Trans Awareness training

[ShinyHappyTits]

My organisation (heavily left wing, totally captured by gender issues) have sent us all a breezy email asking us to attend this training delivered by Gendered Intelligence. Weren't they heavily criticised in the Cass report?

Trans awareness training-fine. But I know that if I go, it's going to be provocative and use emotive terms that most likely aren't compliant with the law and I won't be able to help myself. I can't believe this is still happening.

At no point have they offered training on how to be allies to disabled people or the elderly. It just gets my goat that this tiny, tiny group of people is singled out for special treatment when there are elderly people in my borough who don't switch the heating on any more and that goes completely ignored.

I think this is a really good idea.

The thing is that this is a public sector organization. So this is public money being staffed up the wall to give potentially illegal and misleading training. Why can't they see the tide has turned?

There are many many articles going back years about how their training is crap. (Had to be removed from OU for instance.)

But as this is only a few months old I would show your boss, line manager or whatever this:

Charity’s £2,000 transgender training for sports bodies ‘not lawful’
https://www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/article/trans-charity-training-women-sport-not-lawful-pp2lrzmr5
In full at https://archive.is/nY0O8

And as a public sector body they should be following EHRC interim advice, and the fuller advice then available in the near future.

Or if they want to provide training from a group that has been found to provide unlawful advice can they then book training from a reputable provider to ensure that their employees are aware of the Supreme Court ruling and what it actually means for trans people. (Absolutely nothing!)

How did that end?

I'd go with this, definitely in writing, and in a wide-eyed innocent stylee.

I would go and be making constant notes very openly - probably with performative clipboard.

I would of course then report back here.

That was it really - some people fed back to the organisation that had arranged the training. I've been to a couple of these things in the last couple of months and attendance has been very very low - EDI lead plus a handful of others and people like me attending to he ornery. Seems like people won't go unless they're made to.

I would go. If the training is incompatible with the law if gives you scope to complain about this organisation.

I feel your pain. My company is similarly captured and has invited Mermaids to present to us. Thank heaven it is optional, at least- I am opting to be be a VERY long way away from it!

People are still buying in training from fucking Mermaids? Unbelievable..

I'd be asking them to clarify whether they intend to respect the law.

It's not a good look for your employer to be saying things which indicate that they intend not to respect it because they disagree with it.

I'd be asking whether they're aware of the fact that Mermaids is currently under investigation by the Charity Commission and has been at the centre of multiple safeguarding failures.

This is the approach I would take.

Highlight parts of the website that contradicts the SC ruling and point out where they have mis-advised other organisations like the OU. Say you are concerned they will advise legally dubious actions.

Naturally all in the spirit of concern for the integrity of the company of course.

I'm not sure if I could prevent myself from going. I think it depends on my job security and company culture. If it was the dirt of place where I could make polite challenges then I would go for it

If not I would take very concise notes so I can quote back to HR and tailor a lovely response to a pronouns request. Something along the lines of 'that's a very personal question, please don't make me answer...' with a haunted expression.

Get in touch with sex matters.

This shit has to stop.

I went to training by Gendered Intelligence in around 2018 when I was just beginning to question what was going on but not yet made my mind up. Session was run by a trans man and involved everyone going round saying their pronouns etc. It may have changed but would be a good idea to prepare your answer to those kind of questions.

I’d be tempted to contact Baroness Nicholson on Twitter/X. She is really lovely and interested in this topic. Her influence may well stop this training going ahead.

You might find that there are recording apps that leave your screen blank now as they record in the background...

I've written to the chief exec questioning the tone of the email and asking them to acknowlege that the Supreme Court judgement has clarified the law, not opened the door to a flood of discrimination against trans people-which is illegal. I've also pointed out that DV and religiously observant women might have welcomed this judgement rather than seeing it as the disaster that the comms are slanting it as. I'd never have been brave enough to do that before the SC judgment. Thanks again FWS, you didn't just take that one for the team, you took it for womanhood.

Well done Shiny, I do think it’s important this shit is challenged. Highlighting the impact on marginalised women raises a very important issue which so many people in thrall to GI seem to ignore or worse (telling women to reframe their trauma 🙄)

Edired to add, I hope you get a considerate response

Good on you OP.

Well done Shiny, excellent job.

We've had similar awareness sessions, some are still on-going despite the SC ruling (or even the Forstater case before that). Gender critical women get slated in these sessions.

I'm taking my employer to court for their trans staff policy and for allowing trans-identifying males into supposedly female facilities. The case will be one of the first ones, if not the first, in England's side. Crowdfunding is needed now to cover costs, search for Faye Russell-Caldicott on crowdjustice.com for more info.

Fantastic. Hope all goes well. How does it feel if you are still working there?

Go Faye! Is this not a very thing a certain beloved children's author's new fund might cover?

It might, I haven't had any confirmation one way or another (application is in) but the case is on-going now and i need to crowdfund for the stage where we exchange evidence. The hearing will be held in March 2026.