The big pharmaceutical companies and their shareholders need to be held to account for what has happened their profit margins have eroded safety and protection for women. 13 years ago I worked somewhere with a trans woman and naively supported the idea/ felt how liberating it all was. I was so wrong.
Despite our reputation overseas, NZ is now frequently giving home detention/ letting off crimes/ sexual assaults against women, our media spend more time analysing rugby than what is happening to half the population. Our health system has removed the word ‘woman ‘ from a lot of medical descriptions and refuses to discuss the removal. We also have despicable rates of child abuse/ poor safeguarding ( worse than the UK) and anyone who raises a voice against the concept of self ID is screamed at as a fascist.
As a traditional Labour voter, I cannot vote Labour or Green at the next election in October because they don’t know what a woman is. I would rather eat slugs than vote National/ Nz First/ Act, although the right wing parties have not clarified their stance despite having been asked by me via email. I wonder what will happen after the election. As a GC
leftie I feel Jacinda Ardern did so much damage to this country. It’s also ironic that she and other self ID advocates don’t equate the horrendous misogynistic abuse they face online with ingrained societal attitudes. We still have men protesting outside hospitals on the days when the abortion clinic is in session at the local hospital.
Gender reassignment is very much here, isn’t discussed apart from in terms of being ‘ wonderful and brave’. As in the UK, middle class left leaning people take self ID and surgery as being ‘kind’ without, imo, having considered what this whole issue actually means. I don’t think we are now too many years behind the UK and it is terrifying, particularly because beneath the surface I believe women and more importantly children are not safe.