Emma Barnett interviews Endometriosis South Coast Steph Richards and Trustee Jodie Hughes

[ChristinaXYZ]

You can listen here - it starts around the 22 minute mark.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m001scsj

Is it time to invoke the spirit of Germaine Bunbury on this thread? There seems to be a major derail in progress.

We haven’t got a transcript so we can’t analyse what Emma may or may not have meant about childlessness. Tinkly could have misunderstood - in which case, nothing to see here. On the other hand, Tinkly could be absolutely spot on - in which case, yes, Emma goes down in my estimation. Still, it doesn’t change the fact that in yesterday’s interview, Emma did a sterling job highlighting the issue of gender capture on women’s healthcare, and I thank her for that.

If Emma felt shame about being childless why should anyone care? Shame is an emotion that we can’t control. The idea that EB was telling other women they should feel ashamed is patent nonsense. And very convenient that Tinkly isn’t linking the podcast.

This is the point of misinterpretation.

I read it as she would be so 'ashamed' not to have kids she would leave the country. Its a slap to childless women implying they should be ashamed to be childless.

Talking about one's own shame does not in any way "imply" that childless women in general should be ashamed.

She actually said "Any woman who is childless should be so embarrassed about being so that they should leave the country"?

Those were her words?

Well said.

How is it convenient? I heard it, I am not going to go through hundreds of podcasts to prove it, this isn't a court of law.

She is an influential voice and was implying there was shame in being childless. This is my issue with her. Fine to disagree but people using terms like twattery is pathetic and juvenile.

So there's lots on record about Emma Barnett openly discussing her infertility, and mentioning her own misplaced shame etc. Then someone comes along saying she said: "she felt childless women should feel so embarrassed about being so that they should leave the country." Of which Google shows me no evidence at all. 😂Tinkly, one might almost think you wanted to disparage EB among FWR readers...

Lozenge, I think you have it. “Feel free to search”? So you’ll try to belittle and attack a woman, but when asked for your source/quote it’s not convenient. How surprising.

EB writes of her feelings about having to deal with questions at family gatherings. I suspect that this might well be something that has been taken out of context and projected to a generalisation. And without a link to check this for ourselves, there is no way to check. I have done a search and there is nothing that says this, it could have been in a podcast as suggested.

It’s convenient because all we have here is your spin on whatever it was EB said.

In your previous posts you have said that she stated that she felt shame around her childlessness. Your argument is that this implies she thinks that childless women should feel ashamed.

This is an incredibly bad faith interpretation and unless you can link the podcast I call bullshit.

I call malice.

Yes.

Nope it really isn't. I heard what she said and the implication was very clear.

Call bullshit all you like, but I know what I heard and I stand by my view.

Malice because I didn't like someones comment. Right ok then.

You are as bad as the TRA types who don't brook any opposition to their views.

Tinkly, if you’re going to bad mouth EB, have the hard evidence to back it up. Clearly you don’t, your wishful
thinking doesn’t count.

Well unfortunately hundreds of hours of podcasts aren't transcribed on the internet. I realise EB is deified here amongst the transphobia, but the fact is she said it.

Quite. One thing I’ve learned over the last few years is never believe anything negative anyone says about anyone unless you can actually see / listen to the source material in context. People misinterpret things all the time sometimes inadvertently but often through malice. Assertions by complete strangers on the internet count for nothing unless they come with receipts.

I realise EB is deified here

Lol really?

“I realise EB is deified here amongst the transphobia”

yeah. Ok.

I think if you are going to use something she said against her, you should be able to prove she said it.
If I counter with "she definitely did not say this" then the burden is on you to prove that she did.

'If Emma felt shame about being childless why should anyone care? Shame is an emotion that we can’t control. The idea that EB was telling other women they should feel ashamed is patent nonsense'

Well said. I'm a childless/childfree woman myself, and I'm well acquainted with smug judgemental claptrap from some parents. I don't think that Emma's own personal shame, if that's what she felt, is a judgement on others at all

I shall draw my own conclusions from the fact that Tinkly (a) can't back up their claim and (b) throws allegations of transphobic around.
Whatever Emma Barnett may or may not have said about the prospect of not being able to have children, it has zero relevance to the quality and content of the interview yesterday. She's a professional. She nailed it.