News and Updates

June 27, 2020, 5:33 p.m.

Allison Bailey: “I am suing Stonewall to stop them policing free speech”

My name is Allison Bailey. I am a criminal defence barrister, a feminist, a lesbian, a lifelong campaigner for racial equality, lesbian, gay, and bisexual rights, and a survivor of child sexual abuse. With other LGB rights campaigners, I helped to set up the LGB Alliance. In retribution for this, Stonewall Diversity Limited (Stonewall), co-ordinated with the barristers’ chambers of which I am a member to put me under investigation. This was an attempt by Stonewall to intimidate and silence me and others critical of what we see as its malign influence in British life: workplaces, schools, universities, the police, the judiciary, the Crown Prosecution Service, and all government departments.

June 26, 2020, 9:29 p.m.

Nous, féministes, soutenons J.K. Rowling contre le lynchage des activistes trans

J.K. Rowling, l’autrice de Harry Potter, s’est attiré les foudres d’activistes trans, après avoir posté une série de tweets où elle exprimait un point de vue ironique sur la différence des sexes. Nous féministes souhaitons alerter le grand public sur la situation de la communauté lesbienne en France et à l’international. Pour commencer nous souhaiterions rappeler que les lesbiennes ne sont pas les seules à vivre dans la peur de l’activisme trans extrême.

June 18, 2020, 12:02 p.m.

UK government shelves plans to allow self-ID: WHRC statement

WHRC welcomes the news, reported in the Sunday Times on 14 June 2020, that the UK govt has shelved plans to reform the GRA to allow self-ID of sex. We ask that it continue to listen to grass-roots women’s organisations as it reaffirms its commitment to single sex spaces as set out in the 2010 Equality Act and investigates the role of heavily funded lobbying organisations such as Stonewall in contributing to the unauthorised replacement of the protected characteristic of sex with “gender identity” throughout public life.

June 15, 2020, 9:16 a.m.

Transgender Trend responds to Sunday Times report on GRA consultation outcome - UK

Today the Sunday Times has reported that the government is to scrap plans to reform the Gender Recognition Act which would allow self-identification of sex. A formal announcement is expected by the end of next month.

June 10, 2020, 6:05 p.m.

J.K. Rowling about Her Reasons for Speaking out on Sex and Gender

This isn’t an easy piece to write, for reasons that will shortly become clear, but I know it’s time to explain myself on an issue surrounded by toxicity. I write this without any desire to add to that toxicity. For people who don’t know: last December I tweeted my support for Maya Forstater, a tax specialist who’d lost her job for what were deemed ‘transphobic’ tweets. She took her case to an employment tribunal, asking the judge to rule on whether a philosophical belief that sex is determined by biology is protected in law. Judge Tayler ruled that it wasn’t. My interest in trans issues pre-dated Maya’s case by almost two years, during which I followed the debate around the concept of gender identity closely. I’ve met trans people, and read sundry books, blogs and articles by trans people, gender specialists, intersex people, psychologists, safeguarding experts, social workers and doctors, and followed the discourse online and in traditional media.

May 27, 2020, 3:44 p.m.

The Proud Trust : Nothing to be Proud of

Article from Transgender Trend in the UK. The Manchester-based Proud Trust could be a case study in how the trans issue has increasingly come to dominate many groups which were originally set up to fight for gay and lesbian rights.

May 12, 2020, 9:57 p.m.

Greens for Dialogue Not Expulsion

The Lavender Caucus of the Green Party has issued a statement calling on the Georgia state party to retract its endorsement of the “Declaration on Women’s Sex-Based Rights” or face decertification by the national party. It is perfectly normal for Greens to have different viewpoints on this issue, as we do on many issues. The Green way to resolve such differences, however, is to talk to each other with an openness that seeks, at a minimum, a mutual understanding of alternative points of view. We—members, volunteers, contributors and supporters of the Green Party of the United States—therefore urge that instead of the action proposed by the Lavender Caucus a respectful discussion of these and related issues be organized. We ask that all member state parties, caucuses, candidates, and locals of the party take a step back from any suggestion that state organizations or their members be decertified, sanctioned, or silenced for positions they have adopted, or for concerns which they may have

May 9, 2020, 6:05 p.m.

Reform ‘under the radar’? Lessons for Scotland from the Development of Gender Self-Declaration Laws in Europe

oth the Scottish and UK Governments have recently consulted on proposals to amend the Gender Recognition Act (GRA) 2004 that would enable someone to change their legal sex simply by making a statutory declaration. We were among those who responded to the consultation expressing concern that the Scottish Government’s proposals failed to recognise a conflict with women’s sex-based rights as enshrined in the Equality Act 2010. In its consultation, the Scottish Government relied heavily on a narrative of ‘international best practice’ as a rationale for reform, citing non-binding legal instruments, whilst conceding that current arrangements for changing legal sex are compliant with recent rulings from the European Court of Human Rights.

April 24, 2020, 6:05 p.m.

Idaho’s transgender athlete bill is pro-female, not anti-transgender

The ACLU announced a legal challenge to Idaho’s House bill 500, the “Fairness in Women’s Sports Act.“ Calling this legislation discriminatory, hurtful and anti-transgender, the ACLU suggested that this bill “bans trans girls from sports,” by “addressing a problem that does not exist.” Idaho ACLU Legal Director Ritchie Eppink noted “we have been fighting this hateful, unconstitutional legislation since it was introduced.” They have been fighting it, but is it hateful, discriminatory and anti-trans? I submit it is not. Does it address a real problem? I submit that it does.