant red flag

I think they’ve porn addled minds and are likely getting a kick out of it

I cannot imagine one single decent man I know wanting to be anywhere near rape crisis centres

<awaits deletion>

I agree hamster, and Boiled

Any decent male who wanted to support a rape crisis centre would fundraise for it and stay well away. They wouldn't insist upon being personally involved.

RCNI quite clearly say on their website they support everyone so not for women only.

RCNI quite clearly say on their website they support everyone so not for women only.

As they are entitled to do. However, as this becomes common knowledge, they may well find themselves a service in want of a population to service. Which is also fine.

re RCNI and the other women's groups who are opposing LWS.

It is one thing having political differences, what is totally horrendous is that (as many of them deal with the issue of male violence) they are taking time to publicly stand with men to publicly harrass women fighting for single sex services.

In fact, many Rape Crisis centres provide support to men as well as women, but usually the services are clearly advertised as being one or the other (although I think in many instances it is women who take the calls from men). Which raises the issue of why men have never been supportive enough of other men to set up their own services, but expect women to be the service providers.

That situation is totally different from Edinburgh Rape Crisis where not only is a trans woman part of the service but says that women needing support and having an issue about trans women need to educate themselves!

And of course different from Survivors Network Brighton who say that the only support group for women includes transwomen.

Any how just came on the thread to say fantastic turn out. Brilliant that so many came, not locally but from Dublin, Scotland and ...

Looks like the police dealt properly with the event. ie ensuring that women could speak.

But what it really made me think is why dont any of the news reports who are happy to say that KJK is a transphobe, right wing etc., just show extracts from the event.

I think they are too embarrassed now to do it, because among most of the population seeing and hearing what women are saying they would be nodding along.

So heartening to see young women (11!) speaking up.

And I thought the woman who put the issue of women's sex based rights in the context of everything that her body has undergone, as a woman, was really brilliant. I hope someone makes a clip of that to emphasise how wide the impact is for women of having their body's identity taken away. Was reallly moving, and when she was so close to tears and nearly whispering KJK came forward to support her.

Weepy just thinking about it.

And yet a few feet away men were shouting about LWS being right wing facists.

This lady? https://twitter.com/doodlewhale/status/1647585405800181760

Yes, here we have the alleged racist and fascist "Nazi Barbie" Kellie-Jay Minshull... platforming, embracing, and supporting a Black woman as she testifies about her lived experience as female.

Yes that's her - and just behind you can see a woman wiping tears from her eyes.

I dont know if you are allowed to copy part of the youtube video, without permission.

But just thought it should be shared as widely as possible, not because she symbolises everything that TRAs says KJK isn't, but because they way she threaded her life story together through her body.

On a thread that someone has started having been at the event, it all sounds a bit down beat, because although the police kept the TRAs away, they were making enough noise so that unless you were close to the front, you couldn't hear.

Wasn't there a suggestion at Glasgow, where the turnout was huge, that everyone who had the right connection, got their mobile phone out and played the livestream so that they would hear the speakers that way.

UTV Live did a segment.

https://www.itv.com/news/utv/2023-04-16/watch-sundays-news-headlines-in-northern-ireland

@IwantToRetire you did great today. It was a wonderful event. Personally, for me it was really energising.

I'm from the sticks & have no GC friends really. No one I can discuss these issues with IRL & so was great to see so many women out & I'm pleased to say so many men too. So many brave women & girls speaking their truths. It was inspiring to see. Sad that I'm nervous sending my group of friends a selfie of me with Glinner. (Worst response was from friend who said 'did you not say 'should we all be transphobic now father?!')

Massively agree. Ditto males accepting roles like "period dignity officer". There are things that men should simply keep away from.

The sheer arrogance of a man who wants to talk to women about their periods…

Not sure what I said on this thread, but I didn't do anything towards the LWS event (other than start this thread) but like many others watched via YouTube and thought it was great.

But sorry to hear that those at the event were in fact stopped from hearing what was said by speakers due to TRAs chanting.

Almost makes you want to support the Tory proposals that noisy demonstrations shouldn't be allowed if the disturb on infringe on other people!

I am sure that someone with technology experience cant let us know that you can get personal amplifiers that would let you hear what was being said, but linking it to the live stream.

Apologies @IwantToRetire someone spoke who said their mum started rape crisis NI & I'd assumed it was you.

I had thought Belfast would be small & insignificant as we're usually left out of everything. I'm glad there has been so much chat about it. Delighted to see that since Sunday avo, Barbie Kardashian has been moved too.

Good idea about the personal amplification thing. I think part of the problem was the TRAs had done something to block the Bluetooth connection. Really hoping that local GC women can meet up & connect after this

No need to apologise. Just didn't want to be given credit for something I hadn't done.

In fact I think the woman whose tweet I used to start this thread did speak at the event. She talked about remembering being taken as a child to the centre when her mother went to do her support work.

Yes, she did.