I’ve been meaning to get back to that paper by Alison Phipps, kind of the way one gets back to a mosquito bite.

Reactionary feminisms, which coalesce around debates about sex workers’ rights and transgender equality, magnify the political whiteness of the mainstream and deliberately withhold womanhood and personhood from marginalised Others.

Now there’s an outright lie. Feminism that opposes pimping doesn’t withhold womanhood or personhood from prostituted women, it argues that prostitution exploits women. Gender critical feminism doesn’t withhold womanhood or personhood from anyone, it simply doesn’t repeat the lie that men can become women by identifying as women. It’s not “witholding womanhood” from men to say they are men, any more than it’s witholding bearhood from rabbits … Read the rest

Meanwhile today –

We are today attending the virtual hearing for #AllisonBailey’s claim against Stonewall & Garden Court Chambers.

— Safe Schools Alliance (@SafeSchools_UK) February 11, 2021

Attending and reporting on in tweets.

Much of the reporting is procedural, on questions like whether names can be redacted.

#allisonbailey

Ben Cooper QC: Gender critical beliefs held/expressed by claimant are those held by a women’s movement of female feminists. Indirect discrimination on grounds of sex, also on grounds of sexual orientation, many that hold these beliefs are lesbians.

— Safe Schools Alliance (@SafeSchools_UK) February 11, 2021

#allisonbailey

Ben Cooper QC going through claimants loss of earnings since openly expressing gender critical views

— Safe Schools Alliance (@SafeSchools_UK) February 11, 2021

#allisonbailey

… Read the rest

They weren’t playing.

The evidence is now undeniable. What we saw on Wednesday was the definitive proof that what broke into the Capitol last month was a hunting party. They came to kill people. “Hang Mike Pence” was not a metaphor. Hearing the hunters caroling, “Nannnnnn-cy? Nannnnnnnn-cy?” in that horror-movie sing-song was to hear the trilling of murderous intent. They came to the Capitol to kill people. Mitt Romney probably was saved by Officer Eugene Goodman, and this was before Goodman saved everyone else. (A security camera caught Goodman encountering Romney outside the Senate chamber as Romney was headed unwittingly into the teeth of the mob. Romney pivots like genuine Barry Sanders and beats feet in the other direction.)

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https://twitter.com/oliverburkeman/status/1359887719321776128

He’s reading it correctly.

In which @ReadingsBooks apologise for apologising for their apology and apologise profusely to their community of upstanding warriors that supply Melbourne's alternative community with pink and blue hair dye.

— Julie Bindel (@bindelj) February 11, 2021

2021:
Young trans author demands bookshop apologise for hosting someone the author disagrees with, 3 yrs ago – or else they won't appear at upcoming event.
Bookshop caves in, apologises.
Bookshop boss says he now regrets apology.@bindelj @ReadingsBooks https://t.co/p5NnFC9GaE

— Lucy Bannerman (@TimesLucy) February 11, 2021

Bookshop boss now says he now regrets apology for apology. Tune in tomorrow for another exciting episode of Who Will Apologize Last?

https://twitter.com/tuibguy/status/1359895255060013066… Read the rest

The Sydney Morning Herald on that slimy apology for letting Julie Bindel speak:

In 2018 Bindel, a campaigner against male violence, spoke at a Hawthorn bookshop event about her book, The Pimping of Prostitution, about the global sex trade.

On Tuesday, Readings issued a statement on its website saying it “regrets programming Julie Bindel in 2018”. The independent bookseller apologised for “any hurt caused by highlighting the work of an author whose current stance is to divide our community”.

Bindel told The Age that she believed the apology was directly linked to an online event with transgender author Juno Dawson, which Readings would be hosting later this month.

Why would she believe that? Because Readings posted a tweet … Read the rest

That depends on what you mean by that innocent little word “be.”

There's no wrong way to be a woman.
There's no wrong way to be a woman.
There's no wrong way to be a woman.
There's no wrong way to be a woman.
There's no wrong way to be a woman.
There's no wrong way to be a woman.
There's no wrong way to be a woman.

— UN Women (@UN_Women) February 7, 2021

Looked at one way it’s just an empty platitude. Looked at another way it’s an insulting lie. Suzanne Moore looks at it that second way.

The right way to react to this ridiculous mantra is surely to feel murderous. What is this slogan for?

… Read the rest

My god this is infuriating.

https://twitter.com/SaveWomensSport/status/1359537041378316288

I don’t know what hearing this is. There was a hearing on a bill on transgender athletes in Montana in January and I couldn’t find one on a federal bill so this is probably Montana, but I don’t know for sure.

But anyway – it’s astounding. He asks the obviously relevant question, if in 20 years there is a women’s team that is all “biological males” would you support that? And she doesn’t answer. She’s so flummoxed she asks him to repeat it, so he does, and she just outright refuses to answer, and even says “I apologize for not answering the question,” and then robotically repeats the moronic formula. Answer the fucking … Read the rest

Pretty harrowing to listen to.

"What you are about to hear has not been made public before."

House impeachment managers play radio communications from Metropolitan PD to highlight how "Trump supporters descended on the Capitol and become increasingly violent." https://t.co/OKAzzhvIne #impeachmenttrial pic.twitter.com/IUcjZpoXHn

— ABC News (@ABC) February 10, 2021

This video shows how members of Congress could hear the Ashli Babbitt shooting pic.twitter.com/SCtBhQ1Bpl

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) February 10, 2021

… Read the rest

Very progressive.

https://twitter.com/uktransalliance/status/1359600818664730625

Presenting ‘the right side of history’. Please @trussliz stop this assault on women’s rights & freedom of expression. pic.twitter.com/Mjg904rPAa

— Jo Bartosch (@jo_bartosch) February 10, 2021

… Read the rest

Whatcha gonna do when they come for you?

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis has opened a criminal investigation into Donald Trump’s attempt to interfere with Georgia’s election, the New York Times reported on Wednesday. While the former president faces potential criminal liability in several states, including New York, now that he has left office, the Georgia probe may pose the most immediate threat. All available evidence suggests that prosecutors are considering charges that amount to election fraud—a felony offense under Georgia law, and the very crime that Trump claimed he sought to stop.

The focus is on that call to Raffensperger.

As election law expert Rick Hasen noted at the time, there is no question that Trump was

… Read the rest

Also new.

Looks like Trump’s impeachment lawyers have some new ads up in the subway. pic.twitter.com/StkZlnqUUQ

— The Good Liars (@TheGoodLiars) February 10, 2021

… Read the rest

New item.

Remember: Brian Sicknick deserves justice. pic.twitter.com/doBHaL05hO

— The Lincoln Project (@ProjectLincoln) February 10, 2021

… Read the rest

The most dangerous jobs during the pandemic:

A new study from the University of California, San Francisco suggests that line cooks have the highest risk of mortality during the Covid pandemic — even more than healthcare workers.

For the study, which hasn’t been peer-reviewed yet, researchers analyzed California death certificates for working-age people 18 to 65, during the first seven months of the pandemic. Then they looked at how the number of deaths increased in that time frame compared to pre-pandemic times.

…

Line cooks had a 60% increase in mortality associated with the pandemic.

The top five occupations that had higher than a 50% mortality rate increase during the pandemic include cooks, line workers in warehouses, agricultural workers, bakers

… Read the rest

Free at last!

The prominent Saudi dissident and women’s rights activist Loujain al-Hathloul has been released from prison after 1,001 days in custody.

Following a concerted campaign by her relatives and global rights groups, Hathloul was granted probation by a judge in Riyadh and released to her family on Wednesday afternoon. Her sister Lina published a photo of a smiling Loujain on Twitter early evening Riyadh time – the first image of the most celebrated political prisoner in the Kingdom since she was detained almost three years ago. “Loujain is at home !!!!!!”, the accompanying message said.

Loujain is at home !!!!!!
تم الافراج عن لجين pic.twitter.com/fqug9VK6Mj

— Lina Alhathloul لينا الهذلول (@LinaAlhathloul) February 10, 2021

It is understood that

… Read the rest

The long arm of the law is getting longer and longer…

Prosecutors in Fulton county, Georgia, are investigating Donald Trump’s attempts to overturn the southern state’s 2020 presidential election results, according to a letter, in the second criminal investigation faced by the former president.

In Georgia! How dare they! Georgia was supposed to be solidly in the white supremacist yay-trump column. That’s the whole point of suppressing the black vote.

The Fulton county district attorney, Fani Willis, has sent a letter asking state government officials to preserve documents, including those related to the then president’s call to the Republican secretary of state, Brad Raffensperger, pressuring him to “find” more votes.

“This matter is of high priority, and I

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Trans man knows what it’s like.

I am a 48-year-old transgender man. I was thrilled when the medical community told me six years ago that I could change from a woman to a man. I was informed about all the wonderful things that would happen due to medical transition, but all the negatives were glossed over. Since then, I have suffered tremendously, including seven surgeries, a pulmonary embolism, an induced stress heart attack, sepsis, a 17-month recurring infection, 16 rounds of antibiotics, three weeks of daily IV antibiotics, arm reconstructive surgery, lung, heart and bladder damage, insomnia, hallucinations, PTSD, $1 million in medical expenses, and loss of home, car, career and marriage. All this, and yet I cannot sue

… Read the rest

Trump is mad that his lawyers are so sucky. Well, Mister Sir, that’s what happens when you’re such a horror that nobody wants to defend you – you can’t get the pick of the crop.

A Trump advisor told the New York Times’ Maggie Haberman that Trump attorney Bruce Castor’s confusing, meandering performance was a “deliberative strategy.” designed to lower the emotion in the room, though, I’d counter, a master strategist wouldn’t need to put out a background statement explaining their strategy.

No that too is to get everyone to calm down.

Other reviews also not great.

“The president’s lawyer just rambled on and on,” said senator John Cornyn, a Republican of Texas. “I’ve seen a lot of

… Read the rest

Meanwhile today the impeachment trial has started.

Democrats are aware that the trial outcome is a foregone conclusion – another Trump acquittal, barring sensational new evidence – and that the stakes are lower because he has already left office. But sometimes symbolism is the point. The impeachment trial is a test of accountability, stability and rule of law before a global audience.

…

Like a criminal lawyer, Democrats are seeking to appeal to not only the head but also the heart. They are not only prosecutors but also survivors of the rampage, a point brought home with visceral force by Jamie Raskin in a closing argument that had the chamber silent and spellbound on Wednesday.

“And then there was

… Read the rest

It gets worse. (This is interesting because he’s not Owen Jones or Adrian Harrop, but…it seems he might as well be.)

Just got a lovely little message from the "LGB Alliance", I hope they understand where I'm coming from and I hope I wasn't too vague regarding where I stand on their anti-trans hate agenda. pic.twitter.com/MNS03wGkG2

— Oz Katerji (@OzKaterji) February 9, 2021

Might as well be.… Read the rest

Yes of course these issues should be discussed – but obviously not by you, because you’re much too informed and concerned about them.

I think they absolutely should be discussed, but I think they should be discussed by people who aren’t so evidently and extremely prejudiced against trans women such as yourself.

— Oz Katerji (@OzKaterji) February 9, 2021

Thank god he’s not at all prejudiced against anyone himself.

You do you Janice, you’re the one with the daily megaphone, not me. Nobody is out here silencing you, you are free to broadcast your anti-trans campaign & earn a handsome wage for it. That’s your prerogative, my prerogative is to label your bilious hateful agitprop for what it is

—

… Read the rest