Witch ‘thrown off druid training course’ in trans row

[OhBuggerandArse]

This is a story with a bit of everything (not making light of it, sounds like Angela had the usual gruelling time in the face of typical TRA shenanigans, but the range of incidental detail is.... pretty extra).

https://archive.is/6goQB

How utterly ridiculous for the Pagan Federation to fall for this nonsense. I'm doing so they're abandoned their belief system, which absolutely recognises the male and the female.

It seems weirder than usual that people with a particular affinity for nature are so willing to disregard it.

OMG, Pagans don't know what a woman is?!?!?!

https://www.druidry.co.uk/bdolgbtqprideagainstprejudice/

Well, I read this, from the founder of the BDO:

'In a triumph for bigotry, on April 16th, the UK supreme court quashed the Scottish government’s attempt to legislate in favour of the human rights of transgender people in Scotland by essentially following Donald Trump’s lead. Before coming to the unanimous decision that only one’s ‘biological sex’ at birth has any status under law and that, therefore, trans women are not women at all, the court took ‘evidence’ from several anti-trans groups but never heard a single word from a trans woman or man. Although aimed at Scotland in particular, this ruling covers the whole of the UK.
Judge, Lord Hodge, said the ruling “should not be seen as a triumph of one side over the other” and stressed that the law still gives protection against discrimination to transgender people. He is either a fool or a liar, since the ruling quite clearly drives a coach and horses through all previous legislation that granted rights to the trans community. It means, for example, that trans women will now face the humiliation of having to use male toilets in public places. Trans women who are abused by their partners will no longer be able to access women’s refuges to keep them safe from harm. Trans women will be strip searched by male police officers. And so on and on.'

And then this ...

'... the ruling has been greeted with triumphant celebration by anti-trans activists and with tears and despair by the trans community. My own daughter wept on the bus on her way to work after the ruling was announced. She is one of the nicest, most sensitive, gentle souls I know and already has to negotiate other people’s ignorance and intolerance on a daily basis. She is, I should add, one of the ‘front-line workers’ we all cheered for at the height of the Covid pandemic. Now the UK legislature has made a ruling that effectively renders her a non-person in all public spaces.'

and all becomes clear.

Ah Helen Joyce’s chilling effect in action @ArabellaScott

My own daughter wept on the bus

Oh, there's always so much weeping! These people need to a) learn some resilience and b) understand facts. "non-person in all public spaces" - eh, what?

Not surprising to be honest have you seen the reddit witchcraft subs, they are all full of AGP men, transbian dudes.

'Howard said she responded to this statement by commenting that there were situations in which women needed single-sex spaces, such as changing rooms, women’s refuges and prisons. She illustrated the point by citing her own experience of being sexually assaulted by a trans person, a man who identified as a woman, and being unable to access a rape crisis service because it was “mixed-sex”.'

They will silence those who undermine the narrative.

I hope she's okay.

Yes, it's the same entryism as has been experienced by other fringe groups, like Quakers, Greens, etc. Exact same playbook.

I'll never forget a video someone posted at Pride last year or the year before, and a guy in a cosplay wizard hat was claiming to be pagan or a druid, and the GC interviewer was asking him wtf he was doing with his life, and the benevolent, mysterious Dumbledore act fell to pieces from his internal testeria and the neckbeard came out to snap at the interviewer to fuck off, and he stormed right off in a whoosh of wizard robes, floppy wizard hat in tow.

Iirc, he was later crying on Reddit about fascists.

Great comment - and the comments under the Times article are equally funny!

<switches sarcasm mode on>

Oh!

What a surprise!

Perhaps they think sex is a colonial concept introduced by the Romans - who especially persecuted Druids (because the Romans were not into human sacrifice, a Druid practice at the time).

The pagan federation is well known for their pro trans flaky behaviour. They were at it recently, kicking off about the court decision which is why I have absolutely nothing to do with them.
This particular wiccan terf walks alone as do all of my serious occult practising brethren.

The Pagan Federation said: “We have a robust complaints procedure, which is designed to ensure fairness and accountability across all aspects of Pagan Federation activities. The process is accessible by both members and non-members alike.
“We have a policy of not commenting on complaints made under our procedures, which may be ongoing. This is to ensure the fairness of the process and to protect all parties involved.”

The Pagan Federation speaks like the corporate HR of a shit bank. More droids than druids.

Robust policies and complaints procedures are not really the kind of language you expect from... pagans.

Shameful

These people are NOT Pagans. I don't care what they call themselves.

Exactly this.

I met Angela at a Let Women Speak event, which she had travelled many hundreds of miles to attend.

We all met in a pub afterwards and were attacked by TRAs, the police just stood and watched as they surrounded the pub and became aggressive.

It was awful, the TRAs were all masked up and wearing black para-military gear.

Angela was heavily pregnant at the time and my friend and I were concerned for her safety so walked her back to her car.

The woman is a fucking Warrior Queen and does not deserved to be treated like this.

Shame on the British Druid Order. Shame on them all.

Hi, I'm Angela, the woman from the article. Thank you for your kind comments. Ask me anything 🌷

Hi Angela. Most of us practising witches and occultists are underground now. We want nothing to do with pagan federations and their bullshit conferences and pride parades.
They are irrelevant to us.
They attract the wrong sort of people.
It's disgusting the way you were treated. I hope you fins some more sensible people to practise with.

I'm impressed by your courage.
I haven't read the full article yet, but could you start a new group to be inclusive for believers in sex?
(I don't think you should have to but Moma have started as LaLeche was taken over by men's rights activists and will likely become more popular).

Hi Angela - online ban from the leadership apart, what's your impression of the opinions of druid colleagues and friends on the ground? Is there a gender critical faction in the pagan community?

Also, in your opinion, is paganism strongly weighted towards the duality of sex views, or does it include ideas about shapeshifting, liminal genders?

I hope you are able to continue your training at some point.

Hi there, it shouldn't be that way. The Pagan Fed is a charity that has aims in its constitution to respect the beliefs (and none) of all who are pagans. There are Christian witches, atheist witches, dianic witches, norse, shaman, druid and so forth. Forcing people to accept one particular set of beliefs goes directly against the diverse practices of Pagans. I was called a bigot, terf, cultist and hateful for asking if the bdo and pf had even read the court ruling at all. They haven't. They refused to entertain any talk at all, under threat of shunning and smearing. As I see it, a bigot is someone who doesn't want to hear, discuss or allow any discussion or hear other sides. So that certainly wasn't me. Pagans are already rather marginalised, it's been less than a century since practicing witchcraft was decriminalised. So I'm pretty angry that the organisations that are supposed to represent us are actually silencing us and pushing us underground within our own spaces.

Short answer, yes. I managed to gather a few of the banned and excluded just as I was, and we have formed a little community. I'm looking into it. But honestly? I'd rather we didn't have to. We have existing organisations already and what I don't want, is splitting off, just as Christian faiths have over the years.

I'm hoping to work with the pagan federation and bdo to make reparations... if they're willing.

Pagans are a very diverse bunch! As I've mentioned, there are pagans who believe in literal fairies. Some who have dragon spirit companions, some who believe that ever clap of thunder to the mountains, to blades of grass have a spirit and that we are equal to all life, not above it. There are some who worship nature and the duality of the horned God and the goddess and without male and female in balance, life cannot exist. While there are those who think we are whatever we think we are. There are those who don't believe in gods or spirits and are atheists, but are in awe of the power of nature and our place in it is to protect it and honour it.

All faiths are valid within paganism. There are lots of us who are despairing at the forced narrative - a belief system. Many I have spoken to have been forced to isolate themselves, are terrified of losing community, something that is very important when you're a pagan and usually the only one in your neighbourhood.

Careful Boiled, it looks like you have forgotten to turn your sarcasm mode off