Sunday, April 3, 2022
Sunday, April 3, 2022
This day in Herstory: Dame Jane Morris Goodall DBE, born April 3, 1934, formerly Baroness Jane van Lawick-Goodall, is an English primatologist and anthropologist. Seen as the world's foremost expert on chimpanzees, Goodall is best known for her 60-year study of social and family interactions of wild chimpanzees since she first went to Gombe Stream National Park in Tanzania in 1960, where she witnessed human-like behaviours amongst chimpanzees, including armed conflict. In April 2002, she was named a UN Messenger of Peace. Goodall is an honorary member of the World Future Council. (more)
JK Rowling death threat outrage: Fury as Twitter says trans activist's sinister video 'hoping to see author in a hearse' has NOT breached its safety guidelines
J.K. Rowling has shared a video of a 'death threat' in a song by a trans activist
Faye 'Trust Fund Ozu' sang about 'killing TERFs' and 'J.K. hope you fit in a hearse'
Supporters of the author rallied around her on Twitter as the backlash continues
Actor James Dreyfus reported 'threat' to twitter but it didn't uphold complaint
From Daily Mail (UK)
By STEWART CARR
April 3, 2022
Twitter has been slammed after it failed to uphold a complaint about an alleged 'death threat' against author J.K. Rowling featured in a music video by a trans activist.
Trans campaigner Faye 'Trust Fund Ozu' included the threatening words as part of a 90's-themed video titled 'J.K. Rowling diss track'.
The video sees the singer against an animated backdrop with vocals about 'killing TERFS' [Trans exclusionary radical feminists' and 'J.K. hope you fit in a hearse'.
The Harry potter novelist posted screen grabs of the song on Twitter and wrote: 'I'm afraid I can't give a shout out to everyone promising to murder me - there are so many of you, and I'm a busy woman - but this one deserves a mention for the nineties rave vibe.'
Actor James Dreyfus reported the activist's post on Twitter, but the social media platform failed to uphold the complaint over the alleged threat as it hadn't 'broken its safety policies'.
Dreyfus tweeted the response and said: 'Surprise, Surprise! So, death threats = Good. Saying "women are women" = Bad. Congratulations Twitter Support. You’ve hit rock bottom. Seek help.' … read full article
Inside Labour’s “clusterfuck” week on trans rights
After a succession of embarrassing interviews on trans issues, a blame game has begun at the top of the party.
From The New Statesman (UK)
By Ailbhe Rea
April 3, 2022
Keir Starmer was nearly at the end of an uneventful Call Keir on Monday morning when his monthly phone-in radio show on LBC took an unexpected turn. A caller had asked about whether it is fair for trans women to compete in women’s sport and Nick Ferrari, the LBC host, began to press the Labour leader: “So, a woman can have a penis?” Starmer hesitated, looking uncomfortable: “Nick… I’m not… I don’t think we can conduct this debate with… you know…” he trailed off. “I don’t think that discussing this issue in this way helps anyone in the long run,” he said eventually, adding that he wanted to reform UK law on trans rights but that he was “also an advocate of safe spaces for women”. The clip of the Labour leader hesitating over Ferrari’s question went viral and the story was picked up across the press: “Keir Starmer refuses to say if a woman can have a penis”.
The Sun dubbed Starmer a “todger dodger”, to the great amusement of those in his office. But by the middle of the week, with one Labour frontbencher after another floundering at questions about penises on the airwaves, Starmer was despairing. Labour’s official policy is to support reform of the Gender Recognition Act to make it easier for a trans person to obtain legal acknowledgement of their change of gender. This position is controversial inside and outside the party — and part of a wider, fractious public debate around trans rights that tends to stray far beyond the legal technicalities of provisions for trans people and same-sex spaces, and into a heated discussion about the legitimacy of trans identities and the philosophical fundamentals of sex and gender. … read full article (web page archive)
Trans cyclist Emily Bridges facing ban from female events
From The Times (UK)
By Matt Lawton
April 3, 2022
The transgender cyclist prevented from participating in a national track event this weekend could be the subject of an indefinite ban under rules introduced by the Union Cycliste Internationale, the world governing body.
Emily Bridges was scheduled to compete in the national omnium championship here in Derby on Saturday against some of Britain’s leading female riders, including five-times Olympic champion Laura Kenny.
But last week the UCI intervened, informing British Cycling that the 21-year-old, who only last month won a British Universities title in the men’s category, was not eligible to participate in this event. The UCI, which is among a number of governing bodies now reviewing its rules on transgender athletes, said that Bridges’ participation could only be allowed once her eligibility to race in international competitions had been confirmed. … read full article (share token)
Six foot trans goalkeeper who used to play men's football is now selected for England Universities' women's side
Blair Hamilton, 32 - who is also lead investigator of Tavistock Transgender Athlete Study - will take one of coveted spots in national squad within weeks
The player - a PhD student at Brighton University - was born male but identifies as female
She was selected after impressive displays for Hastings United Football Club women's team in East Sussex, known as the 'Us'
From Daily Mail (UK)
By STEPHEN ADAMS and NATASHA LIVINGSTONE
April 2, 2022
A six-foot trans woman who used to play men's football has been signed up as a goalkeeper for the England Universities' female side.
In the latest example of a growing trend in elite sport, Blair Hamilton, 32 – who is also lead investigator of the Tavistock Transgender Athlete Study – will take one of the coveted spots in the national squad within weeks.
The player, who was born male but identifies as female, was selected after impressive displays for Hastings United Football Club women's team in East Sussex, known as the 'Us'.
Demonstrating her excitement, Hamilton – a PhD student at Brighton University – responded that she was 'buzzing for this'.
But last night, the controversial appointment was already causing ructions.
Maya Forstater, of Sex Matters, which campaigns for 'clarity' on women-only services and spaces, said: 'Women will lose out from being on the squad and will also potentially be put under pressure not to speak up about it.' … read full article
German Sex Buyers Eyeing Influx of Ukrainian Refugee Women
From REDUXX (USA)
ByAnna Slatz
April 3, 2022
As Ukrainians continue to flee the conflict, disturbing trends are emerging with the women being considered fodder for the legal sex trade in Germany by some men and pro-sex trade activists.
Elly Arrow, an advocate for the abolition of the sex industry, says that she noticed an uptick in sex buyers discussing the implications of the conflict with respect to the prostitution market within a few days of it hitting international news.
Arrow has been documenting German sex buyers since 2018 by combing through forums where men share their “reviews” and opinions of the prostitutes they’ve visited, as well as the sex trade in general.
Her project, The Invisible Men, follows in the footsteps of similar efforts that have been launched in other countries, and seeks to expose male attitudes towards the vulnerable women in Germany’s legal sex trade, often exposing a theme of dehumanization. … read full article (and SUPPORT REDUXX!)
Conservatives must stop using the jargon of progressive activism to debate trans ideology
It's time to stop speaking in the language of those who hate us, take back the language, and discuss controversial topics not in euphemistic terms but with honesty.
From The Post Millennial (USA)
By Libby Emmons
April 3, 2022
For decades, the American right has ceded control of the language to the left. This is not surprising, since conservatives have ceded every aspect of culture to the liberal elites that rule our institutions, but the time to use the words they tell us to is over.
It's time to stop speaking in the language of those who hate us, take back the language, and discuss controversial topics not in euphemistic terms but with honesty.
The left has spent countless hours in academic discourse figuring out the best way to advocate for their agenda by altering definitions of existing words or by reframing their political policy initiatives to obfuscate their true aims and make them more palatable to the American public. … read full article
From pool to track: disputes over trans athletes mustn’t make everyone a loser
Arguing for sex-based categories in sports such as swimming and cycling is not bigotry. It’s fairness
From The Guardian (UK)
By Kenan Malik
April 3, 2022
If you want a case study of how not to handle the question of transgender athletes in sport, look to the treatment of British cyclist Emily Bridges. As a talented male junior, Bridges won three silver medals at national championships and seemed destined for the Olympics.
Bridges came out as trans in 2020 but had continued to participate in men’s events while transitioning. Having sufficiently reduced her testosterone levels, she became eligible to compete in women’s races. Her first such race would have been yesterday at the National Omnium Championships alongside the likes of five-time Olympic champion Laura Kenny.
Bridges’s inclusion raised considerable controversy. Then, on Thursday, cycling’s global governing body, the UCI, ruled that she was ineligible as she is still registered as a male cyclist and cannot compete as a woman until that registration expires.
It’s a situation unfair both to Bridges and other women riders. Having raised Bridges’s expectations and led many women riders to fear unfair competition, she was barred at the last minute – but only on a technicality. Currently, once Bridges is no longer registered as a male, she will be eligible to race in women’s events. And the whole debate will begin again. … read full article
Karen Pickering: I believe in a protected female category
From The Times (UK)
Karen Pickering
(Karen Pickering is a former world champion and Olympic swimmer for Great Britain)
April 03, 2022
The guidance that was released last year by the Sports Council Equality Group, which includes UK Sport, concluded that “for many sports, the inclusion of transgender people, fairness and safety cannot co-exist in a single competitive model”. So what is a sport’s priority? For elite sport, either you prioritise inclusion or fairness — you cannot prioritise both.
Testosterone suppression does not make it a fair competition. It is plain to see the physical differences between men and women. Reducing testosterone levels is just a tiny part of it and doesn’t negate the effects of puberty on the male body. A female is not just her testosterone levels. We are more than that.
It seems to me that the governing bodies of some sports could be on the wrong side of this argument and are not looking after 50 per cent of their membership.
There are ways to achieve inclusion in grassroots sport. I would like people to be able to live however they choose to live and identify as whatever and whoever they want to, but, in elite sport, I still believe in a female category. There is a reason why a protected category for women’s sport was created, the same as for different age groups and different disabilities. … read full article (web page archive)
Killer, High-Risk Child Sexual Offender in Community Now Identifies as a Woman
Jatin Patel Crime Story
From Women Are Human (Canada)
By Karen Finlay
April 3, 2022
CA — Vancouver, British Columbia. A convicted murderer and child sexual offender in the community now identifies as a woman, March 2020 court documents show. Jatin Patel was placed in a Vancouver facility (either a Community Correctional Centre or a Community Residential Facility) in April 2021 under a strict number of conditions, including being banned from purchasing or possessing alcohol, drugs, a cell phone and computer, and banned from being in the company of girls under the age of 18 unless accompanied by an adult. Patel also cannot be around any park, daycare, school, swimming pool or recreational centre unless another adult is present.
At the time of Patel’s placement into the community, Vancouver Police issued a public warning and asked anyone who witnessed Patel violating any of these conditions to call 911 (the emergency telephone number in Canada). On March 23, 2022, the Parole Board of Canada (PBC) prolonged the Long Term Supervision Order for another year, due to a continued risk of re-offending. … read full article
Opinion: Both sides are getting it wrong on transgender swimmer Lia Thomas
From Cincinnati.com | The Enquirer (USA)
By Benjamin Ayanian (Opinion contributor)
April 3, 2022
Lia Thomas is the nation’s most controversial athlete. With a recent victory in the women’s 500-yard freestyle NCAA championship, the University of Pennsylvania swimmer, who is a biological man, sparked an intense public debate about transgender athletes in women’s sports.
This hasn’t been a clear right-wing vs. left-wing issue, but many progressives and conservatives have been vocally expressing competing views in recent weeks. Some individuals, including Olympic Silver Medalist Erica Sullivan, have come out in support of Thomas, arguing that trans athletes "deserve to be respected and included (emphasis mine)." Others – mostly conservatives but also a conspicuous cohort of liberals – have expressed outrage over Thomas’ ability to compete against women, even attacking the athlete personally at times.
Ultimately, both sides, due to their intense fervor, have lost perspective of key elements in this debate. … read full article