Thread by @WomensRightsNet

#MothersDay
A thread 🧵
This week @Oxfam went on @GMB to explain why they were being inclusive by removing the word mother from their policy and guidance.

https://twitter.com/GMB/status/1636644123896688640?t=WLedsBMq_DnEfbf5Z0BNdQ&s=19

They are not the first organisation to do this as we will show in this thread.
#MothersDay /1

Does it really matter if gender inclusive language is used?
Women are often told "don't be silly" "get a grip" the word mother isn't being erased. But if you look more closely it is & we believe that is a problem.
It is a fact that only women give birth & we all have a mother /2

Our experience of that will be different because not all mothers are the same.

A version of the word mother, mum, mom, ma etc is often the first word a baby will say. Mothers & motherhood are rooted in thousands of years of society.
#MothersDay /3

So where is it being erased?
Here are some examples
In 2019 the French Government banned the use of mother & father in schools
thetimes.co.uk/article/mother…
#MothersDay /4

In 2021 @stonewalluk urged employers to drop mother for parent who has given birth to boost their Equality rating telegraph.co.uk/news/2021/06/0…
#MothersDay /5

In 2021 Manchester University advised against using mother. Other Universities have similarly issued this advice.
bbc.com/news/uk-englan…
#MothersDay /6

In 2021 The Scottish civil service agreed to delete the word 'mother' from its maternity leave policy after pressure from @stonewalluk
telegraph.co.uk/politics/2021/…
#MothersDay /7

In 2022
Penny Mordaunt is said to have supported erasing the words ‘mother’ and ‘woman’ from a new law on maternity leave and replacing them with 'person'
dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1…
#MothersDay/8

In 2022 The Biden administration and other Democrat officials appear to have already begun removing the word
"mother" from their vocabulary.
newsweek.com/biden-admin-re…
#MothersDay /9

In 2022
The Midwifery Council of New Zealand revised its midwifery scope of practice guidelines to entirely remove the words “woman” and “mother”.
i.stuff.co.nz/pou-tiaki/1303…
#MothersDay /10

In 2022
A Gold Coast mother was referred to on a form as a 'birthing parent'
She claimed the term was appalling, offensive & dehumanising to mothers @salltweets
dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1…
#MothersDay /11

Bill Shorten intervened to stop this trial in Australia
"The term birthing parent was used in a trial at three hospitals on Services Australia digital forms for parents to register their child’s birth with Medicare"
theguardian.com/australia-news…
#MothersDay /12

In 2022
Napier University in Scotland announced transwomen could give birth and issued guidance to students on how to handle male anatomy and referred to the "birthing person"
holyrood.com/news/view,tran…
#MothersDay /13

Our @NHSuk has also been promoting "birthing parent"

"NHS Norfolk and Suffolk Foundation Trust (NSFT) posted on social media that it was seeking 'birthing people' to provide feedback on its perinatal services"
dailymail.co.uk/health/article…
#MothersDay /14

Joan Collins recently said
"It worries me that we might be inadvertently subjugated with the censure of female-only spaces or words like “mother” and “breastfeeding” (and told we must use terms like “female parent” and “chestfeeding” instead.)"
nypost.com/2023/03/09/joa…
/15

These are just a few examples of the word mother being erased in our language
It is misogynistic, dehumanising and offensive. We at #WRN say
#NoThankYou!
#MothersDay
#HappyMothersDay
End

#MothersDay
A new entry to our thread published in the Daily Mail today #MothersDay
@Girlguiding
"As part of the new style guide, leaders are advised to use 'parents and carers' instead of 'mothers and fathers' in order to be more inclusive"
dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1…