Lesbian members club to only allow biological women

[JanesLittleGirl]

"A FEMINIST campaigner is to open the UK’s first lesbian members bar that will only allow biological women to join.

The bar, named the L Community, is due to open in London later this year and will operate as a private members club so that it can bar trans women.

The bar has been set up by Jenny Watson, who in September last year was at the centre of a transphobia row after she insisted only “adult human females” could attend the lesbian speed-dating events she had organised."

digitaleditions.telegraph.co.uk/data/1615/reader/reader.html?social#!preferred/0/package/1615/pub/1615/page/23/article/NaN

I'll get an archive link in a bit.

That's brilliant. Good luck to her. I think the supporter membership idea is excellent.

Good for them.

Males with cross-sex gender identity will be treated like any other males, they are included in The Big List Of Males not Getting In. That's a kind of inclusion.

Nice idea but it won’t last, there’s a reason there are barely any Lesbian bars anywhere these days. Not one in the capital of Scotland!

There was a long running lesbian club night, forget the name now, and there are a fair few rainbow bars including my old local The Regent. I could tell some stories...

Good. I looked at the past pictures of a lesbian event in my city that I was thinking about going to. The majority of attendees were biological men in mini skirts and heaven forbid you're not into that.

Can you imagine Greenham Common Peace Camp being allowed to be women-only these days?

We had one thing in the anti-cruise-missile peace movement that was ours, and we kept it female. And men stayed the fuck out after 'visiting time'.

If I win the lottery that'll be a good name for my bar - the Greenham. Or maybe Red Gate.

Excellent news. All good wishes to her.

You’d probably be as welcome as the trans woman.

I would have thought having a vagina would have been a prerequisite for joining a lesbian only club and got a penis need not apply.

I think Jenny Watson has been really brave and strong!

She came under a lot of public scrutiny last year - see https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/womens_rights/4870736-lesbian-speed-dating-event-accused-of-transphobia-for-not-allowing-men

And persevered https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/womens_rights/4885432-lesbian-speed-dating-event-update

I think other groups both lesbian and women's groups have taken the option of being a private members group as the only way to manage currently. (Not forgetting there are still many Male Only clubs that still exist.)

Although I think the Bristol University SU Women's Group did win on the basis that an "association" can determine its rules. There have been quite a few threads on FWR about how lesbian only groups have been underminded by TWs.

Original article https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2024/02/17/lesbian-members-bar-open-will-only-admit-biological-women/

Archived copy https://archive.ph/WR0DZ (may have to copy and paste and clicks to this web site dont always work)

Right?!

There are verification apps that check photos for sex markers. Sall Grover of Giggle uses them and if there are any women rejected they can appeal and a human being checks.

Tell me how a human being checks? Or maybe, don't 😳

Amazing. I love trans women as allies but don’t want to sleep with them.

🥺
Checks the photo!

I wonder would it be as controversial if a gay men’s bar opened and wanted only gay men to join? i.e. no vaginas allowed? I’m trying to get my head around it?

There are gay male saunas dotted over the UK still.

Good on her. Every step counts and this is a big one. Of course there will be a lot of lip pursing, head tilting and feet stomping but let them on.

She'll do well to keep it afloat more than a year. The death of specifically lesbian venues has long been a topic of discussion among lesbians, way before the current furore about trans issues.

Personally I’ll be happy for a few straight women to join and even attend occasionally. Don’t gawp at us, don’t talk about men non stop, don’t try to bring your boyfriend and don’t come in a gaggle of straight girls, and you can sit with us and sip your Aperol spritz in peace.

It’s men we mind, who have always behaved in the exact same way since time immemorial: “You think you don’t like dick because you haven’t been with me.” No thank you.

I'd be fine with the visiting straight women, hey make Thursdays straight women supporters day. I'm sure they'd enjoy it and I appreciate my sisters' support.

Great news. I wish her and all her club members the absolute best. I'd happily visit on straight female allies night as I find it absolutely shocking that women only spaces are now controversial in 2024. Its bloody Handmaid's Tale.

Lesbians are the group which is more supportive of transgender people than almost any other, with 84% having a positive view, compared with 39% of the average population. It's going to be tough to find enough gender critical lesbians to keep it going.

I'd love to hear how they will enforce their door policy - there are an awful lot of gender non-conforming lesbians.

https://yougov.co.uk/society/articles/45983-what-do-lesbian-gay-bisexual-and-transgender-brito

I'd love to hear how they will enforce their door policy - there are an awful lot of gender non-conforming lesbians.

It will be a members only club so they would presumably use the standard 'no membership card, no entry' method.