Thursday, April 7, 2022
This day in Herstory: Billie Holiday, born Eleanora Fagan on April 7, 1915 (died July 17, 1959), was an American jazz and swing music singer. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and music partner, Lester Young, Holiday had an innovative influence on jazz music and pop singing. Her vocal style, strongly inspired by jazz instrumentalists, pioneered a new way of manipulating phrasing and tempo. She was known for her vocal delivery and improvisational skills. (more)
BBC Woman’s Hour Consults Trans-Identified Male On Whether Women Can Have Penises
From REDUXX (UK)
By Genevieve Gluck
April 7, 2022
BBC Woman’s Hour is receiving backlash after host Emma Barnett invited a trans-identified male academic to the program to discuss whether or not women have penises.
Grace Lavery, a professor of English at the University of California in Berkeley, was invited to speak about his autobiographical book, Please Miss: A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Penis and his comments wishing the Queen would die from COVID-19, which resulted in his permanent suspension from Twitter.
When asked about his book, Lavery stated that his goal “was to focus on… the question of a trans woman’s penis,” and went on to state that “the question of whether a woman can have a penis… implies that there is a woman who is asking for a penis, rather than the question of whether or not the category of ‘woman’ includes the subcategory of people who have penises.”
Lavery further suggested that he believes the word ‘woman’ refers to “a political category whose meaning can change over time”. He also heavily implied that he believed women who rejected the belief that their sex class could include men are “on the side of patriarchy.” … read full article (and SUPPORT REDUXX!)
Gender-Affirming Medication Ban Passed by Alabama Lawmakers
From Time (USA)
BY KIM CHANDLER / AP
APRIL 7, 2022
MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Alabama lawmakers on Thursday approved sweeping legislation to outlaw gender-affirming medications for transgender kids and advanced separate legislation to prohibit classroom instruction on sexual and gender identity in early grades — a measure that critics have dubbed “Don’t Say Gay.”
The Alabama House of Representatives voted 66-28 for legislation to make it a felony, punishable by up to 10 years in prison, for a doctor to prescribe puberty blockers or hormones or perform surgery to aid in the gender transition of people under age 19. The bill now goes to Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey for her signature as Alabama becomes the latest red state to debate legislation and policies aimed at trans youth.
Rep. Neil Rafferty, the only openly gay member of the Alabama Legislature, appeared to struggle to hold back his anger and maintain composure as lawmakers headed to the vote. … read full article
Civil Rights Groups to Challenge Alabama Ban On Gender-Affirming Care For Trans Youth
From ACLU Alabama (USA)
April 7, 2022
MONTGOMERY, Ala. – The American Civil Liberties Union, the ACLU of Alabama, Lambda Legal, Transgender Law Center, and Cooley LLP announced today plans to file a legal challenge to proposed legislation in Alabama that would criminalize medical professionals who provide gender-affirming care to transgender adolescents with up to 10 years in prison. … read full article
'Petulant and silly' SNP councillor says she doesn't want votes from 'so-called women's rights campaigners'
A Lanarkshire councillor has spurned votes from women raising concern for children's wellbeing amidst transgender identity policy in a "disgusting" letter.
From Scottish Daily Express (Scotland)
By Jessica North
April 7, 2022
An SNP councillor has told gender-critical women that she doesn't want their votes in the upcoming council elections.
South Lanarkshire councillor Janine Calikes sent a scathing letter to a women's rights group, rejecting an invitation to join a panel discussion that looks at the wider impact of gender policies.
Campaign group SoleSisters invited MSPs and local officials to discuss and debate the Gender Recognition Reform (GRR) at a recent event in Motherwell.
The panel included discussions about the wider-reaching implications of gender ideology in schools and amongst children.
But Cllr Calikes, who represents Rutherglen Central and North, wrote to say she would not attend a meeting without transgender speakers "just as I would not attend a meeting about disabled issues where none of the invited speakers had lived experience of disability". … read full article
The week the trans spell was broken
It's finally ok to say that gender extremism wears no clothes
From UnHerd (UK)
By HADLEY FREEMAN
April 7, 2022
I always knew it would start with sport.
Back in 2018, when the obvious fallacies of gender ideology made me feel merely puzzled as opposed to completely enraged, a friend of mine went to the Commonwealth Games. He’s a sportswriter, and a few years younger than me and so – adhering to the generational divide on this issue – he disagreed with me about gender. He thought I was too rigid in my belief that changing gender is not the same as changing sex, which I maintain is impossible. He also thought my fears that males would disproportionately benefit and potentially exploit from the blurring between gender and sex were overblown. Stop being so binary, daddio, we’re all fluid now!
It so happened that it was at this Commonwealth Games that a trans athlete was allowed to compete for the first time: weightlifter Laurel Hubbard. Hubbard was widely expected to win gold, despite being 40-years old and therefore about twice as old as her competitors. My friend watched Hubbard’s event and he texted me afterwards. Hubbard hadn’t won, he wrote, because she injured her elbow. There was a pause while he wrote the next text. Then it came through: “But OK. I understand what you have been saying.” … read full article (and SUBSCRIBE to UnHerd!)
Crowd-Pleasing Absurdities
An inside look at the insanity of the 2022 Sexual and Gender Minority Health Symposium, hosted by Duke University.
From The American Conservative (USA)
By John D. Sailor
April 7, 2022
“The saddest thing about injustice in America is that it has to be proven to be believed.”
Elle Lett is fired up. A transgender woman and statistician-epidemiologist, Lett expresses disappointment with a newly proposed data collection tool from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. The tool, Lett believes, is not sufficiently inclusive, as its creators deferred to proven methods.
“The way we have to prove y’all’s stuff is a direct output of white supremacy,” Lett says before concluding: “This is going to be uncomfortable, but the trans people who are defending this are trans masculine people, white trans masculine people.… Y’all live this world very differently.” … read full article
Brazil's High Court Rules to Include Men in Violence Against Women Law
The court ruled that anyone who identifies as a woman is included under the protections of the Maria da Pennha law
From 4W (USA)
By Andreia Nobre
April 7, 2022
The highest court in Brazil ruled on April 5, that men who say they are transgender should be able to benefit from an act created to protect female victims of domestic violence. The Maria da Penha Act, established in 2006, aims to reduce domestic violence in the country.
This was the first time that the inclusion of trans-identified males in Maria da Penha Law was discussed in the Superior Justice Court in Brazil. The ministers who voted understood that article 5, from Maria da Penha Law, describes domestic violence against women as “any action or omission based on gender,” but since the word sex is not mentioned, their understanding was that “gender” does not involve “biological aspects.” … read full article (and DONATE to 4W!)
Hundreds Of Staff At The Guardian Have Signed A Letter To The Editor Criticising Its "Transphobic Content"
"The pattern of publishing transphobic content has interfered with our work and cemented our reputation as a publication hostile to trans rights and trans employees."
From BuzzFeed News (USA)
By Patrick Strudwick
April 7, 2022
Hundreds of staff and contractors at the Guardian have signed a strongly worded letter to the editor in protest of the newspaper’s “pattern of publishing transphobic content”.
The letter, which was sent to Katharine Viner on Friday night, has 338 signatories from across multiple departments at the title, and in every region — from senior editorial staff in the UK, the US, and Australia to employees in the commercial, digital, and technical departments.
It has been passed to BuzzFeed News on the understanding that the individual names would not be published. Among the signatories are household names with international reputations and long-standing tenures at both the Guardian and its sister Sunday title, the Observer. … read full article
Fighting for The Rights of Our Vulnerable Sisters In Prison
Formerly incarcerated women and feminists speak out against housing men in women’s prisons
From 4W (USA)
By Jessica Williams
April 7, 2022
or most people, thinking about who is actually locked up in any given prison is not a regular occurrence, if the thought occurs at all. As a radical feminist and as an ex-incarcerated woman, this topic stays at the forefront of my mind.
A little over a year ago, I spoke during an International Women’s Day weekend event in Brisbane, Australia organized by IWD Brisbane Meanjin. During my speech, I shared my observation that many feminists were overlooking women in prison (albeit not deliberately) and I pleaded with feminists to advocate for women in prison just as diligently as they do for other categories of women. Other ex-incarcerated women have spoken out, too. … read full article (and DONATE to 4W!)
It's not hard - a woman is an adult human female, says HEATHER BINNING
We welcome Prime Minister Boris Johnson's comments, and hope this heralds a return to sanity, where we can all state simple truths without being accused of transphobia and unkindness.
From Express (Scotland)
By HEATHER BINNING
April 7, 2022
It is extraordinary that here we are in 2022 debating the definition of a woman. It’s not difficult: a woman is an adult human female.
But why are the Labour Party, Liberal Democrats, Greens and even the so-called Women’s Equality Party unable to state this fundamental truth?
Why can’t they acknowledge basic biology and the importance of defending single-sex spaces?
I can only assume it is because they are more frightened of a small, but very aggressive, minority than they are of women.
We all know how vile these bullies can be, we have all seen the threats they spew out on social media, but it’s time politicians started listening to the no-longer silent majority. … read full article
The flawed science of trans inclusion in women’s sport
Advocates are embracing unreliable studies to justify unfair competition
From The Critic (UK)
By Fiona McAnena
April 7, 2022
Following an embarrassing climbdown over the proposed inclusion of transgender cyclist Emily Bridges in a women’s elite race, British Cycling is calling for “a coalition to share, learn and understand more about how we can achieve fairness in a way that maintains the dignity and respect of all athletes.” There’s really no need. The UK Sports Council Equality Group did this work last year, and concluded it was not possible to “balance” trans inclusion in the female category with fairness and safety for females.
Multiple studies have shown that testosterone suppression does not change male physiological and anatomical characteristics by much. As described in peer-reviewed journals here and here, the measured effects are insufficient to eliminate male performance advantage and guarantee fairness for female sport.
Nonetheless some argue for more or better scientific studies. One such is transwoman Joanna Harper, whose previous work led to the adoption of testosterone suppression by several international sports federations and the International Olympic Committee, though the IOC has now dropped the requirement and says there should be “no presumed advantage” for transwomen, i.e. males, over women. Harper says previous studies are inadequate because they were not among athletes, and is now investigating via a PhD study at Loughborough University, allegedly sponsored by the IOC. … read full article (and SUBSCRIBE to The Critic!)
A few thoughts in advance of my cancellation
From Writing behavior by Eliza Mondegreen (Canada)
By Eliza Mondegreen
April 7, 2022
As a (very) junior academic who researches gender identity, I often find myself thinking about the art of presenting heresy in the temple.
So far, at least, the trick would seem to be to speak freely, without respecting any of the taboos that have gathered around the subject of gender identity, and with absolute confidence that it's legitimate to ask questions and irresponsible not to. That conviction matters. It’s the steel in your spine and the ground you’re standing on.
I've presented my research to some excruciatingly woke academics. I’m starting to get the impression that if they don’t hear the familiar buzzwords and the usual fleet of apologies and disclaimers that they sometimes forget what they’re meant to be offended by and let themselves think about what’s actually being said instead. … read full article (and SUBSCRIBE to Writing behavior!)