Trans I think means someone transitioning from male to female. I know nothing about trans but I do know what it like to be born a certain way, in my case gay. I offer to trans the same as what I expect for myself, that is respect.
Let's start with the editor of the Tasmanian newspaper the Launceston Examiner, the editor having written a letter to the the editor with a nom de plume protesting against a trans being in women's sports changing room. Total fiction and he has resigned.
Then a public speaker from England arrived on our shores to preach hatred against trans, one Kellie-Jay Keen-Minshull. Apparently a women's group felt uncomfortable about trans too and turned out to listen to her hate speech against trans. The speaker also goes by the name of Posie Parker. She has been proved to be associated with neo Nazis and our local neo Nazis were there to support her.
A brand new state politician with extreme anti trans views attended the speech, one Moira Deeming. I believe she wasn't to know neo Nazis were in attendance. She had already made her views clear before she was pre selected for election, yet she went on to be approved. By her attendance at the speech, she has nearly destroyed the state opposition conservative party.
Moderate opposition leader Pusetto said she must go from from the party. There were no ifs and buts.
After a very long meeting the party decided she would be suspended for nine months and then reassessed.
Of course Pusetto has attempted to explain this away but it has wounded his leadership to such an extent that some, including me, think he has lost power within his own party, with the party beholden to the extreme anti social acceptance intolerants.
Mainland Australian state governments are all now Labor, as is our federal government. What is it about modern Australia that conservatives don't get? It is only when Labor really screws up or becomes very stale that the conservatives might be elected.
Meanwhile Ms Posie Parker went on to New Zealand to preach her hatred. In Auckland protesters overwhelmed her and lol, someone threw tomato sauce at her, with a direct hit. Guards rushed her through protestors out to police car for protection. I think her Wellington appearance was cancelled.
I ask, why was a speaker of hatred ever given a visa to visit here? Australia has banned speakers of hate in the past. Why not her? Her visit has almost brought down two politicians at least.
Meanwhile a gay couple in Indonesia has been thrice refused a tourist visa to Australia. They wanted to visit Sydney for World Pride and Mardi Gras, but immigration said no. They are work professionals in Indonesia, have plenty of money and have travelled Europe and Japan, ten countries over ten years and never overstayed anywhere.
Loving couple, denied. Speaker of hate, most welcome.
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I didn't know about the couple from Indonesia - and have often been appalled at the people we seem to make welcome to come and speak here.
ReplyDeleteYour final sentence says it all..
EC, to be fair, many hate and lying speakers have been banned and it seems like a nasty US rapper has also been banned, so I am surprised this speaker was allowed.
Delete'Speaker of hate most welcome'. So sad and so true and this intolerance is everywhere. It certainly is alive and well in my country, I am so very sorry to say.
ReplyDeleteThe ending is a great summation to the blog:)
Sandra, yes, there is some rather weird stuff happening in your country too. Thank you.
DeleteWhoops, that was me, Andrew:) Sandra sandracox.blogspot.com
ReplyDeleteAs my brother once said "The only thing about which I am intolerant is intolerance." My problem is that the last time I looked at the subject of gender there were about 9 and I had considerable difficulty understanding what some of them were.
ReplyDeleteGraham, that's a nice quote from your brother. Yes, I don't understand all the genders. It all seems a little queer to me, but if that is how they are and identify as, that's fine with me.
DeleteI don't know why people can't just live and let live. Who cares what people do in the bedroom or what their anatomy or whatever is. Just let people be. Why are we so nosy and judgemental I wonder.
ReplyDeleteThat's all anyone wants Strayer.
DeleteThe Stalker
ReplyDeleteI worry about the trans community , young trans people are generally accepted and supported in school in these times, even though some people make it difficult for them.I think they and most of the younger generation are teaching us a lesson about understanding and acceptance. They will all grow up together and our ignorance should not be theirs .At the same time I am conflicted about sports and toilets. Sports is a huge discussion that needs to happen rationally because physicality and strength in contact sports in particular can be an issue even in single sex sport as in the various football codes.
Unisex toilets should always be available for all, and so should womens and mens. I can never understand why men have to use open urinals because some have great modesty and feel threatened.. it’s the same for women and their personal needs. Personally I hate public toilets and if possible use the disabled ones if they are vacant.
Everyone needs to take a deep breath and stop using their prejudices to disempower others
Good wishes Andrew….
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Thanks for your detailed comment Stalker.
DeleteAs you are, I am too conflicted about sports and toilets. Rows of individual unisex toilets sounds good to me. Actually, in my case, I would happily share cubicles in a public toilet with women. Our bodily functions aren't that different. There maybe noises in public toilets that no one wants to hear, but who cares what sex they come from.
I've never used urinals. I am not standing in another bloke's piss at a gutter, even though I may do so in a cubicle when men have been careless or have issues.
Sports, I just don't know. If there is male strength against female strength, then that seem wrong. I'll leave that to the experts.
So what about trans using female sports changing rooms if nudity is the norm? We can't pretend this is all easy, but we do need to respect people for who they are.
I read the news while overseas. It is so sad that extreme views are embraced in Australia.
ReplyDeleteIt is sad Roentare. Welcome home.
DeleteI DO believe she was briefed by another woman re neo Nazis who were going to be in attendance. Her comments later that night were very telling :( Neo Nazis at an Australian protest event are beyond the Pale :(
ReplyDeleteHels, I heard about that after I had written the substance of the post. That's even more damning of Deeming.
DeleteTolerance and respect should guide all our reactions, but people with extreme views are incapable of moderation.
ReplyDeleteJabblog, she should not have been released from your shores. I expect as an 'unknown' to most Australians, she got past immigration.
DeleteThe Posie women should never have been permitted to come to Australia or New Zealand, she is a waste of space. Not many turned out to listen to her in Hobart.
ReplyDeleteThe Launceston man who was let go was a good reported, he should have got his facts correct in the first place.
Indeed Margaret. It is strange that she was allowed to come here, and to NZ. The behaviour of the editor of the Launceston Examiner was disgraceful, and he deserved to be sacked.
DeleteYour final sentence says it all, and whoever made these decisions is so wrong! Perhaps the loving couple could apply separately and get visas, but they shouldn't have to.
ReplyDeleteRiver, I think the Indo couple's moment of magic to visit Australia for Gay Pride may have passed and is perhaps bitter on their lips.
DeleteThat final sentence stopped me dead in my tracks. Why indeed? (and this is not a rhetorical question...an answer is needed.)
ReplyDeleteDebby, but who should we direct the question to? The Minister for Immigration I suppose.
DeleteWhile I think it's perfectly legitimate to ask questions about how best to accommodate transgender people, it needs to be done respectfully and without accusations or demonizing. "Posie Parker" is a hater, and if I were Parker Posey I'd sue her. It's especially telling who supports her (neo-Nazis) and who she supports (bigots like Tommy Robinson).
ReplyDeleteSteve, I think the last time we were in London there was a protest against or in support of Robinson. He's a nasty piece of work and any association with him further blackens Parker.
DeleteHatred and anger are such wastes of energy. ~sigh~ I feel sad for those uncomfortable with their gender. It cannot be a good mental place and adolescence, especially, is rough enough without that complication.
ReplyDeleteDarla, oh so true and I think you need personal family or close experience with it to come close to properly understanding.
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