Respect ALL the idenninies
A U.K. employment tribunal has ruled that non-binary and gender fluid people are protected under the Equality Act.
Protected from what?
The Equality Act protects people from discrimination on the basis of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, and sexual orientation. But a landmark ruling today now confirms that protection to non-binary and gender fluid people does fall under the gender reassignment category, after years of ambiguity.
Protection from what though? Discrimination, it says, but what would discrimination against non-binary people look like? What exactly are we talking about?
The case was brought by a non-binary engineer working in Jaguar Land Rover’s (JLR) plant. Ms Taylor said she was harassed and directly discriminated against on the ground of gender reassignment.
But what’s a non-binary engineer?
Ms Taylor, who is non-binary, also told the tribunal about suffering difficulties with the use of toilet facilities and managerial support.
Did non-binary Ms Taylor want to use a different toilet facility every day? Every trip? Every other month? And what managerial support did shehe require?
Jaguar Land Rover said there was no gender reassignment so ???
However, today a tribunal upheld Ms Taylor’s claims of harassment, direct discrimination, victimisation and constructive dismissal.
Further adding it was “clear… that gender is a spectrum” and that it is “beyond any doubt” that claimant’s identity fell within the definition.
Clear??? It’s about as clear as the holy ghost.
The hearing heard how during the Equality Bill parliamentary debates in 2009 the Solicitor-General referred to a gender as a “spectrum” and that gender reassignment “concerns a personal journey and moving a gender identity away from birth sex.”
In other words navel-gazers gonna navel-gaze. Whatever, but why does everyone else have to agree with and prop up the navel-gazing? Why are we told it’s “clear” and that we have to worship at its feet?
The landmark judgment means that many other gender identities, beyond transgender, may also fall within the definition of gender reassignment in the Equality Act.
Many many many many many. They’re well up into the billions now. They can all sue, they can all punish us for not genuflecting. Good times on the way.
Robin Moira White, of Old Square Chambers, who represented Ms Taylor, says:
“This is an important judgment, albeit at first instance, recognising for the first time the rights of a small number of individuals with complex gender identities. Once again, the courts have shown themselves willing to stand up for the rights of individuals in a manner which demands respect and admiration. I pay tribute to my brave client.”
But what rights? What follows from all this? Is the idea that people with “complex gender identities” can never be fired because hey why risk it when they are Protected? Or what? What are we required to do now? What is expected of us? What does any of this mindless pretentious gibberish mean?
“I see no reason why this ruling should not extend to other complex gender identities such as agender and genderqueer.”
Sure, why not. Nobody knows what any of it means so what the hell.
Dr S Chelvan, a Barrister at No5 Barristers’ Chambers and specialist in LGBTQ law, tells me this marks a ‘coming of age’ for U.K. LGBTQ law:
“Recognition of gender-fluid and non-binary identities within the gender reassignment protected characteristic in the Equality Act marks the coming of age of LGBT+ law. What makes us human is our differences. What makes us a free society, is our ability to celebrate and protect our right to be different, across the human spectrum.”
But what does that mean? What is “the human spectrum”? What does “Recognition of gender-fluid and non-binary identities” mean?
Usually law people are very careful about precision in language. Usually.
I would think this was a parody but it’s in Forbes.
I wish I knew what the criteria were for gender identities. I mean, I’m female but work in a ‘male dominated’ job, and never wear skirts, heels or makeup–does that put me into the nonbinary gender identity? How does the law decide? If I wore a dress and makeup one day would that make me genderfluid? (As far as I can tell, the only criteria for ‘what your gender identity is’ is ‘what you say it is’–or, I guess in the case of women who aren’t playing, what other people say it is.)
Well of course “gender” is a spectrum, if it’s defined as “the social and cultural roles, attributes, and expectations which are assigned to the sexes,” given that what’s considered masculine or feminine is fluid across time and place. We’re all non-binary in that sense, since nobody could satisfy every stereotype. I sometimes wear lipstick, I value logic and reason, I read romance novels, I argue with people.
So it seems the court has ruled that “personality“ is protected under the Equality Act.
But I’ve no idea what it means, either. They can’t be fired — or they use any bathroom? And if we’re all non-binary, is everything unisex now?
“Years of ambiguity.” Heh — good one.
Technically true, but not for the reasons the writer has in mind. The number of individuals with “complex gender identities” is small because the number of individuals with “gender identities” is small (pretty much confined to the trans* spectrum). Clearly what’s intended, though, is that everyone except “a small number of individuals” simplistically conform to the prevailing gender stereotypes.
Excellent, “agender” should cover pretty much all the non-trans people then.
An acquaintance of mine told me just a couple of years ago that there would soon be more gender identities to choose from than there are coffees on a Starbucks’ menu, and I laughed and asked if she was a closet Daily Mail reader.
I guess I owe her an apology.
If part of my identity as “agender” is believing that “gender identity” is bullshit, is that belief protected?
I think we all know the answer to that question. Also you’re under arrest.
Room 101!
“ Is the idea that people with “complex gender identities” can never be fired because hey why risk it when they are Protected?”
Well, I don’t think that follows. Being black is Protected and firing black people still happens.
No, none of it follows, the question was sarcastic.
Considering that the enbies and fluids depend on the rest of us being plain, old boring vanilla, does that mean the rest of us don’t have personalities?
Ms Taylor MAY have suffered rudeness and harassment. Golly, just like most women in most workplaces. The ‘non-binary’ part shouldn’t need to be included. From the snippets, it isn’t possible to know if any of the trouble was ‘spectrum’ related.
YNnB, that’s one of the things that really, really irritates me. The idea that anyone is interesting based on “gender identity” or “sexual orientation” is bogus. People who spend all their time talking about their sex or their gender are, quite frankly, boring. And a boring man putting on a dress, lipstick, and high heels does not make him instant interesting. Someone tells me their pronouns are “they and them” does not make them interesting; in fact, I think it makes them boring. They are on a bandwagon, and have nothing else to be interesting about, so they make up something.
Interesting people are people who can do interesting things, talk about interesting things, make amusing jokes, tell interesting stories. Science, philosophy, history, literature, hiking, anything…that is more likely to make someone interesting than demanding I call them “they” or telling me I must respect their gender identity.
Sad, sad people who have to twist themselves out of shape to become interesting. I can find all sorts of people of all sexes and sexual orientations interesting or boring, depending on whether they are, well, interesting or boring.
What? I have to actually DO something!? That sounds like work! My very existence of Stunning Bravery and Brave Stunningness should be enough to guarantee my interestinghood!! YOU’RE INVALIDATING ME!!! I’M BEING REPRESSED!!!! I’LL SUE!!!!!
All too true, isn’t it – it’s a fashion people rush to adopt because it makes them Special and Marginalized and Heroic, all for the low low price of saying “I am agender.”