Belfast rejects transphobia

KELLIEJAY Keen-Minshull, AKA Posie Parker, brought her transphobic “Let Women Speak” tour to Belfast on 16 April. She had been forced to cancel her planned appearances in the South because of planned counter-protests. In Belfast the counter protest organised by Songs for Solidarity bringing together different LGBTQ+ groups and supporters outnumbered Posie Parker and her supporters 2:1. The protest was backed by many including some trade unions and ROSA, the socialist feminist movement.

Parker’s speaking tour has been attended and supported by neo-Nazi groups, evangelical extremists and she has previously worked with the “Proud Boys” in the US. Her recent speaking event in Melbourne attracted the support of the National Socialist Movement, a far-right group which gave Nazi salutes on the steps of the Australian parliament. Chaos ensued when Parker attempted to bring her hate rallies to New Zealand, with her 200 supporters being met by a crowd of over 2,000 counter protesters and Parker herself being doused in tomato juice and having to leave her own event and New Zealand early.

Hate and hypocrisy

These events are marketed as “freedom-of-speech” spaces to let women voice their “concerns about gender ideology” (i.e. the existence of trans people). However this is simply a trojan horse to allow far-right, transphobic and homophobic politics gain an echo and legitimacy. Parker, like other far-right bigots, believes she should have free rein to call for violence against trans people, such as when she called for armed men to enter women’s bathrooms to “protect” cisgender women from trans women. Yet, she also thinks that we should not be allowed to oppose her.

In fact, at another event in Australia, a woman from the crowd began speaking positively about trans people and was quickly removed by Parker’s security, with one of them placing his hand around her neck. So much for “letting women speak”.

Transphobia is not only being spread by Posie Parker. The Tories have blocked Gender Recognition Reform in Scotland while in the South Fine Gael are calling for an “open debate” about trans issues. The timing of this suggestion coincided perfectly with the lifting of the eviction ban and with thousands of families facing homelessness (an issue that disproportionately impacts trans people and the entire LGBTQ+ community). The heartbreaking murder of Brianna Ghey underlines that transphobia has brutal and direct consequences.

Resistance works

The presence of trade union banners and activists at the counter protest to Posie Parker was essential. It underlined the important role that trade unions must and can play in defence of their members and in putting forward a fighting strategy for trans rights inside and outside of workplaces.

We must wholly reject the attempts to use concerns about violence against women as a way to attack trans rights. Just like racism, transphobia is being consciously injected into discussions about gender violence now in an attempt to divide and weaken our ability to fight against gender violence. Building a movement that unites the multi-ethnic, multi-gendered working class is key to fighting for trans liberation and for women's rights including an end to gender violence.

Read more about the fight against transphboia