Unlike the first week of this trans media watch, which mostly centred around one story about JK Rowling, how she was the real victim of the Salman Rushdie stabbing and trans people the villains, as this week wore on, I wondered how I would tie things together this week.

While there was plenty of coverage of trans people, beyond generally just spreading hate, there seemed to be no unifying theme until later in the week.

The launch of a new GC fundraiser in the Sunday papers last week didn’t get the sustained attention I’m sure Cathy Boardman would have liked, although it had managed to raise £13,006 at the time of writing. It is certainly a story to keep an eye on, though, as it heads towards a tribunal.

In the original article, a spokesperson for the college said there were things being left out, which regularly seems to be the case with these things.

Speaking to someone with personal experience of the situation, they were quite clear. In their opinion, Boardman’s behaviour was “grotesque” and went beyond what she has stated publicly.

“She’s been long infamous for her grotesque views,” they told me. “Her presence made many of us uncomfortable and I, for one, am certainly glad she’s gone.”

The Times also picked up this story on Monday:

Lecturer in trans row sues over ‘sacking’ Mario Ledwith Cathy Boardman failed to pass a probation period, the institute said A lecturer is suing a music academy over claims that she was forced out of her job because of her stance on trans issues, which included asking students to consider whether drag acts could be seen as sexist. Cathy Boardman, 43, was allegedly described as transphobic by students at Brighton Institute of Modern Music (Bimm) who opposed her comments about a leading transgender woman athlete. The cultural studies lecturer had said in a Facebook post found by students that it was not fair that a New Zealand weightlifter, Laurel Hubbard, could compete in the women’s field. Hubbard became the first openly transgender athlete to compete in the Olympics when she was selected for the 2020 Games in Tokyo. Students and a member of staff also raised objections after Boardman asked them to consider whether drag acts could be seen as sexist during an online discussion that also looked at why blackface was viewed as racist. Alongside a picture of a drag queen, she asked students to consider whether “womanface” was offensive. Boardman said she was eventually dismissed from her job in May, claiming the decision was partly because of her perceived “trans-exclusionary” views. Bimm, which strongly denies discrimination, said that Boardman was not fired but failed to pass a probationary period, chiefly over a failure to report a serious safeguarding complaint. She is pursuing an unfair dismissal and discrimination case. A preliminary employment tribunal is due in November. There is wider concern that British universities are damaging their reputations by restricting free speech on campuses. Earlier this month, The Times revealed how University and College Union (UCU) members were accused of plotting a witch-hunt against colleagues on gender identity. Boardman joined Bimm, Europe’s largest music institute with eight colleges, as a freelancer in 2017 and was given a permanent post last October. In March 2021, Boardman was criticised after using a lecture on sex and gender to focus on the mistreatment of women after the rape and murder of Sarah Everard by a Metropolitan Police officer. The lecturer allegedly faced claims of transphobia by a small number of the 400 students present for not mentioning transgender people. Managers told her in May last year that she had not passed a probationary period as a deputy course leader. Boardman told The Mail on Sunday: “The sad fact is there is now a climate of fear on our campuses.” A Bimm spokesman said it “fully supports and defends freedom of speech, academic freedom and equality”. He added: “Important facts surrounding Ms Boardman’s unsuccessful probation period have been omitted from the account.”
The Times 22/08/22

Monday also saw a trans woman playing golf make the headlines in the Daily Telegraph.

Judy Murray, famous for having a son who plays tennis, said it was ‘wrong’. Dame Laura Davies, the most successful British cis woman to ever play the sport professionally said Hailey Davidson should be allowed to compete

Trans woman golfer playing to win slot on Ladies’ tour Scot’s bid to join elite prompts criticism from Judy Murray and debate over fairness in sport The Daily Telegraph22 Aug 2022By Daniel Sanderson SCOTTISH CORRESPONDENT Hailey Davidson rejects claims she has an unfair advantage over golfers born as women A SCOTTISH golfer is at the centre of a new row over fairness in female sport, after she attempted to become the first transgender woman to qualify for the Ladies’ PGA tour. Hailey Davidson, who last year became the first trans golfer to win a professional tournament, spent the weekend competing in a qualifying event in the US and has said she wants to “make Scotland proud” by participating in elite tournaments. However, her bid prompted a debate over trans athletes in female sport, with Judy Murray, the tennis coach and mother of former Wimbledon champion Sir Andy Murray, claiming her participation was “wrong”. Ms Davidson, meanwhile, has been backed by Dame Laura Davies, Britain’s most successful female golfer. She said Ms Davidson had met the requirements set by the LPGA and should therefore be allowed to compete. The 29-year-old, originally from Stair in Ayrshire but now based in Florida, has suggested criticism of her is motivated by bigotry rather than a desire to protect fair competition. She spent the weekend competing in a qualifying event for the LPGA tour – the main US women’s tour. She narrowly failed to make the cut to progress to the next stage of the qualifying tournament. Ms Murray tweeted that it would not be “fair or legitimate” for Ms Davidson to win a place on the women’s tour. In her most outspoken comments so far on the trans debate, she tweeted: “Not fair at all. Protect women’s sport. Listen to the facts, the scientists and the medics. This is wrong.” Ms Davidson began hormone therapy in 2015, the year she last competed as a male, and has undergone gender reassignment surgery. Before she transitioned, Ms Davidson, who emigrated to the US with her family aged five, won a scholarship to Wilmington University due to her golfing talent. After moving to Florida, she has said she played rounds with Rory Mcilroy’s father and professional golfers, but did not play at a professional level herself. She quit the sport in 2015, when she started hormone treatments, for two years. She began playing again in 2017 after being put in touch with Bobbi Lancaster, a trans women who unsuccessfully attempted to make the LPGA tour. She has rejected claims she has an unfair advantage over golfers born as women, claiming she lost 30 yards from her drive as a result of hormone treatment. She has said other professional female golfers can hit the ball further than she can. However, guidance from the UK Sports Council states that trans women retain physical advantages even after they reduce their testosterone levels. Several bodies, including British Cycling and the Rugby Football Union, have recently moved to tighten their rules to protect the fairness of women’s competition, by excluding trans women from female categories. However, the LPGA tour removed a “female at birth” requirement in 2010, after a transgender woman filed a lawsuit against it. Now, trans women are allowed to compete against other women as long as they have undergone gender reassignment surgery. Dame Laura, who won four majors on the LGPA tour and has been inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame, has previously called for Ms Davidson to be allowed to compete against women. “If she starts going really well, then questions will be asked and that’s not fair,” she said, after it became apparent Ms Davidson wanted to win a place on the tour. “Because if permission has been given, then game on. “But I can see what’s coming if it turns out that she’s an absolute worldbeater.” The row came as a controversial law, which would make it far easier for Scots to change their legal sex, makes its way through Holyrood.
Daily Telegraph 22/08/22

Later in the week, the Daily Record called Murray out for her comments:

Daily Record

The Scottish Daily Mail also called out Murray, and, along with the Irish Daily Mail this week, showed that it is the English version of the paper that is pure poison.

Judy backlash over trans woman golfer Scottish Daily Mail24 Aug 2022By Lucy Lamoury JUDY Murray has defended her comments branding it unfair for transgender women to compete in women’s sports. The tennis coach and mother of Wimbledon champions Andy and Jamie criticised the prospect of Hailey Davidson, 29, a professional golfer from Stair in Ayrshire, becoming the first transgender woman to earn a Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) tour card. Reacting to an article about Miss Davidson’s attempt to get an LPGA tour card, Mrs Murray tweeted: ‘No. Not fair at all. Protect women’s sport. Listen to the facts, the scientists and the medics. This is wrong.’ After facing a backlash on social media, she yesterday defended her views, saying: ‘I understand it’s a complex and emotive subject but my point was purely from a perspective of women’s sport and protecting the fairness of competition for girls and women.’ LPGA players voted to remove the ‘female at birth’ requirement from the tour’s constitution in 2010. Miss Davidson was the second trans woman to compete in the first stage of the LPGA qualifying school but has narrowly missed out on a place in the next stage. The golfer, who now lives in Florida, began hormone treatment in 2015, the last year she competed as a male player, and underwent gender reassignment surgery in January 2021. She became the first transgender woman to win a professional US tournament when she claimed victory in the National Women’s Golf Association mini-tour event in Florida in May 2021. Miss Davidson told the Daily Record: ‘Opposition to transgender women playing in female sport irritates me due to most being based on societal stereotypes and not actual facts and real athlete experiences.’ And her mother waded in to the debate with a blunt message for Mrs Murray, saying: ‘Unless you are a parent of a transgender child I suggest you keep your opinions to yourself. This woman does not know what she is talking about and should stick to commenting on tennis.’
Scottish Daily Mail 24/08/22
Irish Daily Mail
Irish Daily Mail

Despite the headline in the above piece, the overall article is a fair and balanced report that gives voice to actual concerns and does not platform nonsense in the search for ‘balance’.

Tuesday saw nothing about trans people in the Daily Mail, Daily Telegraph or Times. They made up for that on Wednesday, when the story of the week was starting to poke it’s head above the line.

But, in Scotland, Joanna Cherry had a big interview in the Scotsman where she claimed she has been erased by the SNP. The main article, which started on the front page, opened by describing this person who no longer exists as one of the SNP’s ‘most influential’ politicians.

The Scotsman 24/08/22
MP Cherry: ‘I was erased from SNP history over trans views’ ● Senior figure attacks party over lack of support and hints at leadership bid The Scotsman23 Aug 2022By ALISTAIR GRANT Joanna Cherry appearing on comedian Matt Forde’s Political Party show at the Edinburgh Fringe One of the SNP’S most high-profile MPS has said she was effectively “cancelled” and erased from party history over her views on transgender issues. Joanna Cherry, who has received online abuse and threats, said she was “very upset” the SNP'S former chief whip in Westminster, Patrick Grady, received more internal support after a House of Commons investigation found he had sexually harassed a teenage staffer. The MP also said she will not rule out running to be leader of the SNP in future and that the party is “overdue” a contest to replace Nicola Sturgeon. Ms Cherry has long been at odds with the SNP’S leadership, including Nicola Sturgeon, over her views on transgender issues and their impact on women’s rights. She is critical of moves to allow Scots to self-identify their sex, fearing this will impact on women’s safety. Appearing on the comedian Matt Forde’s Political Party show at the Edinburgh Fringe, Ms Cherry said she was tipped off that she was going to be stripped of her SNP frontbench role in Westminster three days before it happened last year. "I think what I found most upsetting about it was the unfairness of my treatment,” she said, stressing other colleagues had “openly disagreed” with party policy and not been demoted. "That was upsetting. And also the fact that there was no acknowledgement of any of the work I’d done over the last few years before. "It was like I had been, well, I suppose, cancelled, just erased from SNP history.” In a reference to former first minister Alex Salmond, Ms Cherry said she was “not the first person in the SNP that that's happened to recently”, adding: “But it was very upsetting and bruising." The Edinburgh South West MP said she received "a series of very threatening messages" later that same day from a party member. She said: "The lack of support from my colleagues was very difficult to deal with. "On the other hand, in many ways it's the best thing that's ever happened to me, being sacked from the SNP frontbench." She said it had given her more time to concentrate on her constituency and committee work, as well as "making it easier" to speak out. Ms Cherry said First Minister Nicola Sturgeon and SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford had never reached out to check on her wellbeing. Elsewhere, she compared her own treatment unfavourably to that shown to Mr Grady. Mr Blackford was previously forced to apologise after a leaked audio recording showed him urging colleagues to "give as much support as possible" to the former chief whip. Ms Cherry said she was "glad" not to beat th es np group meeting in which this happened because there was a "very unpleasant witch hunt into who had done the recording". Asked what she thought when she heard the recording, she said: "I was very upset actually, because it was interesting to hear exhortations of support for a colleague that had been found guilty of sexual harassment, when no exhortations of support for a female colleague who had been threatened with rape by a party member had occurred. "I did take it rather personally, but on the broader issue I thought the whole episode was most unfortunate." Ms Cherry also said independence can only be achieved through cross-party input. She added that a bid to break up the Union “cannot just be about” the SNP, saying support should be sought from members of other parties who “quietly support independence”. Reflecting on the cross-party efforts to challenge Boris Johnson’s proroguing of the UK Parliamentin 2019, themp foredinburgh South West said: “I think what I learned from that is if you want to achieve anything in politics, you really have to work cross-party. “That’s the big lesson of Scottish devolution. Devolution was delivered by cross-party working. “Independence will only come with cross-party working. It can’t just be about my party. “We have to reach out to other parties, and I don’t just mean the smaller independence parties. I also mean members of other parties, who are what I call the persuadables, who quietly support independence. These people exist in the Labour Party and the Lib Dems.”
The Scotsman 24/08/22

I checked to see if Cherry has indeed been erased from SNP history, even as she talks in the present. But nope, there she was with 22 articles on their website, more than Alex Salmond, who was their leader for 20 years.

The Times, Telegraph and Mail all ran a version of the same story about exam chiefs supposedly considering a ‘non-binary category’. What they were actually considering was recording pupils as male, female and non-binary, something Maya Forstater said would distort statistics.

Forstater was quoted in the Mail, The Times and the Telegraph.

Non-binary pupils may get own exam category Daily Mail24 Aug 2022By Eleanor Harding Education Editor EXAM chiefs may record the GCSE and A- level results of non-binary pupils for the first time. After talks with controversial lobbying group Stonewall, the JCQ, which represents exam boards, is looking at adding an new ‘ non- binary’ category beyond ‘male’ and ‘female’. A JCQ spokesman said the move is intended to show ‘support for the non-binary community’. The change would not take effect in time for this year’s GCSE results, released tomorrow. The JCQ has held talks with stakeholders as well as Stonewall, an LGBT group that has previously been accused of shutting down debate on trans issues. Currently, results are broken down by sex, enabling policy-makers to see whether one group is struggling. In last year’s GCSEs, girls extended their lead over boys in getting at least an A grade – now 9 percentage points ahead – prompting concerns about boys’ underperformance. Conversely, there have long been worries about low take-up of maths and physics A-levels among girls. Adding a new category for nonbinary students could help identify if they need any help in a particular area, but yesterday critics said it could also mean ‘losing’ vital data on sex, which could hamper efforts to fight inequality. Maya Forstater, of Sex Matters campaign group, said: ‘Anything that you do to address inequality between boys and girls needs to be based on clear data. Schools, the Government and the exam boards all have an interest in being able to ensure boys and girls can access education and be assessed fairly.’ She pointed out that at some schools, more than 10 per cent of students identify as non-binary – which would have a ‘significant impact’ on ‘spotting trends’. Boards already allow pupils to edit past exam certificates to state their new gender identities. A spokesman for the Bayswater Support Group for parents of trans children said the move would ‘likely lead to gender dysphoric young people being further confused by the conflation of sex and gender identity’. A Stonewall spokesman said the new category would help ‘a broader spectrum of people feel recognised and respected’. In another troubling example of ideological capture, exam chiefs are set to record the GCSe and Alevel results of transgender pupils, rather than purely by biological sex. The Joint Council for Qualifications has fallen under the insidious spell of Stonewall’s extremist trans ideology. Such a move might well tick the quango’s diversity boxes. But it risks distorting data which is vital to tackling classroom inequalities between boys and girls. Instead of virtue signalling, shouldn’t they focus on ensuring all children have the best education possible – irrespective of what gender they identify as while a teenager?
Daily Mail 24/08/22
Exam chiefs consider ‘non-binary’ category Categorising entrants as simply ‘boys’ or ‘girls’ could be extended following Stonewall consultation The Daily Telegraph24 Aug 2022By Gabriella Swerling SOCIAL AFFAIRS EDITOR Exam chiefs are considering recording GCSE and A-level results for pupils who identify as “non-binary” following a consultation with Stonewall. The body representing exam boards, JCQ, said although it broke down results by male and female categories, it was looking at “collecting data” to include non-binary pupils. Maya Forstater, executive director of Sex Matters, said: “You are losing data, and the potential to see whether girls are doing better than boys or vice-versa.” EXAM chiefs are considering officially recording GCSE and A-level results for pupils who identify as “non-binary” for the first time following a consultation with Stonewall. JCQ, the body that represents exam boards, said while it currently only breaks down results into male and female categories, it was looking at “collecting data” to include non-binary pupils. If the proposals come to fruition, it could mean adding an extra category when schools are asked to record a candidate’s sex. Currently, pupils are only recorded as boys or girls. A JCQ spokesman said that after discussing the idea with stakeholders and input from Stonewall, the organisation was “pleased to share that we will be looking at this in the future”. Officials said they were exploring the option to show “support for the non-binary community”, according to the reports by Mail Plus. Responding to the proposals, Dr Jane Hamlin, president of the Beaumont Society which supports transgender and non-binary people, told The Daily Telegraph: “It’s going to show that transgender and non-binary people are recognised as real people and it’s a good idea.” However, Maya Forstater, executive director of the campaign group Sex Matters, said: “You are losing data, and the potential to see whether girls are doing better than boys or vice versa. “This is important for the Government and education authorities to know. “If information on the sex of some students is not being collected because they declare themselves non-binary, it undermines the statistics.” She added: “Throwing away the data even for just a small group means the overall data is not robust. “Anything that you do that is trying to address inequality between boys and girls needs to be based on clear data. “Schools, the Government and the exam boards all have an interest in being able to ensure boys and girls can both access education and be assessed fairly. Non-binary has no legal status, so there is no reason to ask children if they are non-binary.” Ms Forstater said that at some schools more than 10 per cent of students could identify as non-binary – which would have a “significant impact” on “spotting trends” at that level. A non-binary person is someone who neither identifies exclusively as a man or a woman. Exam results can help identify if one group needs extra funding or support, for example encouraging girls to take up subjects related to science, technology, engineering and mathematics. It is not yet known how the idea would be implemented and how exam results would be recorded with a new sex category as the proposal is in its early stages. The plans came about following a consultation with Stonewall, the LGBT charity, which in recent years has faced accusations of attempting to shut down ‘This will show that trans and non-binary people are recognised as real people and it’s a good idea’ debates on transgender issues. Its controversial Diversity Champions Scheme and Workplace Equality Index have seen organisations including the BBC, Channel 4, Ofcom, and the Equality and Human Rights Commission withdraw from its programmes. JCQ represents all of the major exam boards, including AQA, OCR, Edexcel, WJEC and SQA. A spokesman for the organisation added: “We commit to consulting with key stakeholders to demonstrate our continued support for the non-binary community.”
Daily Telegraph 24/08/22
Exam boards may record non-binary pupils separately Nicola Woolcock - Education Editor Non-binary pupils could have their GCSE and A-level results recorded by exam boards under a separate category. Currently, the sex of every candidate is gathered and performance in each subject is broken down for boys and girls, allowing academics, schools and politicians to see whether one group needs more support. The Joint Council for Qualifications, the umbrella body representing exam boards, said last week on A-level results day that the number of non-binary candidates was too small to warrant a new category. It said yesterday, however, that having consulted organisations including Stonewall, the LGBT charity, it would look at gathering extra data. Officials said that they were exploring the option to show “support for the non-binary community”, the Daily Mail reported yesterday. Maya Forstater, executive director of the not-for-profit group Sex Matters, told the newspaper: “If information on the sex of some students is not being collected because they declare themselves non-binary, it undermines the statistics. It will matter even if it’s just a small number, when you’re looking at trends over time or subjects that not many children take, for example.” A JCQ spokesman said: “JCQ and its member awarding organisations do not collect the data required to include the provision of non-binary candidates. “However, after consultation with stakeholders and employee representation groups, and one of our members consulting with Stonewall, we are pleased to share that we will be looking at this in the future.”
The Times 24/08/22

The Daily Telegraph also brought us a story from Scottish prisons and provided some useful figures in amongst their nonsense.

There are only 16 trans prisoners in the whole of Scotland out of a prison population of approximately 8,000. That’s around 0.2% of people, a much lower percentage than you find in the general population. What this, therefore, shows is that trans people are less likely to commit crime, not more likely as we are constantly told by the GCs.

It’s also worth noting that in the article below, the first column makes the claim that prisoners are placed into whatever prison matches the gender they ‘identify’ as but by the end of the article we learn that less than half of trans women are being held in women’s prisons, with the rest incarcerated with men.

Similarly, it shows that 75% of trans men are imprisoned with women.

Scots prisons changed transgender rules after being ‘hoodwinked’ by equality drive The Daily Telegraph24 Aug 2022By Daniel Sanderson SCOTTISH CORRESPONDENT A DECISION to introduce gender identification into Scotland’s prison rule book came about because authorities were “hoodwinked” by a transgender equality push, a former minister has claimed. Kenny Macaskill, who served as the SNP justice secretary between 2007 and 2014, said he was not made aware of the decision to replace the word “sex” with “gender” in 2011 legislation setting prison rules and has since called for a review. Feminist campaigners claim the change is significant as it paved the way for a Scottish Prison Service (SPS) policy which allows male-bodied prisoners to be placed in the female estate if they claim to identify as a woman. The demand for an investigation came as it emerged that the number of trans people in Scottish jails had risen by a third in just three months, with five inmates who were born male being held in the female estate. Mr Macaskill, who is now an Alba Party MP, said that at the time “people were oblivious” to the impact of the 2011 overhaul but that it had since been shown to have had major consequences for prison policy and potentially women’s safety. “People abused the trust and naivety of organisations that were trying to help,” he said. “It sneaked under the wire. People didn’t realise the knock-on impact for the safety of female prisoners. “There has to be action because we are seeing in other jurisdictions, south of the border and elsewhere, that assaults are taking place and trauma is being imposed upon women.” In England, steps are being taken to ensure that prisoners with male genitalia cannot serve sentences in female jails without ministerial approval, following a series of scandals. Figures released this week show that there were 16 trans prisoners in Scottish prisons in June. Of the 11 trans prisoners who identify as women, five are being held in female jails. Of the five trans prisoners who identify as male, one is being held in the male estate. An SPS spokesman said where transgender convicts are accommodated “is informed by a multi-disciplinary assessment of both risk and need”. ‘There has to be action because we are seeing elsewhere that trauma is being imposed upon women’
Daily Telegraph 24/08/22

The Telegraph then told us about how NHS bosses are spending money to ‘promote trans allyship’ and, once again, they quote Maya Forstater. They added in Stephanie Davies-Arai of Transgender Trend for good measure.

NHS bosses spend public money to promote ‘trans allyship’ The Daily Telegraph25 Aug 2022By Gordon Rayner ASSOCIATE EDITOR HEALTH bosses have been accused of ignoring the lessons of the Tavistock clinic controversy by spending public money promoting “trans allyship” in the NHS. The NHS Confederation has advertised a £20,000 contract for research that will review “the available trans inclusion resources” in the health service and will be used to update guidelines on politically correct terminology. Last month the NHS was forced to shut down the Tavistock transgender clinic after a report found it pressured clinicians into an “unquestioning affirmative approach” to gender identity. The confederation – headed by former Labour policy adviser Matthew Taylor – wants ideas on how the NHS should react to “opposition from antitrans groups and individuals” in a tender document published on its website. Critics said the confederation was trying to “politicise” the NHS by forcing doctors and nurses to take a stance on trans issues rather than staying neutral. The pressure group Sex Matters has written to the confederation to demand the “partisan” research is scrapped, saying it “promotes discrimination”. The tender advertisement says the confederation wants to create “a practical guide for senior healthcare leaders, equipping them with the knowledge and confidence to model meaningful trans and non-binary allyship”. The tender document stresses that the NHS needs to take “a more confident position in defence of the … ongoing discrimination being experienced by trans and non-binary colleagues”. It says the report should be “informed by the lived experiences and preferences of trans and non-binary staff ” and should cover “inclusive terminology”. Its recommendations will be applicable to the 1.5 million people who work for NHS trusts, primary care providers and Nhs-funded voluntary and independent organisations. Stephanie Davies-arai, of the campaign group Transgender Trends, said: “Any group related to the NHS should not be spending money in this way. “The interim report of the Cass Review into the Tavistock clinic was very clear about the failings of the Tavistock because there was an ideological approach driven by activists. It demands support from doctors for trans people but these kind of actions are not demanded for any other patient group.” In the letter to confederation bosses, Maya Forstater, executive director of Sex Matters, says it would be inappropriate for NHS bodies or staff to promote “Catholic allyship”, “White allyship” or “Zionist allyship” and it is equally wrong to promote “trans allyship” because it discriminates against people who may disagree with gender ideology. Ms Forstater, who won a landmark legal case this year establishing that gender-critical beliefs are protected under the Equality Act, also says the use of the phrase “anti-trans” is itself discriminatory. She has also written to the Charity Commission, which regulates the NHS Confederation as a charity, and the Equality and Human Rights Commission calling on them to demand the tender is withdrawn. The NHS Confederation said in a statement: “This tender is a response to requests from our members to support them to be better allies to trans and non-binary staff working in the NHS. “They are looking for advice and guidance that falls within the confines of regulation, and this is one of a range of activities the NHS Confederation is undertaking to address the challenges faced by those with protected characteristics.”
Daily Telegraph 24/08/22

Bizarrely, on Thursday, the Telegraph Sports section had a positive story on trans rugby players after the RFU blanket ban on trans players [you can read more about that here]. What was weird about the article was that they actually spoke to trans people and not anti-trans campaigners.

‘I’ve been cleaned out by 5ft 4in girls – how can I be dangerous?’ Two transgender players, now banned from playing the game they love by the RFU’S rules, tell their story to Fiona Tomas The Daily Telegraph25 Aug 2022 Alix Fitzgerald takes a deep breath, conscious of articulating her point in the clearest possible terms. “The only way I can describe this,” she begins, “is that it’s like grief. It’s like something has been ripped away.” Fitzgerald, a proud trans woman, is mourning the loss of rugby. She had been an active member of East London RFC women’s team, but the Rugby Football Union’s ban on players “assigned male at birth” in female contact rugby last month prematurely ended her career. The rationale for the controversial decision, which echoed those made by British Cycling and swimming’s world governing body this year, was simple. Given the limited scientific research available regarding trans women, rugby’s governing body argued that the safety of female players could no longer be guaranteed. Several players at the elite level of the sport, including England’s Poppy Cleall, reacted with indignation. “From one of the most inclusive sports to one of the least in seven votes,” the Red Roses forward punched into social media, referring to the 33-26 vote by the RFU Council. At an England women’s open training session at Twickenham this month, 19 players signed a trans flag with the words “Rugby For All” in an apparent show of solidarity for the handful of grass-roots players who have felt the full force of the ban. Of the seven registered trans women players in England, just three were actively playing last season. Fitzgerald was one of them. Fearing a ban on trans women was imminent, the 54-year-old frontrower played every game for her club last year – a record of which she is fiercely proud. She also scored her first try, capping off a four-year journey that began when she rocked up to a women’s rugby taster session. “I learnt a lesson very early on about arrogance,” says Fitzgerald, from Dublin. “There was one woman who literally pushed me off my feet. I have been in scrums with people who are quite easily 20kilograms heavier. I have been cleaned out of rucks by people who are 5ft 4in, put on my back.” And that is the point Fitzgerald wants to reinforce. She maintains she has pitted herself against women who are taller, faster and stronger, due to having to “manage a whole new metabolism that is very specific to you” as a trans person. Her training regime involved taking vitamin D supplements to counteract androgen suppressors, the testosterone-reducing effects of which increase her risk of osteoporosis. “My haemoglobin levels are right down ,” she says. “I have to train hard in order to keep my fitness levels up because that’s the effect the hormones have.” The RFU had initially resisted following World Rugby’s recommendations to ban trans women in 2020, instead favouring a case-by-case approach, but its move to introduce a blanket ban prompted the protesters to gather outside Twickenham. On the day the ban was voted in, Fitzgerald chose to stay at home, numbed, she says, “by a huge sense of rejection”. The phone rang. It was a member of her rugby club checking on her. “My wife, Anne, picked it up. I couldn’t take the call. It was the second-worst day of my life,” she says. One trans woman who did turn up to voice her disappointment was Julie Curtiss. The Hove RFC player had been liaising with the RFU’S welfare officers in early June – more than a month before news of the ban was announced – having been invited to play for the Sussex women’s veteran team at a competition this autumn. “The team manager needed a letter from the RFU saying that I was a fully registered trans player,” Curtiss, 52, says. “So I was talking to them about how we straighten this out. They were like, ‘There’s nothing you can do for now because it’s the off-season. As soon as the season is open in August, just re-register then and you’ll be fine’. “I find it extremely unlikely that the RFU wasn’t already having these deliberations. If they were, why did they choose not to engage? They seem to have done this entire thing ‘secret squirrel’.” As a former semi-professional ‘One of the male coaches could not get his head around the fact I was not as strong as I appeared to be’ player for men’s side Randburg Diggers in South Africa, Curtiss had spent years in the closet over her gender identity. She came out as trans in 2016, but it was only after Covid restrictions were lifted that she decided to return to rugby. After meeting the RFU’S then requirements to keep her testosterone levels below five nanomoles per litre, having been on hormone therapy for at least a year, she joined Seaford RFC, in East Sussex. Although the club were welcoming, one particular experience stood out. “One of the male coaches couldn’t get his head around the fact I wasn’t as strong as I appeared to be. He thought, ‘This is going to be great, because I can have a trans female player and they’re going to boulder their way through the opposition’. He kept going at me, ‘Why can’t you just run through these people?’ I just wasn’t at that level where I was significantly stronger than anyone else.” Curtiss is still welcome to train with her current club, Hove, in all forms of non-contact training, something which, as she puts it, is “scraps from the table”. She is particularly critical of the “detailed review” of “all available scientific evidence” that the RFU carried out as part of its “precautionary approach” to prioritise safety, and questions why it was not rugby-specific. She had tried in vain to engage with the RFU ahead of the vote, urging it to oversee clinical studies on trans women players over the forthcoming season. “I personally don’t think that the people who are trying to influence various sports bodies have women’s sport at heart,” Curtiss says. “I don’t think any of them are particularly interested in women’s sport, ultimately. I think their main thing is to try to systematically go through each of the sectors of society where we want to exist and kick us out.” The RFU maintains it led “extensive consultation with a wide range of independent experts” in addition to running a game-wide survey of over 11,000 responses as part of the review into its gender participation policy. It also points to the low numbers of trans women playing, which means it would not be possible to conduct statistically robust, rugby-specific research. After the vote, the body reached out to Curtiss and suggested there were several other avenues she could explore, such as coaching or refereeing. While she does have aspirations to coach, doing so right now would be “tacitly agreeing to what the RFU has done” and a reminder of the marginalisation of the trans community across sport. Mermaids, a charity that advocates for and supports transgender children, has reported a rise in the number of young people concerned about inclusion at their local school or sports club. “It’s taken me back into that fear place, where I’m reminded by institutions that I’m not ‘woman’ enough,” Curtiss says. “It’s really hard to quantify exactly what that means but it has really knocked my self-confidence and my ability to operate in society.” Fitzgerald echoes that sentiment. “Most of this is about the people who come behind me,” she says. “There are trans kids who have been banned from playing. What does that say about their place in this sport?”
Daily Telegraph 25/08/22

Friday saw the GCs turn their attention to the toilets of the Turing Centre, of all places, and, once again, Forstater was their go-to person for a quote. Helen Joyce also got a run out.

Safety row over lavatory warnings James Beal - Social Affairs Editor The Alan Turing Institute has been urged to take down signs warning women not to approach people that they think are in the wrong lavatory. The data science charity, based in the British Library in London, put up signs suggesting that if people felt like someone was using the “wrong” facility, they should “carry on” with their day. They were put up to make transgender and non-binary people more comfortable using their preferred lavatories and “to ensure that everyone feels safe and respected”, the institute confirmed. The signs appear in both the men’s and a women’s facilities. Helen Joyce, from the campaign group Sex Matters, said: “The signs are telling women that if they spot someone who shouldn’t be in their toilets, the problem is you, not them. It may make women feel unsafe . “Not only that, but they are told they cannot complain if they do feel unsafe. It’s a mass harassment. The institute should take these signs down.” A picture of one has been shared more than 11,500 times on Twitter. The Alan Turing Institute, a data science and artificial intelligence body named after the mathematician and computing pioneer, was asked for comment.
The Times 26/08/22
Don’t stop people in ‘wrong’ lavatory, says Turing Institute The Daily Telegraph26 Aug 2022By Gabriella Swerling SOCIAL AFFAIRS EDITOR THE Alan Turing Institute “makes many women feel unsafe”, gender critical campaigners have claimed, after telling them not to approach people they think should not be using the ladies’ lavatories. The data science charity, based in The British Library in London, posted a sign suggesting that if people felt like someone was using the “wrong” bathroom, they should “carry on with their day” rather than raise any concerns. The signs were put up in an effort to make trans and non-binary people more comfortable using their preferred lavatory, and “to ensure that everyone feels safe and respected”, a spokesman confirmed. The institute has two lavatories – one for men and one for women – and the signs appear in both. However, when asked whether or not this rendered both facilities effectively gender neutral, the institute’s spokesman declined to comment. Responding to the signs, Maya Forstater, executive director of the Sex Matters campaign group, said: “Single-sex toilets for men and women are provided for a reason; privacy and dignity, especially for women. “These signs make many women feel unsafe. They know that if a man decides to follow them into the ladies toilet they won’t be able to complain or say anything. “What would be really inclusive is for The Turing Institute to provide a gender-neutral option in addition to male and female toilets. That way everyone is catered for.” A picture of the poster, which has been “liked” on Twitter almost 90,000 times and shared by more than 11,500 people, has created a stir on social media, dividing opinion. In contrast to Ms Forstater, many others had sympathy with transgender and non-binary people navigating the use of public lavatories. One person, Emily, responded to the picture on Twitter saying: “Imagine being a trans person and feeling unsafe in either gendered restroom and having to choose the less dangerous option. “What a nightmare! It is a privilege to simply use a bathroom unchallenged [in] many places. I love this sign, let people pee, that’s it.” Alan Turing played a vital role in intercepting coded messages while working at Bletchley Park during the Second World War. However, in 1952 he fell foul of the laws of the day and was convicted of homosexuality and gross indecency and forced to undergo chemical castration.
Daily Telegraph 26/08/22
Trans toilet storm at Alan Turing centre Turn blind eye if you feel unsafe, women advised Daily Mail26 Aug 2022Daily Mail Reporter GENDER critical campaigners have said the Alan Turing Institute is making ‘ women feel unsafe’ with a poster telling them not to approach someone they think is in the wrong bathroom. The poster, in the toilets of the UK’s data science and artificial intelligence research institution at the British Library in London, says if people feel someone is using the ‘wrong’ bathroom, they should ‘carry on with their day’ rather than raise concerns. The posters were put up to make trans and non-binary people more comfortable using their chosen toilets and ‘to ensure that everyone feels safe and respected’, a spokesman told The Daily Telegraph. But Maya Forstater, the executive director of the Sex Matters campaign group, said: ‘Single-sex toilets for men and women are provided for a reason – privacy and dignity, especially for women. ‘ These signs make many women feel unsafe. They know that if a man decides to follow them into the ladies toilet, they won’t be able to complain or say anything. ‘What would be really inclusive is for the Turing Institute to provide a gender neutral option in addition to male and female toilets. That way everyone is catered for.’ The poster reads: ‘Do you feel like someone is using the “wrong” bathroom? Please don’t stare at them, challenge them or purposefully make them feel uncomfortable. ‘They are using the facilities they feel most comfortable in. Please don’t take that away from them. ‘Instead please respect their privacy, respect their identity, carry on with your day and protect them from harm. ‘Everyone has the right to be here, in this office and in this world.’ The Alan Turing Institute, founded in 2015, was named after the pioneering mathematician famous for working at Bletchley Park, the UK’s codebreaking centre during the Second World War. In 1952, Mr Turing was convicted of homosexuality and gross indecency and was forced to undergo chemical castration. After his conviction his security clearance was withdrawn and he was barred from working with GCHQ. He took his own life in 1954. In 2014, the Queen officially pardoned Mr Turing. Three years later, the Government introduced the ‘Alan Turing law’ which expanded the retroactive exoneration of men convicted of historical indecency offences.
Daily Mail 26/08/22

Saturday was relatively quiet with a few throwaway lines I’m not going to bother you with, including one from Julie Burchill in the Daily Mail as she moaned about the Rise of the New Puritans. Their inability to see themselves for who they truly are really is something.

To bookend the week, the Mail on Sunday, Sunday Telegraph and Sunday Times all gave substantial space to JK Rowling to moan about a lot of stuff, some of which seems to not even be true.

Social media is a gift for malign people, says JK after death threat by Twitter troll The Mail on Sunday28 Aug 2022By Chris Hastings ARTS CORRESPONDENT SPEAKING OUT: Author J.K. Rowling with Graham Norton J.K. ROWLING has described social media as ‘a gift for people who want to behave in a malign way’. The Harry Potter author’s comments came two weeks after she received a death threat for posting comments of support for Sir Salman Rushdie. She has also been repeatedly targeted by trolls after making critical comments about the transgender lobby. Her home address was posted online last year by protesters, who stood outside with pro-trans placards. Speaking to Graham Norton on his Virgin Radio show yesterday, the 57-year-old said: ‘Social media can be a lot of fun and I do like the pub argument aspect of it. ‘That can be a fun thing to do. But there’s no doubt that social media is a gift for people who want to behave in a malign way.’ Miss Rowling also spoke about whether there was anything she could do reduce the intensity of online conflict, saying: ‘I think on one level I’m not sure I can. ‘I’m not sure any individual can. I try to behave online as I would like others to behave. I wouldn’t ever want to... I’ve never threatened anyone, obviously, and I certainly wouldn’t want anyone to go to their houses or anything like that.’ But she insisted her latest book, The Ink Black Heart, the latest in her series of novels written under her pseudonym Robert Galbraith, about a cartoonist trolled online by a fan, has nothing to do with the threats she has faced in real life. Asked if the story had echoes of her own experiences online, she said: ‘More echoes than I realised because I should make it really clear after some of the things that have happened to me online in the last year, I had written the book before certain things happened to me online. I said to my husband, “Everyone is going to see this as a response to what happened to me.” But it genuinely wasn’t. The first draft of the book was finished at the point where certain things happened to me.’ The death threat against her this month came after she tweeted in response to the knife attack on Sir Salman: ‘Feeling very sick right now. Let him be OK.’ Another Twitter user replied: ‘Don’t worry you are next.’ Her views on transgender issues have been criticised by Potter stars including Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson. But she dismissed claims that she had been excluded from the Potter reunion, Return To Hogwarts, marking the 20th anniversary of the release of the first film in the series, Harry Potter And The Philosopher’s Stone. Miss Rowling added that she was in touch with some of the Potter cast, saying: ‘Some more than others but that was always the case. Some I knew better than others.’ ‘When I am online I try to behave as I would like others to behave’
Mail on Sunday 28/08/22
Rowling likens social media to ‘getting into a pub brawl’ The Sunday Telegraph28 Aug 2022By Patrick Sawer SENIOR NEWS REPORTER JK ROWLING has said that going on social media platforms is fun as it allows her to engage in a virtual “pub brawl”. But the Harry Potter author, who has long been subjected to vitriolic abuse on Twitter, particularly from trans activists, said she felt she had to take a year-long break from the medium. Speaking to Graham Norton on Virgin Radio, Rowling said: “I try to behave online as I would like others to behave. I wouldn’t ever want to … I’ve never threatened anyone. I wouldn’t [want] anyone to go to their houses or anything like that. The 57-year-old added: “Social media can be a lot of fun and I do like the pub argument aspect of it. That can be a fun thing to do. However, Rowling added that she had only returned to Twitter after taking a year’s break during the pandemic to help promote The Ickabog, her new children’s book. “I sort of have a love-hate relationship with it now. I can happily go for a few days without getting into a pub brawl,” she said. Rowling recently received a death threat on Twitter when she spoke out in defence of Salman Rushdie after the author of The Satanic Verses was stabbed on stage at a lecture in Chautauqua, New York State. Police Scotland launched an investigation after an individual tweeted “Don’t worry you are next” in response to Rowling’s own tweet in reaction to the stabbing: “Feeling very sick right now. Let him be ok.” The author has also received abuse and threats on social media for publicly stating her gender critical beliefs. Rowling, who has voiced her support ‘I try to behave online as I would like others to behave. I wouldn’t ever want to ... I’ve never threatened anyone’ for female-only spaces, has been accused of transphobia, which she denies. She revealed in November that her address was made public by activists after she “spoke up for women’s sexbased rights”, and that she had “received so many death threats I could paper the house with them”. Rowling rejected claims that she had not been invited on to a recent Harry Potter anniversary documentary, Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts, because of her views on sexbased rights, saying that it had been about the films not her books.
Sunday Telegraph 28/08/22
JK Rowling — hitting back at her trolls Her latest crime novel is a riposte to those who fantasise about hurting her Joan Smith Furore rowling’s galbraith novels have caused controversy Crime Fiction The Ink Black Heart by Robert Galbraith Sphere £25 pp1,024 Two years ago, when JK Rowling published a new novel under her crime-writing pseudonym, Robert Galbraith, she found herself in the midst of an unexpected furore. Rumours swirled online, wrongly claiming that the book featured a transgender serial killer, and she was deluged with rape and death threats. In the face of this outpouring of misogyny, I was one of several critics who pointed out that Troubled Blood, the most accomplished volume in the series to date, was itself a superb novel about woman-hating. Now there is a new Galbraith, featuring her disabled Afghan war veteran and private detective, Cormoran Strike. Its publication comes just weeks after the near-fatal attack on Salman Rushdie, which was a dreadful reminder that threats against authors must always be taken seriously. Indeed it is hard not to see the new novel as Rowling’s riposte to the trolls who continue to fantasise about hurting or killing her. Like its predecessor, The Ink Black Heart is a doorstopper, giving Rowling space to explore the psychology of individuals who abuse women online. But it is evidence of her ingenuity as a writer that this intention only gradually becomes clear. The novel opens with a classic device: Strike’s partner, Robin Ellacott, reluctantly turns away a prospective client, Edie Ledwell, because the agency is overstretched. Edie is the joint creator of a ghoulish YouTube cartoon with the same title as the novel, set in Highgate Cemetery and featuring a talking heart. When she approaches Robin, Edie is at her wits’ end because of relentless attacks by an internet troll. Someone using the handle “Anomie” claims Edie has stolen ideas for the series, encouraging a torrent of lurid accusations, many of a grimly sexual nature. Robin recommends other agencies that specialise in online investigations, but then Edie is found stabbed to death in a remote corner of Highgate Cemetery. Her ex-boyfriend, Josh Blay, with whom she created the cartoon, is discovered nearby, paralysed after being stabbed in the neck, and is unable to identify their assailant. His agent appeals to Robin and Strike to help identify Anomie, who is clearly the chief suspect. When they agree, they are plunged into a world populated by men and teenage boys who compete to show off their loathing of women. Edie’s murder takes place among the tombs of famous Victorians, emphasising the novel’s gothic antecedents; Rowling quotes liberally from 19th-century authors such as Christina Rossetti, evoking a period obsessed with death, women’s bodies and the supernatural. This is Victorian horror transposed to the 21st century. Once again, Rowling has used a superlative piece of crime fiction to document the worst aspects of human nature — and confirmed her status as one of our foremost chroniclers of misogyny.
Sunday Times 28/08/22

Shocking, huh?

The Mail on Sunday also took the time out to platform a de-transtioner who accused the parents of a transgender child of suffering “Munchausen syndrome by proxy.” They also added, “It’s not the kids who are trans, it’s the parents who want them to be trans.”

Noella, aged 10, the world’s youngest transgender model The Mail on Sunday28 Aug 2022From Caroline Graham CONFIDENT KID: Noella holding up a placard five years ago HER parents say she was born with a ‘fierce and confident sense of identity’. And that self-assurance can clearly be seen on the catwalk, where ten-year-old Noella McMaher has become the world’s youngest transgender model. Noella – who fashion insiders say could make her first million in the next year – first identified as transgender at ‘twoand-a-half nearing three’, according to her biological mother Dee, 35, who now identifies as a ‘trans masculine male’ and cites Noella as an inspiration. In an exclusive interview with The Mail on Sunday, Dee said: ‘My spouse and I are both non-binary. ‘In terms of gender identity, Noella came out before either of us. She was ‘She’s quite capable of making millions of dollars’ born with a fierce and confident sense of identity. ‘It first started at two-and-a-half nearing three. Someone would say to her that she was a cute boy and she would snap back and exclaim, “I’m not a boy, I’m a girl!’’’ But this story of our times has sparked widespread concern. One campaigner described it as ‘abhorrent’ and suggested Noella’s mother was actively pushing her to become trans. Noella ‘socially transitioned’ at four and the family changed her legal birth certificate from ‘boy’ to ‘girl’ when she was six. She hit the headlines in America last week when she became the youngest transgender model to walk the runway at a fashion show in New York. Now, she is being bombarded with modelling offers and will walk the catwalk at Paris fashion week this year. A Hollywood agent said: ‘Noella is a phenomenon. She’s only ten but represents so much in terms of where the world is now. We are seeing more transgender models and she’s the ultimate in terms of being a woke role model. ‘She is so confident for someone so young. She’s capable of making a million to two million dollars in the next year.’ But it emerged that Noella’s biological father has been airbrushed out of the media profiles published in the US last week. Timothy McCord, a Chicagobased scientist, was so against her transition that he allegedly tried to force the child into boys’ pyjamas and fractured her arm. He was visiting at the time – he and Dee were separated. According to legal papers, McCord pleaded guilty to a child endangerment charge. Last week, he said he had not seen Noella or his son Levi since, adding: ‘I tried to get back into their lives but it was too contentious and stressful for everyone.’ Dee, who has been married to Ray – a 32-year-old biological female who has also identified as transgender since 2019 – now has a baby who is being raised as non-binary. Dee refers to the baby as ‘theybie’. Sinead Watson, who changed gender from female to male at 23 and then changed her mind and ‘de-transitioned’ four years later, said: ‘We’re seeing more and more parents with Munchausen syndrome by proxy. It’s not the kids who are trans, it’s the parents who want them to be trans.’
Mail on Sunday 28/08/22
Dee, who has been married to Ray – a 32-year-old biological female who has also identified as transgender since 2019 – now has a baby who is being raised as non-binary. Dee refers to the baby as ‘theybie’. Sinead Watson, who changed gender from female to male at 23 and then changed her mind and ‘de-transitioned’ four years later, said: ‘We’re seeing more and more parents with Munchausen syndrome by proxy. It’s not the kids who are trans, it’s the parents who want them to be trans.’
Mail on Sunday 28/08/22

The only qualification listed by the Mail on Sunday for this person is that they de-transitioned.

Finally, the Sunday Express, not usually a paper I check, reported on Get The L Out being removed from Cardiff Pride on Saturday. Ironically, the group, that wants to remove the L from LGBTQIA+, but still turned up to disrupt the parade in such a significant manner, was annoyed when they were asked to leave.

Of course, the Express don’t report that but they do quote Suzanne Moore and, for balance, some unknown Twitter randomer.

Row as police kick lesbians out of Pride march Sunday Express28 Aug 2022 Picture: @GETTHELOUTUK COP CLASH: Activist lesbians are told to leave Cardiff’s Gay Pride parade in a row over trans women POLICE removed a group of lesbians from yesterday’s Gay Pride march in Cardiff. Demonstrators from the “Getthe L Out” group – which does not accept trans women as lesbian – were moved after footage online showed a lesbian and a transgender woman shouting at each other. An officer said: “To make sure it’s safe, we are going to remove you from the road and I want you to do that of your own accord.” A woman was then heard asking: “I want to understand that you are removing lesbians from an LGBT march?” The move ignited atwitter row among those who disagree over the levels of inclusion trans women should be given. Journalist Suzanne Moore, who said she left the Guardian after she wrote about sex being a biological classification “not a feeling”, tweeted: “Police removing lesbians from Cardiff Pride. Right side of history boys?” But another user said: “Shame on those TERFS (trans-exclusionary radical feminists) for spreading their hatred and bigotry on the day of the Cardiff pride parade. It’s just baffling how much the existence of trans women affects so many small-minded people.”
Sunday express 28/08/22

Other pieces that made the news

 

Is Maya Forstater the world’s foremost expert on trans issues?

No matter the subject, if trans people might be involved, Maya Forstater is turned to for comment. Surely she must have the most in-depth knowledge of trans people on the planet? Schools, prisons, hospitals, public buildings, bathroom habits, periods, campaigning, law, equality, there is nothing she is not ready to give her opinion on when called.

I actually think it is Forstater who contacts the Mail, Telegraph and Times to alert them to the items she feels are newsworthy, then gives comment or points the paper towards one of her GC pals.

Nobody is silenced in the UK quite like a transphobe.

You’d also think if their movement is as big as they want you to think it is, they’d have more than just a few people to wheel out for every article.

They’ll say that’s because people are afraid to speak out, but the reality is the majority of their movement is made up straight cis men. Few rational cis women want anything to do with them, no matter what LGB Alliance’s poll, that allowed voters to self-id, says.

Away from the papers

A new report was released that showed the rise of the right-wing extremism and hate groups in Ireland.

Twitter found that a particularly vile tweet from Baroness Nicholson breached their rules on hateful content. The Baroness insisted this wasn’t true and she could put it back if she wanted, but, like most things she tends to tweet when it comes to trans people, it was nonsense. This happened last week but I forgot to include it and feel it needs mentioned.

It also emerged that she sponsored a bill currently awaiting its second reading in the House of Lords that aims to reduce the abortion term limit to just 12 weeks.

What a feminist!

Finally, on Thursday, Scientific American dared tweet some actual science which, obviously annoyed the Terfs. They had the temerity to start a thread, saying “In the second episode of our documentary series “A Question of Sex,” we look at how people with sex variations are challenging longstanding notions of the sex binary in medicine.”

The tweet that annoyed Helen Joyce, said, “Before the late 18th century, Western science recognized only one sex—the male—and considered the female body an inferior version of it. The shift historians call the “two-sex model” served mainly to reinforce gender and racial divisions by tying social status to the body.”

They had only discussed intersex people in the thread but Joyce tweeted that she was “sad to see this horrific destruction of once-great institutions.”

Previous roundups:

Note

You might have noticed that I seem to focus mostly on the Daily Mail, Mail on Sunday, Mail Online, Daily Telegraph and Sunday Telegraph. I added in the Times and Sunday Times this week.

That is for a few reasons:

  • It’s impossible to keep on top of everything in every paper/website.
  • The Mail titles are the largest in the country, their website one of the biggest on the planet and what they publish has real world impact.

This list was in no way meant to be definitive. Nobody has that much time on their hands, except, perhaps, GCs.

See you same time next week and if you want updates through the week, follow me on Twitter after my Alt after right-wingers got my main account shut down and, three months on, Twitter still haven’t dealt with my appeal!

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