Thread by @RoisinMichaux

Stephanie Davies-Arai (@cwknews) next up at @genspect conference. She wants to talk about the concept of "trans kids". Shows an old pic of two tomboys dressed in typical boy clothes. What happened to these 2 girls? 1/
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The picture was her and her sister. She struggled against puberty and womanhood - or more precisely, she was struggling against what society told her a woman was in a sexist 70s culture.

"I want to know what has changed." 2/
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The cultural landscape for girls has gotten so intense - Instagram, with its impossible standards, violent and degrading porn on smartphones... and gender identity is being taught in schools as fact. 3/
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I've never known a campaign that has so aggressively targeted children - from the baby pink and baby blue colours, to the "glitter family" - says Davies-Arai. She shows a still of a trans identifying man telling kids to reject their families who aren't ok with transition. 4/

All the big bookshops are selling these trans-themed kids books - so they must be good, right? @cwknews shows the first trans kids book she came across - it was a book for 3 year olds, about a boy bear who puts a bowtie in his hair and becomes a girl. 5/
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Kids are being used as foot soldiers in an adult campaign, says @cwknews. Themes are introduced to appeal to children - being a good friend, being kind. #GenspectBiggerPicture 6/

She goes through some of the books deployed by the adult trans campaign to win over kids - and lays out all of the key political messages contained in those books - hidden under themes that appeal to them. 7/ #GenspectBiggerPicture

We're shown the page of a kids' book that contains all of the key political messages. It could have been taken straight from the Stonewall website (probably was, TBF). 8/
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Next: a workbook that encourages kids to analyse everything themselves in terms of gender. "Is this conducive to good mental health? I don't think so. I think it's exacerbating mental health problems," she says. 9/ #GenspectBiggerPicture

A colouring book and journal for trans and non-binary kids, or a trans teen survival guide (one that provides a certificate of transness. "You are trans enough. Anyone who says otherwise can go eat rocks." Because "you are the most marginalised group.") 10/

"This is a new family that will accept you unconditionally. Imagine you come from a care home?" asks Davies-Arai. 11/
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A kids book is shown that introduces nine-year-olds to puberty blockers. We are shown the cover of a brand new book (not out yet) over which there was a bidding war by publishers. Contains the line: "they say your body is a temple, mine feels more like a rental." 😩😩😩12/

Self-hatred and disgust over the female body is very clear in these books. A drawing is shown of a naked girl/woman labelled with all the lumpy hairy bits. Masculinised girls with mastectomy scars are shown as cool alongside loser "basic" girls. 13/

Stonewall's Christmas card included a girl with mastectomy scars. 14/
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A fashion brand used a model with mastectomy scars in a campaign that appeared in the London metro. 15/
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Davies-Arai says there's a clear "Shut up TERFs" message in the kids' books. Suicide is not appearing in the books as such, but it's being picked up by kids as it is repeated in the media and by the NGOs. 16/

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"Activists say "Listen to kids!" but kids are just regurgitating what the NGOs and the publishing industry say. It seems to me that for this generation, the adults have left the room. Kids don't know when they are being exploited or brainwashed." @cwknews
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"How can kids ever give consent for medical treatment if they've been so thoroughly indoctrinated?" asks @cwknews in conclusion. She gets a standing ovation. (I can see what Queen Elizabeth liked about her.) #GenspectBiggerPicture /End