“Just when we thought it couldn’t get worse, it did”, said TransActual’s Managing Director, Helen Belcher, today (25 October 2022). “This afternoon’s appointment of Kemi Badenoch as Minister for Women […]
Tag: Equality Act
On Monday the EHRC released a document on single-sex services. The document encourages the repeatedly-debunked idea that blanket bans of trans people from toilets, swimming pools and crisis centres may […]
Responding to today’s judgment in the Maya Forstater case, Helen Belcher, for TransActual UK said: “I am very pleased that the judges in her Appeal have upheld the law much […]
We are glad to see an announcement from the government today, but the contents of the announcement are disappointing. The changes are minimal. Of course, we are happy that steps will be taken to address the cost of obtaining a Gender Recognition Certificate and there will be a move to reduce some of the bureaucracy involved in the application process.
Make no mistake, as far as the public conversation is concerned, there is no debate. There are no new ideas being suggested and tested, no scrutiny of evidence, nothing edifying or educational being added to public knowledge and attitudes. The flurries of angry tweets, dogwhistles and media clickbait are at best a waste of time and attention, and at worst a downwards spiral reinforcing negative stereotypes and peddling misinformation.
Any change in the law would affect everyone, not just trans people. What about women who have facial hair due to polycystic ovary syndrome? What about women who don’t conform to stereotypes of what a woman “should” look like? These stereotypes, by the way, often have racist undertones. They’re stereotypes of what a white “woman” should look like. Lots of women already experience issues from other women when they use the toilets, but a change in the law could see them being excluded from public toilets along with trans people.