How has the media conditioned people to 'be kind' re transgender debate?

[FriendofJoanne]

It definitely has; when I saw a friend a few months ago and shared the Sex Matters petition and said "but there are only 2 biological sexes" she said "but you can't say that any more".

I feel that we have absorbed the message that speaking against the trans rights movement is to be a bigot or transphobic but I'm looking for evidence of how this happened if anyone can help?

I've read the Shonagh Dillon paper (here if anyone hasn't read it) but that focuses on social media rather than mainstream. Does anyone know of anything which looks at mainstream media? Thanks

Manipulation and bullying mostly.

People have always been kind to those who are different.
I think most people still consider that there are two sexes plus a few abnormalities at birth and some people who decide to change their sex. All are of equal worth.
Social media makes one feel that to state that might now offend people.
So, because people are generally kind and the number of people opting to change is growing, people don't state the obvious.
Main stream media focuses mostly on politics, war and the ecconomy.

Any specific examples? It really just seems to have seeped into culture by osmosis.

Thanks @user1492757084 I was thinking most people probably don't watch the news or read newspapers, but all seem to have absorbed that this is a taboo topic.

It is all part of the zeitgeist that insists that there should be no discrimination ( which is always viewed as a negative), no judgement, and no boundaries. And is overly focused on the individual rather than on the community as a whole.

I'm reading a really good book at present by Frank Furedi " Borders: Why Humanity Must Re-learn The Art of Drawing Boundaries'

"Be Kind" is a message everywhere, and not just in terms of the trangender debate.

They have a warped view of what kind means though. I think kindness is usually a good thing, and not always easy, but that's quite different than just accepting whatever someone says, or not applying normal thinking skills to a situation.

It's also the case that across social justice movements there has been a huge push on these "things you can't say anymore." And it's not typically the really rude things - they were always recognized as rude, that was the whole point of people saying them. This is about creating an ever changing class of language that is acceptable and which is not, often with little logic and no consensus from the people who are involved either.

Similarly the idea that you can't question or dispute "lived experience."

There has been a huge push generally to remove the use of thinking skills around certain issues.

See the appalling programme on C 4 yesterday when what appeared to be a perfectly ordinary young lesbian was paraded naked and we were told she was he and how he was going to have top and bottom surgery . The presenter and other contestants went along with this, cue cutesy cartoon showing the process. To be fair she called herself bisexual, with only one lesbian relationship to count .at some point why didn’t the producer say, this is really not a good idea? I did wonder , maybe she went on to show the whole batshit nature of the belief system..

I’ve always been of the ‘be kind’ mindset. If someone deserves respect, then respect them. Sadly, that respect now only goes one way, so, I’ll still give respect where it’s due but will not accept it being demanded of me any more.
That might not answer your question but it is what it is for me now. If I am

described as a bigot or transphobe it means absolutely nothing anymore 🧙‍♀️

I think they do it indirectly by only ever portraying trans people as nice struggling people who pass well as the opposite sex. They filter out the uglier aspects of the trans movement to make it more appealing.

@Zodfa that makes sense. Reading the responses on here I can see that it isn't just the news, it's portrayals in tv programmes that might be watched more widely. Along with the "BE KIND!" and NO DEBATE! Transwomen are Women, Most Vulnerable etc etc rhetoric.

It’s called institutional capture, OP. The trans rights brigade infiltrated the media years ago, along with the judiciary, education, etc.
Once in positions of power, they changed policy, orchestrated by Stonewall, to intimidate and silence criticism. They campaigned to portray trans identifying men as a vulnerable oppressed minority, despite them a) being one of the least threatened demographics in the UK, and b) including autogynephiles and dangerous, predatory, sexual fetishists as well as straightforward gender dysphorics, under their “everyone accepted” trans umbrella.

I still see headlines claiming, 'Anti-Trans,' rather than 'Pro-the rights of women and girls,' far too often.

Frank Furedi, in his book, mentions that as the older boundaries which have provided guidance and structure are challenged ( such as bounddaries between male and female, child and adult, public and private), they are being replaced with a different sort of boundary - and that is the sort of boundary which involves what can and can't be said, and that which constitutes 'thought crime', as just two examples.

Genuine question, not meaning any offence. But what is the issue with transgender people? Why do I see so many people on MN who are not tolerant of them?

Yes, they filter out the roots of gender identity theory which lie in Queer theory; they filter out the transgressive sexual practices, fetishes, the kink, the pornography, the AGPs, the sex offenders.........

The issue is the transgression of female boundaries, and of women's spaces - without consent.

No one I've seen on this board has any problem with transgender people @janeinthewild we just don't agree with children being told they can be born in the wrong body and set on a path to sterlisation and a lifetime on medication with long term health risks.

We don't agree that any man at any age can declare himself to be a woman and be permitted to use single sex spaces meant for women, or be put on short lists for women, or enter the women's category in sports.

Can you define what you mean by "not tolerant"? It would be particularly helpful if you could give some examples of statements that you feel are not tolerant.

A lot of this debate involves people speaking/writing at cross purposes because the terms they use no longer have a common definition. I read "not tolerant" as not wanting trans people to go about their every day business in life, or not being acceptable in society but maybe you mean something different?

That book sounds excellent @NotHavingIt I'll look that one up. It may be my next read. Just finished Hags.

And to be honest, without meaning to be rude, but that statement is just so " happy clappy". It shows no awareness of the deeper issues with which people are grappling.

Definitely!

It chimes entirely with my own recent obsession with boundaries ( of all sorts) and how they are becoming one of the dominant issues of our age.

https://transmediawatch.org/#

This is what happened to the media.
This group.

@ditalini
I mean that a lot of people are very fast to decide that having gender dysphoria is not real because they have never personally experienced it. And people who let the bad actions of some trans people, such as predatory behaviour, taint their views on all trans people, most of whom are not predators. I

@NotHavingIt Could you elaborate on the deeper issues? I am not trying to ignore these issues, just wondering why people often regard trans people so critically

https://gendercriticalwoman.blog/2022/11/11/jane-fae-trans-britain-part-13/

This is the chair of Trans Media Watch.