Wednesday 30 August 2023

Another activism email to MPs on hate against trans people in Australia

This was sent last night: 

Dear Members of Parliament,

I wish to draw your attention to the report "Fuelling Hate: Abuse, Harassment, Vilification and Violence Against Trans People in Australia" based on data from the Trans Justice Project and the Victorian Pride Lobby which "shows anti-trans hatred has increased over the last three years" - media coverage by The Guardian available at https://www.theguardian.com/society/2023/aug/29/our-lives-are-under-attack-one-in-two-trans-australians-have-experienced-hate-report-reveals.

I understand copies of the report will be delivered to MPs, although that may be State MPs only. Owing to the importance of this evidence, I have chosen to include Federal MPs in this email as well, and, for the sake of MPs who may not receive a visit, advise that the report is available online at https://transjustice.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Fuelling-Hate-Anti-Trans-Abuse-Harassment-and-Vilification-WEB-SINGLES.pdf.

The key findings from the report are:
Finding #1: Anti-trans hate, both online and in-person, is widespread
  • 94.55% of all participants (2930) indicated that they had seen online anti-trans abuse, harassment or vilification in the last year.
  • 49.20% (644) of trans participants had experienced online anti-trans abuse, harassment or vilification in the last 12 months.47.90% of trans participants reported experiencing in-person anti-trans abuse, harassment or vilification in the last 12 months.
Finding #2: Anti-trans hate, both online and in-person, is escalating
  • 34.22% of trans participants said they had experienced more or significantly more in-person anti-trans hate compared to 2020.
  • 40.03% of trans participants experienced more or significantly more online anti-trans hate compared to 2020.
Finding #3: Anti-trans hate rose during the period where anti-trans lobbyist, Kellie-Jay Keen, was touring Australia
  • 23.61% of trans participants reported more or significantly more anti-trans in-person hate in the two months leading up to the survey compared to the start of the year. 
  • 31.17% of trans participants experienced more or significantly more online anti-trans hate in the two months preceding the survey compared to the start of the year.
Finding #4: Experiences of anti-trans violence are highly prevalent
  • 15.97% of trans participants had experienced anti-trans violence in the last 12 months.
I also note that the hate affects other communities in the LGBTQIASB+ communities as well. As an example, police have finally recently applied for an AVO to protect a gay male friend of mine in regional Victoria who has experienced months of harassment and violence.
In general haters/bigots tend to have hate and bigotry against multiple groups.

I also note that the growing culture of anti-racist fervour in Florida is widely considered to have contributed to the recent blatantly racist murder of three black people.
That is, the reality of the problems explored in this report is well supported by related experience from elsewhere.

I commend the report to you for your deepest consideration and reflection.

 

I considered sending an email about the attempt to resurrect the old exclude all biwomen and transwomen who are lesbians from an event intended to cater for cisgender lesbians in a public space, but didn't have the energy. 

The key points I was going to make if I had, however, were as follows:

  • it is important that everyone be psychologically safe;
  • however, there may be a need to consider apparently conflicting rights - about which Kant _ 
  • the basis of the request for an exemption is an aspect of questionable relevance, and verges on being defamatory;
    • sexual assault is caused by issues such as patriarchy, power, and character. The requested exemption is akin to associating gun violence with people of a particular hair colour;
    • furthermore, women do and have committed sexual assault - including lesbians;
    • the view that excluding trans women will mean cislesbians feel safe is false;
  • furthermore, the implication that trans women not women is false and unsupportable 
  • the implication that the lesbian community built around cisgender women is false - there are some notable inclusive groups;
  • there are also concerns about how this would be policed - after all, one transwoman passed well enough to be a so-called “Bond girl”. 
If possible, I would also have sought a way to include the following:
  • the aspirations of this request have been built on shifting sands, possibly out of fear at having to grieve the loss of false notions about reality (specifically, the nature of gender) and then adjust their life; 
The following sayings should also be kept in mind: 

“We can disagree and still love each other unless your disagreement is rooted in my oppression and denial of my humanity and right to exist.” 
“One cannot deny the humanity of another without diminishing one's own.”
James Baldwin 

“In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.”
“Over the last few years I have consistently preached that nonviolence demands that the means we use must be as pure as the ends we seek. So I have tried to make it clear that it is wrong to use immoral means to attain moral ends. But now I must affirm that it is just as wrong, or even more, to use moral means to preserve immoral ends.”
Dr Martin Luther King, Jr.

Relevant links:

 

If they are of any use of interest, the activism information links from my former news posts are available in this post. 

 

If you appreciated this post, please consider promoting it - there are some links below.

Vote Yes for the Voice in Australia.  

Finally, remember: we need to be more human being rather than human doing.



 

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