THREAD: Huge congratulations to Katie Alcock @wontsomeonethi2 for holding @Girlguiding to account. They were wrong to expel her for raising concerns about a policy that allows male children to sleep, wash and undress with females, and keeping parents in the dark /1
@wontsomeonethi2@Girlguiding Speaking up in public about the girlguiding trans policy was one of the first Fair Play For Women campaigns back in 2018. Here's our director Nicola Williams @AskNic talking on daytime TV at the BBC studios /2
@wontsomeonethi2@Girlguiding@AskNic Back in 2018 it was hard to get air time and we were in the midst of the #nodebate era. Girlguiding, Stonewall and the NSPCC all refusing to defend the policy /3
Back then sex denialism was strong. We spelt out the clear implications of the policy; male teenagers sleeping, washing and undressing with girls, and parents not told. The response:
"but they don't identify as male. They identify as female" /4
Raising safeguarding issues was met with incredulity and suspicion. Common sense was thrown out the window. /5
We are proud to have stood up for girls when few dared to speak the truth.
"when she looks around she can see that no adults even dare to say that child is male" /6
"they are male children. There is no difference in their body or between any other child"
"There is a difference in the way that they feel and the way that they identify" /8
Stonewall was misrepresenting the law. We were one of the first organisations to call them out /9
Katie Alcock's case has guaranteed that the safeguarding issues surrounding Girlguiding's trans policy can and must be discussed openly, without fear of sanction. The era of #Nodebate is over. /10
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We have been calling for this guidance for a long time. We have been reporting rogue employers each time they misuse the law by advertising for ‘self-identifying women’ to fill women-only roles. /2
THREAD
In March the @EHRC promised to publish new guidance to stop employers mis-stating the law on female-only job adverts. We had reported numerous breaches over 2 years /1
The EHRC also said it would ‘enforce’ the law and would take ‘urgent action’ when problems are reported. We reported ‘Survivors Network’ who said ‘being female’ was a requirement but ‘this post is open to self-identifying women’ /2
Despite being reported to EHRC the advert was not corrected and remained live until applications closed. However, the wording of its latest advert for a therapist has changed in line with the law. All references to ‘self-identifying’ have gone. /3
Today we have published the first ever report on the impact of trans inclusion in sport in the UK.
It shows a widespread problem, affecting many women and girls all over the country, at all levels, from juniors to masters and at all levels of competition and participation. 1/11
Women and girls are being put at risk and their legitimate concerns disregarded.
THREAD:
Despite clear law to the contrary, female police officers are required to perform intimate searches on men - if that man says he identifies as a woman /1
The law says SAME SEX ONLY but the Statutory Code prioritises GENDER IDENTITY. This is yet another example of bad guidance corrupting policy contrary to the law /2
The Police And Criminal Evidence Act (1984) sets out how the police must lawfully search suspects.
55(7) A constable may not carry out an intimate search of a person of the opposite SEX /3
THREAD:
Yesterday we received an email from a woman who had checked the meaning of a “woman-only” fitness class at her local gym. With permission, we’re sharing the story verbatim. Well done that woman 💪… /1
“Warrington's major sports centre is run by a company called LiveWire. They are widely publicising "women only fitness classes", saying how "empowering" these will be because they are "women only"…. /2