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There was already Discourse about the Mermaids stream and while I don't want to discourage constructive critical conversation, I should emphasise that events like this have tremendous value.
Today, I saw numerous trans women in my circles who have been struggling with the drumbeat of bad news--people whose health I worry about daily, some of whom even thought they'd have to go into hiding--feel utterly buoyed by the sudden parade of good news brought by the stream.
Glinner was just one of several powerful people in Britain who coordinated an assault on a charity that helps trans kids. It was *deeply* dispiriting to see, day after day, cis men and women with lofty platforms launching these attacks on our kids and our right to even exist.
The stream, especially *because* it blew up so unexpectedly, because it *was not* a coordinated campaign built on institutional privileges and connections, suddenly brought together a very public display of love and affirmation. It meant the world to see (and not just in the UK).
In time, a number of powerful people lent their *support* to trans people. It's easy to devalue symbolic gestures, but the gladdened hearts of my sisters in an hour of need reminds me why these things matter. Anguish suddenly gives way to hope. We're reminded this is possible.
And the attempt by Glinner, Fleet Street, and an online mob to rob a charity of half a million pounds was met by a truly grassroots campaign that promises to restore a significant chunk of that money. To see that happen, for trans kids in an age of moral panic, gives me strength.
This is not all there is to activism. But this is a timely reminder that our collective power is real and that another world is *always* possible. This a good day, a day where so many people achieved a symbolic *and* material victory. Just think how much more can be done.
Right now, some hapless intern for a craggy Times columnist is looking through HBomb's stream to help their boss find ways to belittle and slander it, I'm sure. But it won't wash away the fact that there's all this grassroots support out there for our kids. That's indelible.
If you played a part in that, however small, *thank you.*
