We had a training day at work about making assumptions and the way that we as emergency service workers need to think about how and why we stereotype.
Part of it was looking at celebrities and saying whether we thought they were sad or bad (holding up cards) And lo and behold JKR came up. Of course there was the usual (twattish) bloke (TB). “Oh she’s so bad. She’s a transphobe” I immediately said she’s neither. She’s a bloody queen. And also pointed out that she’d never said anything that could be considered transphobic, but standing up for women.
A surprising amount of other people agreed with me and then gratifyingly, the trainer also said that before including her in the series of photo, he’d read through everything she has said and he agreed that all she has done is to protect women’s spaces.
I was so happy, scared, worried etc but I bloody did it. I’ve only ever spoken in the shadows, as it were, with people that I’d quietly sounded out before. À year ago, I would probably have been looking at the possibility of a discussion with management if not a disciplinary, and now this.
TB made some grumbling about what he’d heard and read and then settled down into a grump. He has form for being a twat generally in discussions but this time he got shut down by the room.