Petition to Nick Hurd MP
Misgendering is not a crime - End the politicisation of the police
Misgendering is not a crime - End the politicisation of the police
A British journalist was under investigation by the police. Her apparent crime was the “misgendering” of a woman’s child as her “son” rather than her “daughter”. The investigation has now been dropped.
After appearing on Good Morning Britain with Susie Green in a debate about biological males being allowed into the Girl Guides without parental knowledge, Caroline Farrow posted some follow-up comments on Twitter.
Susie Green is the head the a transgender activist group, Mermaids, and her son, Jackie, was born a male and now identifies as female. Subsequently, Susie Green took him to Thailand for surgery to remove his male genitalia.
Caroline Farrow was critical of Green’s decision and referred to her child as her “son”. This upset Susie Green sufficiently that she took her grievance to the police, and the police agreed that this “crime” (calling a boy a “boy” rather than calling him a “girl”) was serious enough to warrant an investigation.
Apparently it was Farrow’s reference to Green’s child as her “son” and not her “daughter” which was the subject of police investigation.
To be clear: a journalist referred to a biological male as someone’s son, and this journalist is now under investigation by the police.
This is not an isolated case of police politicization and overreach. Another woman, Kellie-Jay Keen-Minshull is under investigation for posting YouTube clips of herself being critical of Green’s encouragement of her son in changing sex. (This is the second time Keen-Minshull has been investigated by the police for supposed “transphobic” comments)
Finally, Miranda Yardley, who was born a man but underwent gender reassignment to become a woman, went on trial earlier this month after being accused of harassment by a transgender activist. The case was thrown out, but this was not before months of police and CPS harassment and bullying.
1. These three cases illustrate a dangerous politicization of the police force. Some people might think what Farrow or Keen-Minshull said was offensive (most people would say it’s true), but either way, it is clear that the police are enforcing a particular ideological viewpoint.
Transgender activists typically believe that “misgendering” someone – calling them by a pronoun which relates to their birth sex rather than by the sex they claim to be – and “deadnaming” someone – using a person’s name before they “transitioned” to the other sex – are both serious cases of wrongdoing, and apparently also believe that it should actually be illegal.
You can already be fined up to $250,000 in New York City for intentionally misgendering someone. New York is requiring people to actually say words that convey a message of approval for the view that gender is a matter of self-perception rather than anatomy. If you refuse to use this ideological Newspeak, you could be left with a crippling fine.
Apparently, this ideological speech can be forced on ordinary people in the UK who refuse to endorse an ideology that says ‘men can become women’ and ‘women can become men’.
Even if these police investigations come to nothing (as some already have), this corruption of the police force (by adopting this ideology) has already led to a sinister form of silencing debate around certain ideologies through intimidation and bullying.
2. People are rightly asking questions about why a supposedly stretched police force is wasting its time pursuing “crimes” like misgendering, especially while knife crime is at a nine year high.
This has to STOP NOW.
“Women cannot become men and men cannot become women.”
“A transgender woman is not a woman. No amount of cosmetic change can turn a man into a woman or vice versa.”
“It is a cruelty towards children to give them hormone blockers or cross sex hormones in order to encourage their gender confusion.”
These are statements of fact. They are not “hate speech”.
Please sign this petition to the Minister of State for Policing and the Fire Service, Nick Hurd MP, urging him to do all within his power to cease this politicised policing now. Genuine harassment should not be tolerated but ideological disagreements are not the concern of the police.
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End the Politicisation of the Police Force
Dear Minister of State for Policing and the Fire Service, Nick Hurd MP,
I write to you in regard to three recent cases, at least one of which is on-going. The cases concerning Caroline Farrow, Miranda Yardley, and Kellie-Jay Keen-Minshull.
All three of these cases appear to involve these three women being critical of transgender ideology; being critical of Mermaids; and criticising individual parental decisions to assist a child in transition to the other sex.
Insofar as these cases involve genuine harassment of individuals, they should be investigated. But insofar as they represent ideological disagreement i.e. by refusing to use preferred pronouns, by refusing to call someone’s child a “she” instead of a “he”, this is no concern of the police at all.
- “Women cannot become men and men cannot become women.”
- “A transgender woman is not a woman. No amount of cosmetic change can turn a man into a woman or vice versa.”
- “Encouraging a child to ‘transition’ to the other sex through the use of hormones or surgery or “chest binding” is child abuse.”
These may be considered offensive remarks by some, but they are simply regarded as statements of fact by those who say them.
Those who openly say these things and refuse to address others by pronouns which do not correspond to their biological sex, are not engaging in “hate speech”.
It is the mark of a deeply corrupt and authoritarian police force that would intimidate and harass such people. This ideological debate should not be arbitrated by a police force apparently intent on shutting down criticism of a worldview which is as dangerous as it is non-sensical.
For the police to waste time on such an endeavour is not worthy of the dignity of law enforcement. The police should not be acting as the personal enforcers of Mermaids (or any other group with an ideological grievance.)
It is necessary for you to do all within your power to cease this politicised policing now and produce clear guidance which states that whilst genuine harassment should not be tolerated, ideological disagreement and any offence this might cause, does not rise to the level of crime and is therefore no concern of the police.
End the Politicisation of the Police Force
Dear Minister of State for Policing and the Fire Service, Nick Hurd MP,
I write to you in regard to three recent cases, at least one of which is on-going. The cases concerning Caroline Farrow, Miranda Yardley, and Kellie-Jay Keen-Minshull.
All three of these cases appear to involve these three women being critical of transgender ideology; being critical of Mermaids; and criticising individual parental decisions to assist a child in transition to the other sex.
Insofar as these cases involve genuine harassment of individuals, they should be investigated. But insofar as they represent ideological disagreement i.e. by refusing to use preferred pronouns, by refusing to call someone’s child a “she” instead of a “he”, this is no concern of the police at all.
- “Women cannot become men and men cannot become women.”
- “A transgender woman is not a woman. No amount of cosmetic change can turn a man into a woman or vice versa.”
- “Encouraging a child to ‘transition’ to the other sex through the use of hormones or surgery or “chest binding” is child abuse.”
These may be considered offensive remarks by some, but they are simply regarded as statements of fact by those who say them.
Those who openly say these things and refuse to address others by pronouns which do not correspond to their biological sex, are not engaging in “hate speech”.
It is the mark of a deeply corrupt and authoritarian police force that would intimidate and harass such people. This ideological debate should not be arbitrated by a police force apparently intent on shutting down criticism of a worldview which is as dangerous as it is non-sensical.
For the police to waste time on such an endeavour is not worthy of the dignity of law enforcement. The police should not be acting as the personal enforcers of Mermaids (or any other group with an ideological grievance.)
It is necessary for you to do all within your power to cease this politicised policing now and produce clear guidance which states that whilst genuine harassment should not be tolerated, ideological disagreement and any offence this might cause, does not rise to the level of crime and is therefore no concern of the police.
