Why aren’t we using our democratic right to protest?

[WhiteVelvet]

We have a democratic right to protest in the UK.

We have the right to publicly protest for our biological sex rights to be upheld.

Other than a small but dedicated group of people under KJKs movement, women have not taken to the streets. In numbers, there is safety.

So why aren’t we?

Is it ok if you start another thread if you wish to galvanise those towards letter writing?

I’d like to try and keep on message as much as poss.

There's as much point in encouraging letter writing as there is about encouraging a protest. if 5% of people will write a letter, hardly any will go on a protest.

Everyone is afraid of reputational loss and on top of that, the world is burning

Good luck though

(Personally I love a protest and a good letter writing, nobody else does)

I’ve responded to you on the other thread.

I’ll chat to you over on that one.

Lots and lots of us have already done exactly this. With varying responses, from screeds to tumbleweed. Plenty of older threads where we put the replies or none replies on the thread. Mostly be kind shite. Lots and lots were shocked by the no response, we blamed interns not even showing MPs the letters.

I've been doing this since 2003. In more recent years it's been done so that when the inevitable happens, the MPs cannot say "we didnt know"

So, to my point, if we are to finally mobilise, we should at least try to be a coherent mass? Try to get the same letters printed in the papers, anyone with media links? Etc etc as well as a march/demo.

Don't disagree at all - it's just getting people to organise is hard. I can't even get the parents of my kids D&D group to agree a day they can all do.

I think mobilising behind Kelly and her Let Women Speak events would be a good place to start, the more people who start showing up to those events the better

https://www.letwomenspeak.org/events

here's some events already organised, they need mass attendance

I think the problem is the media black out, if these events reported in the press the same way as Greenham common or the miners strike, there'd be more knowledge. At the moment it's only those who are in this niche part of the internet who actually know about LWS and women's rights. Young people think the battle has been won.

I have given thought to why the letter writing isn’t making the needed dent which is why I stopped.

As @Winnading said, we were met with tumbleweed, denial, obfuscation and gaslighting. My MP turned her entire response to me regards women and girls rights, by talking about transpeople. I spent shitloads of my time in long BS dialogues with her which came to nothing. She got booted out of her seat eventually but it wasn’t due to her pro cult stance. I wrote emails to other political officials in my area from the opposition. Again, I was dismissed and gaslighted.

It’s also boring. Much of the population find it dull I think.

A rally is assertive action, embodying mind & body, being amongst your people, it’s a few hours of activity which has the propensity to make a big impact. A unifying experience.

Don’t disagree. It’s not going to happen though. Other factions in the movement have put a stop to the movement as a whole galvanising behind her.

She also does meets. I’m thinking more walking the streets/protest.

This is why, I am suggesting something else.

I don't yet think we are at tipping point, but also not sure if I'd recognise it.

Well if I didnt work for a captured/stonewalled council i might be braver. Sadly like most, I need the job. We had recent refresher training and it was all stonewall law. What If i got sacked for going on a March?

How can they sack you for demonstrating your democratic right to peaceful protest?

This isn’t about politics and it’s important to remain non-partisan politically if doing this I think. It’s a humanitarian crusade isn’t it? We are one half of the population asking to be recognised as that. To be treated fairly, decently and with respect.

Lots of reporting on it now. It’s always in the news and has been for a long time virtually every day or every week on GBNews, TalkTV, The Times, The Telegraph, The Spectator, Daily Mail, The Critic, Unherd, SpikedOnline, Triggernometry, Joe Rogan... there are many more but you get the idea.

What’s missing from public view is us. The women and girls this affects. We haven’t mobilised into public view. We have figureheads yes, but the real everyday people? Tumbleweed

I think the utility of protests is often overstated. Maybe many people think there are better ways of using their time?

There has been great progress in the fight for sex-based rights over the last couple of years, most of it not obviously connected to protesting.

I think all many protests manage to do is convince the general public that the protestors are an unreasonable shouty mob. There are causes I am if anything less likely to support because of the protests that have happened, or even if I do still support them I find the protestors embarrassing.

The trans movement is inherently irrational so it's possible to make an awful lot of headway against it just by having the patience to wait for the trans lot to make fools of themselves. Isla Bryson did far more to help the anti-gender recognition movement in Scotland than anything the GC side tried.

Thanks for your take. It is much easier to write comments in forums but tbh it doesn’t really make that needed jump into getting women’s rights back.

Right. Haven’t all those organizations had to be formed in the last few years because the charities/organizations that used to support and agitate for women as a sex class refused to?

I suspect the average age of those who are most aware of how damaging the swing to gender ideology could be is also a big factor but mainly I think getting people out on the streets is hard because the sorts of organizations that assisted in not just getting people out to march, but providing the structures for like minded people to find each other in person and then to meet and strategize, organizations like unions (trade, student and other), and political parties, started to freeze out women looking to campaign on the basis of sex about 10 - 20 years ago. The lack of those networks have made it harder to develop the sorts of action you’re talking about.

One group that did more of the suffragette type work was Man Friday. But they were fairly short lived. I think they formed on this board and some members may still be around - may be worth asking them how they did it and what the issues were if you want to kick start something like that.

Right. Haven’t all those organizations had to be formed in the last few years because the charities/organizations that used to support and agitate for women as a sex class refused to?

Yes

I suspect the average age of those who are most aware of how damaging the swing to gender ideology could be is also a big factor but mainly I think getting people out on the streets is hard because the sorts of organizations that assisted in not just getting people out to march, but providing the structures for like minded people to find each other in person and then to meet and strategize, organizations like unions (trade, student and other), and political parties, started to freeze out women looking to campaign on the basis of sex about 10 - 20 years ago. The lack of those networks have made it harder to develop the sorts of action you’re talking about.

I never thought it would be easy. The way I see it is, it’s not some other women’s job somewhere else to fight for women’s rights. I’m in the Sex & Gender section of the Feminism board. We’re all here already. Others are on other boards in other forums on other sites, in other orgs etc

One group that did more of the suffragette type work was Man Friday. But they were fairly short lived. I think they formed on this board and some members may still be around - may be worth asking them how they did it and what the issues were if you want to kick start something like that.

Thanks. I don’t know of them nor how to make contact but shall scope around.

Thank you for starting this thread @WhiteVelvet I have wondered similar and am interested in this discussion so am placemarking. Will give it all some more thought.

Thanks @Leafstamp

Well they wouldnt call it demonstrating my democratic rights, they would call it transphobia. And I would definitely be fired. No question, it was literally a few weeks ago we did the training. It was much impressed on us to use preferred pronouns and names and not misgender anyone or dead name them. I can hardly say I didnt know.
As it happens I don't have anyone in my team or wider that requires pronouns. Thank fuck.

I will be joining the Party of Women as soon as possible. I understand that the membership process will be happening in March. I hope there will be a candidate in my area and I will be volunteering to do some leafleting.

This is probably the best starting point for understanding ManFriday:
https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/womens_rights/3252624--ManFriday-background-Speech-by-Hannah-Clarke

I had a look at their website (http://manfridayuk.org/) and it seems they lasted less than a year but they got some MSM attention so was effective in that sense. Perhaps came across as a bit gimmicky, but that’s very debatable.

I guess I saw your question as more asking why we haven’t been protesting rather than, as your further posts indicate, trying to rally the troops and get us out on the streets. So my previous comments missed the mark. Sorry.

Authoritarian state is here now!

Sorry wrong thread!

I think that over and above the problems of organising a march is that many who have been on protests etc., do become quite cynical.

This idealised notion that by walking down a street you will suddenly persuade passersby they should rethink their ideas and think like you just doesn't happen.

However, as has been alluded to a march / rally that is as much about giving the participants a moment to really be themselves and publicly express it is different.

The IWD marches that took place in the WLM era were as much about being a celebration as a protest. And women did respond to that. Marching down Oxford Street women in offices would lean out of their windows and wave.

But also at that time although often patronising the MSM at least hinted that women were organising around their rights and equality.

That doesn't exist now. The MSM as well as SM is dominated by the TWAW agenda. And because, even subliminally the mud slinging and shouts of transphobia would mean many "apolitical" women would steer well clear. And of course it is political. We might think it is about basic rights, but those opposing gender critical views, are just as certain they are supporting basic rights.

I think currently that it is more realistically to look at building up local contacts. This could be online, but mean that should say a local council or school take a decision that undermind women's sex based rights, local women could easily agree to meet up a stage an impromptu protest or whatever. One of the most sucessful public protest by women was a rally organised in a day via the very old fashion telephone tree method ie you phone 2 women, they each phone 2 women and so on. This meant that within 24 hours of the Government say they would in future pay child benefit to the "head of the household" was reversed.

Also, given the more superficial coverage by the media small events that have a talking point ie Sisters Uncut always have flares and lots of photo ops, it would be easier for local groups where women could get to know each other to plan to do a "spontaneous" event on a saturday in a busy shopping area.