TERFs, Transphobes and 2018
I had my Surgery on 17 April 2001 a couple of years after this photograph was taken at a pub in south Manchester. I continued with the Original Pamela's Palace as well as the original Mermaids website. But after to original Gender Recognition Act and the winding down of the campaign group Press For Change, I thought the time was right to retire from doing the websites, and retire from campaigning to get on with the rest of my life in stealth.
2017 changed all that. Firstly, early on in the year, I heard of the transphobic attack on a girl who had been born trans, who was shot in the face with a Ball-bearing (BB) gun in Greater Manchester. Then there was the case of a woman born trans who was denied the right to have contact with her daughter. A daughter who was then bullied by her religious community because her parent had been born trans.
Various newspaper reports that had moved from being the sensationalist exposes of the previous fifty years or so, to being downright nasty and hostile to people born trans. Many of the stories were either full of lies, half-truths or generalisations. But it wasn't just that these were untruths, it seems that some people who declared themselves as Trans Exclusionary Radical Feminists (or TERFs) were feeding false stories to the media where it seems they had other TERFs writing the actual stories and doing a disservice to real journalism.
In 2017, the Government announced that they would be updating the Gender Recognition Act 2004, which at the time, the government were reluctantly forced to introduce by various court cases at the European Courts of Justice and Human Rights. All hell was let loose by every prejudiced individual in every place they could do so, including Mumsnet and much of the right-wing media. But they ignored evidence and messages of support from feminist groups and even the Jo Cox Fund supporters and beneficiaries. They weren't interested in Facts, in scientific evidence, or in anything that didn't fit their own agendas. They abused children through the Newspapers including the formerly respected Times of London and claimed that parents were forcing their children to become something they didn't want to be. They never asked adults who had grown up trans if they had been abused because, guess what, adults born trans were children first and have been there and could tell the truth. But those with a prejudice aren't interested in the truth. Why let Facts get in the way of their prejudice.
I decided to observe a thread on Pink News, a website for all on the LGBT+ Spectrum. Several of the people putting forward transphobic points of view also spouted Islamophobia, racism and other prejudiced speech and some didn't even have the decency to argue facts instead resorting to Yah Boo type name calling, "Oh you're a man", or "Trans Men don't exist, they are just Lesbians recruited by transcult".
But unfortunately, many people will not find this out through the Mainstream Media. Since they rejected Leveson and an Independent Press Regulator, they think they can get away with saying what they like and knowing that many people will not be able to afford to sue for libel. and they certainly don't want to give a right of reply. On the rare occasions when an apology is give, it's usually in tiny print near the bottom of an inside page and it's never given the same prominence the original article had. And they will only ever admit to making a mistake, never to blatant lying and mis-truths and half-truths. That's why they hate new media, blogs and alternative news sites that fact check their articles, and do give prominent apologies when they make a mistake.
In 2018, not only am I going to campaign for better rights for people born trans, but I'm also going to do what I can for those just starting their journeys. And at the same time, I'm also going to be campaigning on other issues in politics on equal rights for all, and general everyday issues. I can't be hurt by Transphobes anymore (I never am away from the Internet anyway). The Transphobes will never win with their small minds and overt prejudices. But don't allow yourself to be conned by them. They don't believe in Facts or Science - maybe they should ask Donald Trump for a place in his cabinet.
Teensey little edit. I meant to plug the following which I'm reading an advance copy of. Go out and order yourself a copy. Trans Britain by Christine Burns
2017 changed all that. Firstly, early on in the year, I heard of the transphobic attack on a girl who had been born trans, who was shot in the face with a Ball-bearing (BB) gun in Greater Manchester. Then there was the case of a woman born trans who was denied the right to have contact with her daughter. A daughter who was then bullied by her religious community because her parent had been born trans.
Various newspaper reports that had moved from being the sensationalist exposes of the previous fifty years or so, to being downright nasty and hostile to people born trans. Many of the stories were either full of lies, half-truths or generalisations. But it wasn't just that these were untruths, it seems that some people who declared themselves as Trans Exclusionary Radical Feminists (or TERFs) were feeding false stories to the media where it seems they had other TERFs writing the actual stories and doing a disservice to real journalism.
In 2017, the Government announced that they would be updating the Gender Recognition Act 2004, which at the time, the government were reluctantly forced to introduce by various court cases at the European Courts of Justice and Human Rights. All hell was let loose by every prejudiced individual in every place they could do so, including Mumsnet and much of the right-wing media. But they ignored evidence and messages of support from feminist groups and even the Jo Cox Fund supporters and beneficiaries. They weren't interested in Facts, in scientific evidence, or in anything that didn't fit their own agendas. They abused children through the Newspapers including the formerly respected Times of London and claimed that parents were forcing their children to become something they didn't want to be. They never asked adults who had grown up trans if they had been abused because, guess what, adults born trans were children first and have been there and could tell the truth. But those with a prejudice aren't interested in the truth. Why let Facts get in the way of their prejudice.
I decided to observe a thread on Pink News, a website for all on the LGBT+ Spectrum. Several of the people putting forward transphobic points of view also spouted Islamophobia, racism and other prejudiced speech and some didn't even have the decency to argue facts instead resorting to Yah Boo type name calling, "Oh you're a man", or "Trans Men don't exist, they are just Lesbians recruited by transcult".
But unfortunately, many people will not find this out through the Mainstream Media. Since they rejected Leveson and an Independent Press Regulator, they think they can get away with saying what they like and knowing that many people will not be able to afford to sue for libel. and they certainly don't want to give a right of reply. On the rare occasions when an apology is give, it's usually in tiny print near the bottom of an inside page and it's never given the same prominence the original article had. And they will only ever admit to making a mistake, never to blatant lying and mis-truths and half-truths. That's why they hate new media, blogs and alternative news sites that fact check their articles, and do give prominent apologies when they make a mistake.
In 2018, not only am I going to campaign for better rights for people born trans, but I'm also going to do what I can for those just starting their journeys. And at the same time, I'm also going to be campaigning on other issues in politics on equal rights for all, and general everyday issues. I can't be hurt by Transphobes anymore (I never am away from the Internet anyway). The Transphobes will never win with their small minds and overt prejudices. But don't allow yourself to be conned by them. They don't believe in Facts or Science - maybe they should ask Donald Trump for a place in his cabinet.
Teensey little edit. I meant to plug the following which I'm reading an advance copy of. Go out and order yourself a copy. Trans Britain by Christine Burns
Nice to see you back around Pam... I also dropped of the radar for a while and have just come out of the shadows as well.. be nice to catch up again if I'm ever in Manchester
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